Yield: About 3 1/2 cups
Cook’s notes: This is meant to go atop Buttermilk Biscuits.
1 pound breakfast sausage (bulk, not links)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (optional)
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups milk (skim, low-fat, or whole), or 2 cups milk and 1 cup apple cider
Lemon juice, as needed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
In a large skillet (preferably cast-iron) over medium-high heat, brown the sausage until cooked through. Place a strainer over a small bowl and pour sausage and grease into strainer. Measure out 4 tablespoons of grease and add them back to the skillet (or, if you prefer, use 2 tablespoons grease and 2 tablespoons butter). Turn the heat under the skillet to medium, and whisk in the flour to make a roux. Whisking without ceasing, cook the roux for at least 4 minutes, reducing the heat as needed to ensure the flour doesn’t burn, until the roux is a deep gold and smells nutty.
Still whisking, pour in about 1/2 cup milk, whisk well, and slowly, slowly whisk in remaining milk. Then raise heat to medium or medium-high (again, guard against burning) and let the gravy come to a boil, whisking. Add the sausage back to the gravy, then taste and adjust the flavor as needed with a dash of lemon juice, some salt, and many grindings of pepper. Serve the gravy immediately over hot biscuits as soon as it begins to thicken nicely; remember that it will get thicker and gloppier as it cools, so don’t overdo.
