Biscuits and Gravy

As a kid on a farm in the heart of F-150 country, I had read about vegetarians, but never met them. Like astronauts, or New Yorkers. We ate meat at every meal, including (and especially) breakfast. On crisp fall mornings, biscuits and sausage gravy was The Best. It was hot and savory and substantial. You knew you wouldn’t be hungry until lunch – the next day. As an adult, I still get a hankerin’ for biscuits and gravy, particularly when I’ve had one too many fancy-pants quinoa concoctions. But could biscuits and veggie gravy be just as comforting? I started with the biscuits. It was easy to get rid of the lard in my grandma’s biscuit recipe. (I told you we loved our animal products.) And I wanted to omit her full cup of Crisco. Yes, I know Crisco is vegetable shortening. But it’s also, you know, oddly white and slippery. And the shelf-stable bit weirds me out. A recent trip to Charleston, S.C., introduced me to sour cream biscuits that substitute sour cream for shortening. These goodies had the taste and texture of a scone; delicious, but too coarse to soak up the gravy. It turns out Crisco really is essential for flaky, fluffy biscuits. But by adding sour cream to my recipe, I was able to get away with just 2 tablespoons of shortening. I added an egg white to help lighten them up, and the result was a worthy vehicle for gravy delivery. No-sausage gravy; bless its heart. The original is so good, any variety is a potential letdown. Like when your sweetie says you look “nice,” but you were going for “whoo-ah.” Ever the optimist, I started with a soy sausage substitute. It was a little dry and crumbly, so I increased the butter by a tablespoon. The resulting gravy was indeed nice, but no one was going to raise eyebrows and whistle over it. There are few food problems that mushrooms can’t solve. Portobellos have a hearty taste; sautéed in butter and minced in the food processor, they certainly looked the part of sausage. But the resulting gravy was disappointingly mild-mannered. All Clark Kent, no Superman. I added sautéed onions – too sweet. Heavy cream – too rich. White wine – too boozy. Brandy – really too boozy (but fun to sip while cooking). Biscuits and gravy is farmer food. What I needed was a macho ingredient, one that grabbed the taste buds and kicked them to the back 40. Well, hello, ground red pepper. It’s an old-fashioned spice but one that added the depth and heat I was looking for. Best of all, after a big plate of biscuits and veggie gravy, I wasn’t hungry until lunch the next day. Biscuits 10 Servings 2 cups flour 1½ tsp. baking powder ½ tsp. baking soda ¾ tsp. salt 2 Tbsp. shortening ¾ cup sour cream ¼ cup milk 1 egg white 2 Tbsp. melted butter (optional) • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. • Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Using your fingertips, work the shortening into the flour mixture until it’s absorbed. • In a separate bowl, blend the sour cream, milk and egg white. • Make a well in the flour mixture and pour the sour cream mixture into it. Using your fingertips, mix and knead until the dough is smooth and all the flour is absorbed. • Place the dough on a floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out until it is ½-inch thick. • Use a biscuit cutter or drinking glass to cut out biscuits, kneading and re-rolling dough scraps as needed. • Place the biscuits on an ungreased baking sheet and brush with melted butter. • Bake for 12 to 15 minutes. SAUSAGE-LESS GRAVY Approximately 2 cups 3 cups milk 3 oz. sliced baby bella mushrooms 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, plus 4 Tbsp. unmelted ¼ cup white all-purpose flour Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste Freshly ground red pepper to taste • Pour the milk into a medium saucepan and warm gently on low, stirring occasionally. • In a separate pan, sauté mushrooms in 1 tablespoon of melted butter until browned and soft, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and pulse in a food processor until minced. Set aside. • Add the remaining butter to the pan and melt. Whisk in the flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the roux is thick and smooth. • Slowly add the warm milk to the roux, whisking as you go to avoid lumps. Cook on low heat until the gravy is thick. • Stir in the mushrooms, salt and peppers. Serve warm over biscuits.