Biscuits & Sausage Gravy

Now, this is not a very healthy meal but sometimes a southern girl just needs some good old fashioned biscuits and gravy!  There are a few ways to make this a bit healthier and I'll share those ideas along with the recipe.  Let me start by saying that my sweet boys have had nasty colds this past week and guess who has it now?! I swear, there really should be a universal law that mothers are immune to illness.  Anyways, I had every intention of spending the days in my pj's, which I did, and then I opened the blinds to see snow falling!  That sealed the deal and gave me a crazy urge to whip up some comfort food. I'm a Texas girl and this was a common weekend breakfast in my house and I always looked forward to it. Here's the recipe I've been using for years now and we love it!  I hope you do too!

My sweet boy loved watching the first snow fall of the season!  Such a sweet moment :)

First, combine the flour, baking powder & salt in a mixing bowl and whisk briefly to combine.  Then cut in the butter using a fork or pastry blender.  Finally, stir in the milk slowly until a dough forms.

Drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet.

Bake until tops are golden.  It even looks yummy!

And now for the gravy:

Break up the sausage into nice pieces in a large pan or skillet.

Once browned, add the flour and stir absorbed by the sausage.

Add the milk, salt & pepper and simmer until thickened.

Break a few biscuits in a bowl and top with gravy!  

p.s. I was a little naughty and didn't wait until the gravy was super thick, I was just too darn excited and hungry!

Easy Drop Biscuits:

3 C. all-purpose flour (I prefer King Arthur brand)

2 Tbsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 stick cold butter, diced

1 1/4 C. milk

-Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

1. Combine flour, baking powder & salt in mixing bowl.  Stir to combine.

2. Cut in butter with fork or pastry blender until flour is crumbly.  Stir in milk until dough forms.

3. Drop dough by the spoonful onto cookie sheets.

4.  Bake 15-18 minutes until tops are golden.

*Healthier tips:  Use half whole wheat, or spelt, flour.*

Southern Sausage Gravy:

1 lb. breakfast sausage

1/3 C. flour

4 C. milk

1/2 tsp. salt

1-2 tsp. pepper

1. Heat large pan or skillet on medium heat.  Crumble sausage - I prefer to do this by hand as I add the meat to the pan, it takes a bit more time than just tossing it into the pan but it takes much less elbow grease than breaking up the sausage with a cooking utensil.

2. Once sausage is browned add the flour and stir until absorbed by the sausage.

3. Add the milk, salt & pepper and let simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened.  Pour over biscuits and enjoy!

*Healthier ideas: Use turkey sausage, wheat flour and milk that lower in fat.  You can also simply leave out the meat, melt a bit of butter in the pan then add the flour and follow the same process.*