Skillet Biscuits with Sage Sausage Gravy
This down-home biscuit and gravy recipe tastes heavenly and is a keeper.
Ingredients
For the Biscuits:
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons flour
- 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/3 cup butter, chilled and cut into small cubes (for the dough)
- 1 teaspoon butter (for greasing the skillet)
- 1 egg, beaten (for the egg wash, optional)
- 2 teaspoons cold water (for the egg was, optional)
- 8-inch iron skillet
- 3-inch biscuit or cookie cutter
For the Sage Sausage Gravy:
- 1 pound sage pork sausage
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons flour (heaping)
- 2 cups milk
- 3 dashes salt or to taste
- 3 dashes ground black pepper
For Garnish:
- 1/4 cup cooked sage pork sausage (reserved when cooking the sausage for the gravy)
- 8 pinches paprika
Instructions
For the Biscuits:
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
- Grease the skillet with butter and set aside.
- To a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt, milk, sugar, and chilled small cubes of butter. With a pastry cutter or a large sturdy fork, cut the butter into the ingredients. Continue to mix the ingredients together with a fork until dough forms.
- Sprinkle a light coating of flour on to a large cutting board and add the dough. Knead the dough a few times until the texture becomes sturdy enough to roll. Add a light coating of flour to a rolling pin and roll out the dough until it’s about 1-1/4 inches thick.
- Using a 3-inch wide biscuit or cookie cutter, cut the dough into 2 large biscuits. Then re-roll the remaining dough and cut into 2 more large biscuits. Lay each biscuit in the greased skillet so that each biscuit is leaning against one another.
- For the egg wash - (this is used to add color and shine to the top of the biscuits; since the biscuits will be topped with gravy, using an egg wash is optional). In a small bowl, add egg and cold water. Whisk together. Brush the top of each biscuit with an even coat of egg wash.
- Bake in a preheated oven until the biscuits turn a light golden color (about 16 minutes). Remove the biscuits from the oven and serve while warm, topped with sage sausage gravy.
For the Sage Sausage Gravy:
- While the biscuits are baking, heat a medium size skillet on medium heat. Pinch off the sausage in pieces and add them to the pan (rather than adding one big hunk of sausage to the pan).
- Use a heat resistant spatula to further break up the sausage in small pieces. Stir the sausage as it cooks. Continue to cook until the sausage browns and is thoroughly cooked (about 15 minutes).
- Turn the heat off and transfer the sausage to a paper-lined plate to absorb any excess grease. Set aside for a moment.
- Turn the heat back on to medium heat and use the same pan. Add butter and stir. Add flour and stir. Continue to stir until the flour mixes in with the butter.
- Slowly whisk in the milk. Whisk together. Add salt and pepper. Continue whisking until the gravy starts to thicken (if the gravy becomes too thick, stir in a little more milk).
- Then set aside ¼ cup of the cooked sausage (for garnish) and add the rest of the sausage back in the pan with the gravy. Whisk together and do a quick taste test. Add more salt and, or pepper if needed.
For Garnish:
- Garnish each gravy-topped-biscuit with the remaining pieces of sage sausage and two pinches of paprika. Top with butter if desired.
Notes
TIPS:
- Make the sage sausage gravy while the biscuits are baking.
- When making the gravy, if it's a too thick, whisk in a little more milk at a time until the desired consistency is reached.