Paleo Sausage Gravy and Squash
I am not a Southern gal. I’m descended from a line of stoic, fair-skinned, Seattle-settled Scandinavians. My exposure to Southern culture includes Gone With The Wind and, well, that’s about it.
(It should be noted that I lived in Northern Virginia for a couple years, but that counted more as Washington D.C. than Southern-culture Virginia.)
Growing up, I didn’t experience home-cooked Southern comfort food. And in recent years, as I’ve renovated my diet into a grain-free lifestyle, I focused on converting my own family dishes and creating new recipes. Recently, however, I Pinterested across a recipe for Sausage Gravy over Biscuits. “That sounds really weird and intriguing and strangely delicious,” I thought. And so, I was inspired to re-create the recipe in a way I could enjoy.
About the Ingredients
Delicata Squash – In this rendition of the Southern favorite, I swapped Delicata squash boats for the biscuits. It makes the perfect vessel for the gravy, with less prep time and less carbs. The sweet, creamy squash pairs perfectly with the rich sausage gravy. If you are unfamiliar with Delicata, the skin is tender and edible.
Arrowroot Flour – Arrowroot flour is a grain free starch, used frequently in baking and to thicken sauces. (I use it in my No-Sugar Blueberry Sauce, for example). If you do not tolerate starches such as arrowroot flour, you could substitute my Starch-Free Paleo Gravy recipe.
Sausage Meat – I recommend pastured ground pork or lamb sausage meat. If you do not have pre-seasoned sausage meat, or are allergic to some of the spices used, you can easily make your own. See the Notes section of the recipe.
I like big breakfasts and I cannot lie… as evidenced by my breakfast plate below. I paired two duck eggs with a stuffed sausage (I went heavier on the sausage, lighter on the gravy, but added more gravy after the photo).
- 2 delicata squash
- 1 lb. seasoned ground sausage pork or lamb (see note below)
- 1½ cups full-fat coconut milk (nearly a full can), recommended brand available here
- 1 Tbs. arrowroot flour, available here
- Ghee or bacon grease, if necessary
- Preheat the oven to 350. Line a baking sheet or glass baking dish with unbleached parchment paper. Halve the squash lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Bake the squash, cut side facing down, for an hour, until tender.
- When the squash is almost ready, start cooking the sausage gravy. Brown the sausage meat in a skillet over medium heat. Remove the sausage meat and set it aside, leaving the drippings in the pan. You need about 2 tablespoons of grease to make the gravy. Add more ghee/coconut oil/bacon grease to the pan if necessary.
- Over low heat, add the arrowroot flour and stir briefly. Then whisk in the coconut milk (be careful when adding it, it can splatter in the hot pan). Cook for about minute, until thickened.
- If you want to thicken the gravy, mix 1 tsp. of arrowroot in a tablespoon of water, then whisk this into the cooking gravy. Do not add dry arrowroot flour to the gravy, because it will clump. If you want to thin the gravy, just add broth or coconut milk.
- Mix the reserved sausage with the gravy and season with salt and pepper. Serve in the piping-hot squash boats. If you have a prodigious breakfast appetite like me, pair with eggs for breakfast.
I do not care for coconut milk. What would you substitute?
I am allergic to coconut. Can this be made with a substitution and if so, what would you recommend?
If you do dairy, you could use half and half instead of the coconut milk. You could likely substitute another nut or seed milk, but these are much lower in fat so I would also increase the grease/oil in the recipe by a couple of tablespoons if you take that route.
I grew up on biscuits & gravy. It’s not a weird dish in the south. So I can’t wait to give this a try!
Thanks
I’m a true southern gal and love the look of this recipe!! Thanks Lauren! I may just be having this for dinner tonight. )
I’m a born and raised northerner, and I have always loved biscuits and gravy. Does the gravy taste sweet or coconutty, or does the savory meat and spices cover that flavor up?
There is a slight sweet coconut flavor which I find pleasant here. However, I used a sausage that was quite heavy in garlic so that made it plenty savory. If desired, you can add more spices (ground paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper, etc.) to up the savory factor. If you do dairy, you could use half and half instead of the coconut milk.
That’s not a big breakfast! That’s a regular breakfast.
Anyways. I have a question about farm-raised, pastured and all those labels for meats…
I am very well aware that grain-fed is nothing to boast about and I know that the alternative is grass-fed beef, for example…but what about for chicken…is there such thing as grass-fed chicken or is it called pasture-raised chicken. In short…what’s the healthy alternative to grain-fed chicken?
You’re right, you want to look for “pastured chicken” or “pasture-raised chicken.” If that is not an option, then the next best is organic chicken.
I guess you can omit the arrowroot if you don’t want a thick gravy. Right?
Yes, but the gravy would be very thin as the coconut milk is thick at room temperature but thins out considerably when warmed.
What a creative recipe! It was absolutely delicious.
I loved this!!! I made this for dinner instead and put a side of sauteed zucchini & onions with it. My husband loved it too! I ate leftovers for breakfast, which was great, but my husband thought squash for breakfast was weird. 🙂
Delicious recipe! I’ve made it twice now, and I mixed both ground pork and lamb on one of the occasions and it turned out great.
Have you ever tried it with Butternut squash? I have some on hand and thought about trying it. Would you say the two squash are comparable? Thanks.