Chocolate for breakfast is perfectly acceptable when you serve good old fashioned chocolate gravy with biscuits. It isn’t just for breakfast either! Try serving it over ice cream or use it as a dip for your favorite shortbread cookie!
I never heard of chocolate gravy until I moved to the Deep South and then I wondered were this fabulous dish had been hiding my whole life. It seemed that every family had their own version.
I’m not sure which Granny made this recipe famous but she had to be related to one of my Mississippi friends or neighbors. I asked about chocolate gravy once and about 10 recipes come flooding in. Of all those recipes. this is the one my family likes the best.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Made with just 5 simple pantry ingredients.
Flour -My grandma always used all-purpose flour so that’s what I use. If you already have the self-rising flour out for making homemade biscuits, then go on and use that. I won’t hurt anything, lots of Southern cooks do it. I haven’t mastered homemade biscuits yet, so I rarely have self-rising flour around.
Cocoa Powder – Any unsweetened cocoa powder will work.
Granulated white sugar – the amount of sugar used in chocolate gravy differs from family to family. I use 1 cup of sugar and that is plenty sweet. When you taste it before adding to a biscuit you might think it is too sweet. Just remember that your biscuit probably isn’t sweet and will be fine with a sweet gravy. You can always reduce the sugar if you like.
Milk – I prefer to use whole milk for all my gravies, but 2%, 1%, and skim milk will all work n this recipe. In the old days, they used water. I have never tried this with almond, soy, or coconut milk.
Butter – Salted butter is called for in this recipe. If you don’t have salted butter, add 1/8 teaspoon as salt to the dry ingredients. You are going to need a touch of salt to offset the sweetness.
Instructions
Unlike a traditional breakfast gravy, this one does not cook the flour in fat first. It’s more foolproof than that!
Mix all of the dry ingredients together until there are no lumps left. If you find that your cocoa powder stays in tiny lumps you can use a sifter. Honestly, I always managed to have a few tiny lumps that just won’t cooperate.
Once everything is well combined, add the dry ingredients into a saucepan along with the milk. Whisk to combine and set heat to medium-high. Whisk or stir continuously to prevent scorching. Remember to scrape the sides and corners of the pan or you will get lumps.
The mixture will look fairly light, almost like chocolate milk when you start cooking it. No worries, it will turn darker as it cooks.
Once it has thickened, remove it from the heat and add the butter. Stir until the butter has melted and is combined.
Serve immediately.
Serving
The most Southern way is to serve it over some hot biscuits. Buttering the biscuits is a matter of personal choice and delicious either way. You can serve the gravy in a bowl and dip your biscuits into it.
It’s fantastic over ice cream and pound cake too!
Use it as a dip for churros, marshmallows, shortbread cookies, or graham crackers. Honestly, everything is better when it’s covered in chocolate!
Leftovers
Leftovers can be stored tightly covered in a refrigerator for up to 3 days. Place the gravy into a microwave-safe bowl and reheat for 45 to 60 seconds or until the gravy is heated through.
You can also use a small saucepan and reheat the gravy over medium-low heat. You don’t want to heat it too much or too fast, even though it isn’t a true gravy, there is a risk of breaking or scorching it.
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Homemade Chocolate Gravy Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 cups whole milk
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
Instructions
- Combine sugar [1cup], cocoa powder [1/4 cup], and flour [1/4 cup] and stir until no lumps remain.
- Combine the milk [2 cups] with the cocoa mixture in a saucepan or deep skillet and set over medium-high heat.
- Whisk and stir until mixture starts to barely bubble and thicken.
- Reduce heat and continue to cook and stir until desired consistency is reached.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the butter [3 tablespoons].
- Serve immediately.
