Tim Arensmeier Articles: Christmas Breakfast

Jan Arensmeier’s “World Famous” Christmas Breakfast

This had its start several years ago, when in Atlanta, Georgia, or possibly before that in Clarksville, Tennessee. In any event, when we moved to California, the first Christmas Eve, after attending the midnight service at our church, the Marin Covenant Church, San Rafael, California, while on our way home, Jan mentioned that, “We’ll not be able to have our traditional Christmas Morning breakfast . . . “ at that time, our three younger daughters, Liesl, Kirsten and Michelle, virtually burst out in mutiny, rebellion and the gnashing of teeth in the back of our car: “We have to have sausage gravy ‘n biscuits, Mom!”

Jan and I looked at each other and decided . . . yup. We gotta have our traditional Christmas morning breakfast. We took the girls home. Left them to get ready for bed and go to sleep, while we scoured Marin County for an all night store. Remember, this was 1984, and there were no 24 hour stores in Marin County.

We finally found a policeman, and stopped him (switch . . .) and asked where we could find an all night store as we desperately needed some Jimmy Dean sausage for breakfast in the morning (it now being 12:45 AM on Christmas day).

We were directed to Frank’s Mini Mart in Ignacio, where we found the one last bit of sausage, bought it, and returned home for a successful Christmas morning breakfast.

“Sleep, blessed sleep. Sleep which knits up the raveled sleeve of care . . . “ – Bill Shakespeare.

This is Jan’s world famous recipe for “Christmas morning only: Sausage Gravy ‘n Biscuits.” As it has been asked for eleventy-seven times, I finally decided to have it exist out there somewhere where I can reference it, without bugging Jan by phone or whatever.

So, the following is “off the top of her head” – so to speak:

Sorry, it is totally in my head. This is pretty much it!

1/4 pound sausage per person, fry - then drain grease - remove sausage to drain into paper towel - leave some fat
sauté onions, garlic, celery, mushrooms, & red & green peppers (or just red)
Worcestershire sauce (about 1 tsp)
remove veggies from pan and put in sausage
sprinkle (3 tbsp per lb of Sausage) flour on sausage & stir in
Add milk (start with 1 cup and add for preference of thickness after it is hot)
Return veggies to gravy
Salt & Pepper to taste

Serve warm over biscuits.

Then, in case you want to duplicate the biscuit recipe, it was recently sent to a friend, and is as follows:

Buttermilk Biscuits (makes 16 biscuits) from the Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book

2 cups sifted all purpose flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup shortening

3/4 cup butter milk (or sour milk). If you don't have buttermilk, use the equivalent of 3/4 cup of milk and 3/4 tbls of lemon juice or vinegar.

Sift dry ingredients into bowl. Cut in the shortening 'til like coarse crumbs. Make a well, add milk all at once. Stir quickly with fork, just until dough follows fork around the bowl. Turn onto lightly floured surface. Dough should be soft. Knead gently 10 to 12 strokes.

Roll, or pat dough 1/2 inch thick. Dip cutter (10 ounce glass works) in flour and make round biscuits.

Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake @ 450 for 12 to 15 minutes.

As this is only normally served on Christmas morning, everyone knows that there is not a prohibition against eating things of this sort on that Day. After all, Christmas . . . morning to boot! Is a time that such health foods are supposed to be eaten. Right?!

After all, “Us health foods fanatics gotta stick together. Right?” Have fun!

Web posted: February 12, 2004

Updated: September 24, 2008

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