Sausage Balls

It's Super Bowl Sunday, and I'm preparing the perfect Southern Cooking appetizer - Sausage Balls. Part biscuit, part cheesy sausage mixture, these little balls of joy are bound to bring out the "fatty" in all of us.

1 pound hot pork sausage
3 cups Bisquick
1, 2 cup package sharp cheddar shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Using a Kitchen Aid stand mixer with the paddle attachment (otherwise, tire yourself out with a wooden spoon, your hands, and a big glass bowl), mix sausage with Bisquick on lowest setting. Once Bisquick is well incorporated, add cheese and continue mixing until all ingredients are well mixed.

Remove bowl from stand mixer and roll into 1 inch balls. Place 15 sausage balls on cookie sheet, evenly spaced, and bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Drain on paper towels, and cook next 15 sausage balls.

Note, to keep sausage balls warm, you can place your Crockpot on the "Warm" setting until ready to eat.

Home Cooking Extravaganza

Today we were lucky enough to have some of our favorite guests, Bethany and Hadley, join us for a rare Sunday "homecooking extravaganza." We had home fried turkey cutlets, green beans, homemade mac-n-cheese, and onion soup mix carrots. You can find the green bean and homemade mac-n-cheese recipe from my pre-Thanksgiving post, but the fried turkey cutlets and carrots turned out so yummy, I had to share!

Home Fried Turkey Cutlets
2 eggs
1/2 cup water
Lawry Seasoning Salt
3 cups all purpose flour
Canola Oil
1 to 1.3 pounds turkey breast cutlets

Beat two eggs with water in bowl unter well-beaten. Set aside.

Place 3 cups flour in a shallow baking dish. Add seasoning salt to taste (I add a fairly liberal amount, until you can see it incorporated into the flour when mixed). Stir together flour and seasoning salt with a fork.

Dip turkey cutlets, one at a time in egg mixture. Coat both sides, and then transfer to flour mixture. Make sure both sides are coated and place on a large platter. Repeat with remaining cutlets. Once all cutlets have been coated, dip each one in egg mixture again and then coat in flour again. Double-coating the skinless cutlets will assist in "crisping" up the finished product. Replace to platter, and place, uncovered in refrigerator for 30 minutes to rest.

When ready to cook, place enough oil in pan to come to the top of cutlets, but do not cover them. Heat oil on high until flour "crackles" when you drop it in. At this point, place 3-4 cutlets in the pan and brown on each side. Allow to cook until meat is cooked through (I usually test one piece with a small knife and fork). You may need to adjust heat downward slightly once cutlets are browned until they finish cooking. Repeat until all cutlets have been cooked. Allow to drain on clean platter covered with paper towels. Serve warm.

Onion Soup Mix Green Beans
1 bag baby carrots
1 packet Lipton onion soup mix
water to cover carrots in saucepan

Place carrots in saucepan, and cover with Lipton packet. Add water until carrots are covered.Place on stovetop on high heat and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to medium. Cook for 30-40 minutes, or until desired tenderness has been reached.

Enjoy!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, everyone. Wow, it's been awhile since I posted anything on here, so I better get to work! The truth is, Jeff has been doing a significant amount of the cooking (1) because he's wonderful and (2) because I've been working later. We ate some delicious authentic Mexican tacos last night with homemade tortillas. If you're ever in Roanoke, TX give Tortilla Flats a try! But, that did put me in a mood for some south of the border recipes. The salsa recipe is from Leatta's mom, Arlene, and is so delicious. It makes a huge batch, so be ready to share. The margarita recipe is an old tried and true staple that we've been making since graduate school. Enjoy!

Arlene's Homemade Salsa

1 can diced tomatoes (14 oz)
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 to 2 cans El Pato hot sauce (1 for mild, 2 for medium)
1 red onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 bunch cilantro, chopped

Place first 3 ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add red onion, green pepper, green onions, and cilantro. Stir well until ingredients are spread evenly throughout. Regrigerate at least 1 hour before serving (making the night before you plan to eat this is even better).


Margarita Mayhem
6 oz frozen limeade concentrate
6 oz blanco or silver tequila
2 oz triple sec
6 oz Sprite or lemon-lime flavored soda
5 cups crushed ice

Place first 4 ingredient in blender and then add ice until full. Blend well and serve.

Apple and Potato Hash

Todd and I made this the other day after seeing it on Rachel Ray. It probably would have turned out better if we had followed the recipe but it was good anyway. We didn't use the cheese because he doesn't like cheese but I liked it that way. The apples add a lot of sweetness and the bacon and potatoes make it a great filling breakfast! She served it with pork chops which would be awesome too!

• 4 slices good quality bacon, chopped
• 1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold or other golden potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 2 medium onions, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 2 to 3 Gala, Honeycrisp or Golden Delicious apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 1 teaspoon caraway, about 1/3 palmful (optional)
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup cloudy cider or chicken stock
• 1/2 pound brick extra-sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
• Add a turn of the pan of oil to the hot skillet. Add bacon and cook 2 minutes to render some of the fat. Add potatoes and onions, season with pepper and cook 7-8 minutes. Add in the apples, and caraway, if using. Cook 5-6 minutes more. Add salt to taste, vinegar, and cider or stock to pan. Turn the hash in the pan until the liquid evaporates, about 2 minutes. Top hash with shredded cheese and serve.