I never do anything special....just make biscuits....and fry up sausage....depending on how fatty, drain some of the grease....and add an amount that looks to be about the same amount as the sausage grease left in the pan....cook a few minutes....and stir in milk as it's cooking.
Split the biscuits and dump over....Oh and lots of salt and black pepper!
The recipes come in if you make your own sausage and make the biscuits from scratch.
Linda C

A recipe for biscuits is easy to find and simple to assemble. The trick to making good, fluffy, tender biscuits is in handling the dough as little as possible. Stir the ingredients only enough to combine them. Sprinkle and pat with plenty of flour when spreading, cutting and shaping the dough to prevent sticking. I pat the dough out by hand and cut the biscuits with any circular object such as a can or drinking glass (or even a biscuit cutter, LOL). Bake them and that's all there is to it.

Gravy is made, as Linda says, by cooking and stirring equal amounts of fat and flour for two or three minutes after it starts bubbling, then adding liquid (milk) at the rate of about one cup liquid to each two tablespoons of fat. Stir or wisk immediately and vigorosly to prevent lumps. A minute or two of cooking will finish it. Adjust the consistency by boiling off a little liquid or by adding more. I agree with Linda about seasoning sausage gravy well. It shouldn't be bland.

Jim

Maryanne, I made Buttermilk biscuits and sausage gravy for dinner last week. One of those things I just wing. But I wrote up what I did for Stacy. I added a little leftover chicken gravy which made it even better.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

Sausage Gravy
=============
Basic Outline for Sausage Gravy.
I never measure any of the ingredients.

Good Quality Sausage
oil
garlic
Cream/milk
salt, pepper
flour
fresh sage

Remove sausage from casings and saute in oil. Break the sausage up into smaller pieces.

When Sausage is brown add minced garlic. Cook for one minute. Add 1 to two tablespoons of flour. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes. Add cream and or milk. Season with salt, lots of fresh ground pepper and minced sage. Simmer for 10 or 15 minutes to meld the flavours. Serve over homemade buttermilk biscuits.

Note: If you have any leftover chicken, turkey or pork gravy add it to the sausage gravy.

Maryanne, do you have a favorite sausage? I think that's the key..good flavored sausage. If it comes in links..just squish it out. :o) I like lots of garlic in mine. For this I use garlic powder though.

I had a seagoing uncle who used to show up unannounced on a fairly regular basis..and always asked if I had any leftover gravy and some bread..he'd have him a snack right there. The preference was pork chop gravy. He said I made the best gravy he had ever eaten (wasn't so special to me). The secret? A little sugar in the gravy. Works for pork chops, sausage, anything involving pork of any kind. Even works for hamburger gravy, if you're into that sort of thing. We're talking milk gravy here. Old fashioned stuff. With sausage gravy and biscuits, that little bit of sugar changes the ordinary to awesome!

This is the recipe I use for the biscuits.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

Country Biscuits
================
Edited/November 2005

2 cups of flour
1 Tablespoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening, lard, crisco or butter (I use butter)
1 cup of milk (cream) or buttermilk
if using buttermilk add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda)

Mix the flour with the baking powder, and salt. Cut in shortening until
it resembles coarse meal. Stir milk or cream in to flour mixture. Mix
quickly with fork until dough comes together. Using hands gently pat
the ingredients together. Do not over handle. Pat out to about 1/2 to
3/4 inch thick on a lightly floured board.
Cut with biscuit cutters and place on a parchment paper lined cookie
sheet and bake for approximately 12 to 15 minutes at 450°F.

If making cheese biscuits add the mustard and cayenne to the dry
ingredients and add the cheese after the shortening has been cut into
the flour.

(Note: to cut in shortening either use a pastry blender or put the dry
ingredients along with the shortening in a food processor and pulse
until the fat is the size of little peas. Do not over process. Pour the
mixture into a bowl and add the liquid stirring with a fork.)

(Options: For cheese biscuits, add cayenne pepper, dry mustard and some
shredded cheddar cheese) or add some fried ham and green onions with
the cheese)

Option for using Blue Cheese(s):

Add chopped green onion and Gloucestershire cheese or another type of
blue cheese. And black pepper to taste.

Ann,

What a fabulous photo! It made me impulsively reach for my fork.

Jim

thanks everyone.

what i remembered was a little onion and i thought beef boullion or stock, but on ann's suggestion, i'll use chicken and i have plenty of fresh sage.

the sausage is MOST excellent - it's mine! so being a bit bias, i'd say i'm starting with an excellent sausage.

thanks again everyone. my belly thanks you too.

maryanne