Breakfast Biscuits & Gravy

When I was little, my family would sometimes make the drive from Los Angeles to Las Vegas and spend weekends with our aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. Everyone gathered together at Grandma and Grandpa’s house. On Sundays my Grandpa Walt would make homemade sausage gravy and my Grandma Judy would make over a hundred hand-rolled and cut buttermilk biscuits. It was a dairy and meat-filled delicious breakfast where we all gorged ourselves beyond measure. 

Today I continue comfort breakfast traditions with my family. Here’s how we do it… fair warning, this takes some effort and does have a little bit of fry time to achieve the right texture, but isn’t that what Sunday mornings are for? (p.s. there’s a cheat on the sausage in ‘alternative-tips’ below)

Sausage Dough

Ingredients:

Keep for the pan frying stage:

• 2 tbsp whole wheat flour
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 – 2 1/2 cups of any plant milk

Mix first and set aside:

• 1 tbsp ground flax seed
• 3 tablespoons water

For sausage dough: in food processor rough chop

• 3/4 cup cooked brown rice (cooled)
• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 2 tbsp whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp blackstrap molasses
• 1 tbsp coconut oil (room temp) and save a little on the side for the pan frying step

Sausage spice: (can be mixed in bulk ahead of time)

• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 1/2 tbsp tamari, liquid aminos, or soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp rubbed or ground sage
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp thyme

Method:

1. Take all dough ingredients and add to your food processor. Mix on a rough chop setting, until it comes together.
2. Place 1/2 the mixture into your extra coconut oil as needed for frying (2 tbsp) and gently fry until crispy looking – maybe 4-5 mins depending on your heat. I cook on med/high.
3. The other 1/2 of mixture can be made into 1/2 inch balls and flattened into pucks for pan frying.
4. Reduce heat to low and add 2 tbsp flour (any whole wheat flour)
5. Mix into sausage lightly until coated, turn heat down to low
6. Add 2 – 2 1/2 cups of plant milk
7. Mix into sausage gently and simmer until thick – more simmering equals more yumminess but you may need to add more milk too. I also always add another dash of salt and pepper at the end.

Alterna-tips:

1. If you need a shortcut, you can use Beyond Meat Sausages instead of making your own plant-based sausage crumble. You won’t need any additional oil if you go this route. This cuts the time and effort down significantly!

 

Vegan Buttermilk Biscuit Recipe – Dairy Free, Oil free

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole wheat white flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp coconut or date sugar (optional)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup coconut milk (full fat from a can)
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Mix ingredients together until it almost sticks together
3. Gently knead dough on a lightly floured surface until it comes together into a ball
4. Flatten into a rectangle shape approximately 3/4 inch thick and then cut into 6 equal parts
5. Put biscuits on baking sheet
6. Bake for 15-18 minutes

This is one of my favorite comfort food breakfasts. It reminds me of my Grandpa Walt and all of our big Sunday family meals. Best of all, it supports my family’s new lifestyle choices and allows us to make even more memories together.

I’d love to hear your gluten-free creations on this one as well. Please share in the comments!

 

Healthy food, healthy family-

Jen