Tuesday, March 15, 2005
Chocolate gravy, anyone?
So, I was readin' the school lunch menus in my home county paper, and noticed chocolate gravy was on the breakfast menus for half of the country schools.
Dr. ER says she has never heard of such! Mama ER never made it, but a young ER used to have chocolate gravy on biscuits sometimes at school.
This might be a city kid-country kid thing. Below is a recipe, one of several findable on-line.
What about you? Any chocolate gravy in yer life?
Chocolate gravy
1 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons cocoa
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) margarine
Mix dry ingredients well and add milk until smooth. Melt margarine in iron skillet. Add mixture and cook until desired consistency.
Serve over biscuits.
--ER
Dr. ER says she has never heard of such! Mama ER never made it, but a young ER used to have chocolate gravy on biscuits sometimes at school.
This might be a city kid-country kid thing. Below is a recipe, one of several findable on-line.
What about you? Any chocolate gravy in yer life?
Chocolate gravy
1 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons cocoa
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) margarine
Mix dry ingredients well and add milk until smooth. Melt margarine in iron skillet. Add mixture and cook until desired consistency.
Serve over biscuits.
--ER
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Now this is interesting. I walked in the door three minutes ago from spending my daily 30 minutes on the treadmill. I was having a hankering for biscuits and gravy, knowing full well I have to avoid those temptations.
I've never had chocolate gravy, but the recipe looked surprisingly like the old-fashioned fudge recipe on the back of the Hershey's can sitting next to my computer (don't ask.) Sure enough, compare these two... leave out the flour, up the sugar, cut the milk about in half...
Rich Cocoa Fudge
3 cups sugar
2/3 cup Hershey's Cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margerine
1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
Line 8- or 9-inch square pan with foil; butter foil. (In my family, we had a certain platter that we buttered up for fudge). In heavy 4-quart saucepan (we used the Presto pressure cooker pan which I still have), stir together sugar, cocoa and salt. Stir in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to full rolling boil. Boil, without stirring, to 234 degrees F or until syrup, when dropped into very cold water, forms a soft ball which flattens when removed from water (we had a special cup for this portion too. No stinkin' candy thermometer in our house!) (Bulb of candy thermometer should not rest on bottom of saucepan.) Remove from heat. Add butter and vanilla; DO NOT STIR. Cool at room temperature to 110 F (lukewarm). Beat with wooden spoon until fudge thickens and loses some of its gloss. (Now, see, we had a different technique. Fill the sink with a few inches of cold water, stick the pressure cooker pan into it to cool down and beat the hell outta the fudge. It took the right muscles.) Spread quickly into prepared pan. Cool. Cut into squares.
Funny what good memories come back from reading a cocoa box, isn't it?
I've never had chocolate gravy, but the recipe looked surprisingly like the old-fashioned fudge recipe on the back of the Hershey's can sitting next to my computer (don't ask.) Sure enough, compare these two... leave out the flour, up the sugar, cut the milk about in half...
Rich Cocoa Fudge
3 cups sugar
2/3 cup Hershey's Cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margerine
1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
Line 8- or 9-inch square pan with foil; butter foil. (In my family, we had a certain platter that we buttered up for fudge). In heavy 4-quart saucepan (we used the Presto pressure cooker pan which I still have), stir together sugar, cocoa and salt. Stir in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to full rolling boil. Boil, without stirring, to 234 degrees F or until syrup, when dropped into very cold water, forms a soft ball which flattens when removed from water (we had a special cup for this portion too. No stinkin' candy thermometer in our house!) (Bulb of candy thermometer should not rest on bottom of saucepan.) Remove from heat. Add butter and vanilla; DO NOT STIR. Cool at room temperature to 110 F (lukewarm). Beat with wooden spoon until fudge thickens and loses some of its gloss. (Now, see, we had a different technique. Fill the sink with a few inches of cold water, stick the pressure cooker pan into it to cool down and beat the hell outta the fudge. It took the right muscles.) Spread quickly into prepared pan. Cool. Cut into squares.
Funny what good memories come back from reading a cocoa box, isn't it?
My Grannie used to make it for us and once in awhile my Mom did, too.
I have no idea what they put in it, but it was very good!
I have no idea what they put in it, but it was very good!
Good friend of mine who is a lurker -- someone who reads this blog sometimes but never leaves a message -- dares to even doubt the existence of chocolate gravy! Suggests that I read a typo in the county paper! Well, I'll swan. He is, in every other regard, as much a small-town Texan as I am a small-town Okie. Difference is, he is a plainsman, and I came up a hillbilly. That might be the difference.
Well my sweet little mama made us
Chocolate gravy, I make my little
ones Chocolate gravy too. They love
it. nothing better for soppin biscuts. Well there are some things
that might be better but it up in
the top 10.
Did you have a stump burnin? I almost came down this weekend. Well
I ment to come see you but time just got away from me. I was hoping
to surprise all of you. Come sit
by the fire with my friends again.
Chocolate gravy, I make my little
ones Chocolate gravy too. They love
it. nothing better for soppin biscuts. Well there are some things
that might be better but it up in
the top 10.
Did you have a stump burnin? I almost came down this weekend. Well
I ment to come see you but time just got away from me. I was hoping
to surprise all of you. Come sit
by the fire with my friends again.
I consider myself a connoisseur of artery-clogging cuisine, but until now, I had never heard of chocolate gravy. Seems to me, as Minister of Deep Fried Crunchy Goodness, that there must be a deep fried tasty morsel that could be kicked up a notch with some chocolate gravy. Sort of a sweet analog of chicken fried steak with cream gravy. Maybe a cherry fried pie. ER, would you be willing to chair an ad hoc chocolate gravy utilization committee?
# posted by 
: 9:42 PM
: 9:42 PM
Jeannie Diane! Good to see you! Please go back to your blog! You left us hanging in your story about going to California. I want to know more, please!
Chocolate gravy is good, but I really like strawberry or blackberry gravy over hot, steaming buttermilk biscuits! Yum. I get hungry just thinking about it.
I grew up on chocolate gravy. It's an old ozark hillbilly breakfast. Every family unit I have knows and makes chocolate gravy to this day. I still make it. It's eaten with biscuits, butter and is wonderful on bacon. It's an ozark speciality just like sugar - n- mollasses is.
# posted by : 3:39 PM
: 3:39 PM
Thanks for stopping by, John Thomas. My part of northeastern Oklahoma is part of the Ozarks. That might splain it!
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