Recipe #3: Biscuits and Gravy

The Experience

The film Tampopo was a lighthearted look at life in Japan, and poked fun at the daily struggle and lengths people go to appear proper and "Japanese" at all times. It was also an anthropoligcal study, although scripted and controlled, of how something as simple as food permeates every aspect of life. Moving from one foodcentric scene to another, Tampopo explored the relationship between food and people--how food affects their survival, serves as a means to make a living, and how people become accustomed to having their food prepared and presented in a particular manner. How a person makes food, what they eat, and how they eat it become subjects of scrutiny and measures of their place in society's hierarchy. Food becomes a means conveying your love for your family, your appreciation for your customers, your means of opening your home to share with others. Certain foods envoke romantic feelings, and even play a role in human sexuality.

Much of the film focused on how particular foods provide comfort and emotional balance to individuals. Most of the characters in the film viewed a dish as simple bowl of ramen as essential to human existence, and they all had their own personal views on how Tampopo should prepare the perfect soup. Goro's quest for the perfect balance of ingredients, heat, texture, and amount was a quest of love--not for Tampopo herself, but for the love of a soup that was not only nourishing to the stomach, but also satisfying to the soul.

The Experiment

Each culture and social circle has their own set of comfort foods that provide the emotional balance between human and food sought by Goro. For this week's recipe, I prepared a dish that is popular in my family and social set: biscuits and gravy. Many of my friends ask to be notified whenever I make biscuits and gravy, so this recipe is a little larger to accomodate 10 people. The gravy was prepared in two different ways to accomodate both vegetarians and omnivores. Everyone tore in ate everything before I could get any pictures, but ultimately biscuits and gravy are more about taste than appearances anyway.

Biscuits (recipe taken from a classic Betty Crocker's Cookbook that I stole from my grandmother's kitchen--the only alteration I made to the recipe was subsituting the shortening for unsalted butter, because Crisco creeps me out)

1 cup unsalted butter
3 1/2 cups flour
5 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 c milk

Combine dry ingredients and add butter in small quantities, working it into the mixture with a fork until it looks dry and crumbly. Add milk slowly and knead until the dough forms a ball (add more flour to the outside and work it in if it is sticky). Roll out the dough to a 1/2 inch of thickness and use a glass or cookie cutter to cut it into circles. Bake at 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown. Makes about 2 dozen biscuits.

Sausage/Mushroom Gravy (recipe also stolen from my grandmother)

I'm including both vegetarian and non-vegetarian preparation instructions.

10-12 pork or turkey sausage links (obviously not used in the vegetarian version)
4 tbsp sausage drippings or butter
4 tbsp gravy flour (I used Wondra)
4 cups heavy cream (gravy works with any dairy product down to 2% milk fat)
1 1/2 c chopped mushrooms
salt and pepper to taste

Heat drippings or melt butter on low. Add the flour one tbsp at a time, stirring it in with a fork until it forms a thick paste. Add the milk and increase heat to medium, and bring it to a boil, stirring constantly. Once the mixture boils, decrease heat to low and add mushrooms and sausage. Stir 2-5 minutes until the mushrooms soften. Serve hot--feeds 10-12 people.