Aunt Betty’s Sausage Gravy

My aunt Betty was a hell of a cook. She passed away a few years ago, and during my last trip to Virginia, my mom gave me a cookbook that Betty had compiled. Now, Betty was a Southern woman.

The wife of a farmer and firefighter, she had good food and the good skill needed to cook for lots of hearty appetites. This morning Jodie and I kept her spirit alive, with a visit to her cookbook. Below is her recipe for sausage gravy — and I do believe we did her proud.

Aunt Betty’s Sausage Gravy
Recommended: Serve with The Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits of Carla the Baking Goddess
[Any Chef Ant notes are in brackets]

1 lb. pork sausage
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
salt and pepper to taste
1-1/4 c. milk
1 1/4c. water

1. Brown sausage in a skillet [a little under medium heat]. Use a potato masher to break up sausage into small particles, as it cooks [if cooking patties, don't let them brown too much on a side, as they're harder to mash]. Remove sausage from skillet and drain as much fat as possible from meat. Pour fat out of skillet [not down drain] and drain as much fat as possible from meat [sandwiching it between some paper towels always works well]
2. Pour fat out of skillet and wipe clean with paper towel. [Lower heat, until a little above medium-low] Put 1/2 stick oleo butter [oleo is what the early generation of margarine was called] into skillet. Melt and add flour, salt and pepper [mmm, roux...] Stir and brown until mixture is almost brown. Be careful because it will scorch quickly at this point.
3. Mix sausage, milk and water together. Add to browned flour and oleo butter. Cook slowly until thickened [no hotter than medium-low; use your nose to gauge: there should be a distinct yet blended scent of pepper, flour and sausage]

Note: If gravy is too thick add a little more water and stir well. If it is too thin, mix a little flour and water together. Pour this in slowly so it will nto get too thick.

Serve over open-face biscuits, and please give a wee nod and thanks to Aunt Betty as you enjoy.