Buttermilk Biscuits with Sausage Gravy — Down-Home Comfort

Buttermilk Biscuits with Sausage Gravy

Buttermilk Biscuits with Sausage Gravy

Photo by: Virginia Willis ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Right Reserved

Virginia Willis, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Right Reserved

As an avid biscuit maker, I enjoy eating and baking many forms of biscuits. There are fluffy, light, flaky biscuits; tender, soft, cakelike biscuits; massive country-style biscuits called catheads; and delicate tea biscuits meant for ladies' luncheons.

I'm asked quite a bit about biscuits. Random folks hear my accent and ask about Southern biscuits. People reach out on Twitter and Facebook. I also get at least a couple of emails a week asking how to make biscuits.

Recently, it was a plea for a lost recipe: "They were very light and fluffy. I think she used lard. She cut the biscuits out and let the dough rest while we went to church. They were better than any bread or biscuits I have ever tasted."

There's no doubt in my mind that nothing says down-home comfort like a fluffy, buttery biscuit. This is what taste memories are made of; this is what leads to yearnings for lost recipes. These are not those obscenely large and layered fast-food monstrosities that taste of imitation fat or cans of biscuit dough that have a shelf life of 6 months. Those kind of biscuits only exist because of ingredients that end in suffixes like -ceride and -pylene. Real biscuits are made from flour, fat, liquid, leavener and salt.

Biscuits with sausage gravy are a rib-sticking way to start the day. They are a no-nonsense breakfast, the he-man of down-home comfort. They are meant to start a day spent on the farm, in the field or at the wheel. This is not a fancy brunch dish; this is an old-fashioned Southern classic.

Bon Appétit, Y'all!

Georgia-born, French-trained Chef Virginia Willis has cooked lapin Normandie with Julia Child in France, prepared lunch for President Clinton and harvested capers in the shadow of a smoldering volcano in Sicily, but it all started in her grandmother's country kitchen. A Southern food authority, she is the author of Bon Appétit, Y'all and Basic to Brilliant, Y'all , among others. Follow her continuing exploits at VirginiaWillis.com.

Related Links:

Next Up

How to Make Whatever Dinner You're Craving — Even If You Don't Have the "Right" Protein

Want chicken parm but only have tofu and pork chops in the fridge? These recipes prove that flexibility can still be satisfying.

Chilled-Out Takes on Comfort Food Favorites

Some of our most beloved hot comfort food favorites have ice-cold, chilled-out alter egos that are well worth your time this summer.

Pasta Pie Is the Ultimate Fall Comfort Food

You’ll want a big slice of them all.

Our Best Recipes for Instant Pot Comfort Food

Feed the whole family. Don't mess up the whole kitchen.

The One Dish Every Vegan Needs on Their Thanksgiving Dinner Table

Your favorite comfort food casserole but make it vegan.

6 Beefy Comfort Foods You’ll Crave Year-Round

A delicious dish is never far away with these meaty recipes.

Not to Brag, But I Created a Truly Magic 5-Ingredient Chicken Soup

Thanks to an unusual (but easy) technique, the broth is insanely flavorful.