Imagine my despair as I realized that all my favorite brands were loaded down with sugars and preservatives. OR price-prohibitive. There are a lot of excellent all-natural, organic brands - some at stores, some at meat counters and some available via the internet. But most of them are really expensive. Emphasis on the REALLY!
And, believe me, if I could just buy whatever I wanted without have to factor in price - I might. I might not too...I am notoriously frugal! I am all about the bargain!
Which is what drove me to make my own sausage at home. I scoured Pinterest and my favorite Paleo bloggers and then I pulled spices and seasonings out of my pantry and went to work!
Here are my 3 favorite variations - all can be made with pork, turkey or chicken. I usually use pork - it satisfies me the way sausage should, but I like using ground turkey and chicken as well for a change. PLEASE don't buy the extra lean ground poultry - it just doesn't work. Your sausage will end up dry and not hold together in patties or meatballs without adding back in the fat that was left out in the first place!
All recipes assume 1 pound of ground protein. All ingredients are combined in one bowl, mixed thoroughly (use your hands - it's most effective and totally rewarding!) and then it's up to you - you can make patties or freeform meatballs or links or just pan-fry the sausage into crumbles to use in everything! I have frozen full recipes formed into the classic sausage log to slice and cook and it works pretty well (as long as you remember to take it out to thaw ahead of time...I didn't love the results when I had to defrost it in the microwave).
Classic (from my childhood) Breakfast Sausage:
1 lb ground pork, turkey or chicken
1 1/2 t ground fennel (this cannot be left out...you have to just go buy some!)
1-2 cloves finely minced garlic
1 t onion powder
1 t paprika
1 t cayenne pepper
1 t sea salt
1/2 t white pepper
Holiday (also from my childhood) Sausage:
1 lb ground pork, turkey or chicken
1 T finely chopped fresh sage
1/2 t dried thyme
1/4 t dried rosemary
1/4 t fresh nutmeg
1/4 t cayenne pepper
Pinch of red pepper flake
1 t sea salt
1 T raw honey
Apple Sausage
1 lb ground pork, turkey or chicken
1/2-2/3 c grated apple (I run mine through a grater and then chop it with a sharp knife, leaving most of the apple juice in the recipe - I like to use Pink Lady or Honeycrisp)
1 T finely minced onion or shallot (you can substitute 1 t onion powder)
1 T chopped parsley
1/2 t poultry seasoning
1/4 t allspice
1 t sea salt
1/4 t freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of crushed red pepper flake (optional)
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