Free preview of In Grandma's Kitchen: Food and Family
in Olden Times
by Maria Cattell
Chapter 15
Cisco Saturdays: Sausage & Grits & Redeye Gravy
It was a mantra: "sausage and grits and redeye gravy." Just say that mantra to any of my sons and they'll tell you about Cisco Saturdays with Grandpa. My kids spent many weekends with Grandma and Grandpa, from Friday night through Sunday dinner, when Hudson, Kharran and I would join them. Saturday morning was special because that's when Cisco Kid aired on TV. It was a Western featuring the Cisco Kid and his Mexican sidekick, Pancho. When my son Chazz and I saw a couple episodes of Cisco recently, we agreed they were poorly done. But in the old days, everyone loved the show.
Grandpa was an early bird. He'd get up cheerfully, intoning "full-a-pep! full-a-pep!" as he walked around the house, looking out the windows and stepping onto the porch to check the wind and weather. And he'd proclaim: "I am monarch of all I survey."
I am monarch of all I survey,
My right there is none to dispute,
From the centre all round to the sea,
I am lord of the fowl and the brute.
William Cowper (1731-1800)
Monarch's inspection done, Grandpa turned to the stove, started the grits and got busy with the sausage.
GRANDPA'S SAUSAGE & REDEYE GRAVY
Put sausages in a cold iron skillet with water to just barely cover the sausages. Boil until water has evaporated in 10 to 15 minutes. Let the sausages brown, turning occasionally. Put sausages on a plate and make the redeye.
Redeye Gravy:
Scrape the sausage bits left in the skillet, plop a big pat of butter in the hot pan along with a little hot water and a dash of cayenne, and let it all simmer for a few minutes.
Grandpa would serve the kids plates of sausage and grits drizzled with the redeye, and they'd eat as only hungry boys can eat. When Cisco came on at 7:30, everyone gathered in Grandpa's den to watch the show. This is Chazz's account:
"Cisco started at 7:30 am so we had to get up early because Grandpa insisted we have breakfast. Grandpa would cook sausage and grits and make redeye gravy. For a few weeks he kept adding more and more cayenne to the redeye. He said he was trying to discourage us from getting up so early. But I didn't care. I wasn't going to let heat keep me from the grits and redeye. Then one Saturday Grandpa put a big heap of cayenne in the red eye but I ate it anyway. And Grandpa said, 'You win. This is pretty hot.' After that he didn't put so much cayenne in. After we ate our breakfast, we'd go into Grandpa's den and watch Cisco Kid and Pancho."
To this day Kevin puts hot pepper on his sausage though he hasn't watched Cisco in decades. And when it's time to go somewhere, we often say, like Pancho, "Let's went." To which the response is: "Ah, Pancho!" followed by, "Ah, Cisco!" And off we go.