Sausage Balls

I think every family has a lot of food traditions associated with Christmas. Sausage Balls come from our southern family tradition. They are often made at other occasions because everyone loves them so much, but they ALWAYS show up during the holidays. This is one of the recipes that made it into the family tome I was gifted when I married Keith, and we have definately assimilated it into our Boston Christmastime. 

Everyone gets in on the cooking at Christmas. The cousins made Chex Mix 

The recipe is very simple and it is great for involving the little family members because you have to use your hands to get it right. (also a good time to teach about not eating raw meat, handwashing etc...) We usually use hot sausage but you can use any sausage you enjoy. Traditionally, this recipe is made with Bisquick, but it works fine with any all-purpose baking mix. I recently used the Trader Joe's all-purpose pancake and waffle mix. It worked great. 

Sausage Balls

Ingredients:

1 pound of hot ground pork sausage

2 cups baking mix (pancake or biscuit)

1 pound sharp shredded cheddar cheese 

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven 350 degrees.

2. In a medium bowl combine all ingredients. Knead everything together until it is fully incorporated. When you start there will be a collection of mix and cheese that rests in the bottom of the bowl. Keep turning the sausage, pressing it into the mix and kneading until all of it is combined into one large sausagey dough.

3. roll the dough into one-inch balls, and arrange on a baking tray. 

4. Bake 20-25 minutes until the tops are golden brown and the sausage is cooked through.

5. Try to let them cool before everyone eats them all. 

Berry Pie

This is a blueberry pie I made on vacation in Colorado

 I have made a lot of berry pies. Keith is not fan of cake, so he always gets blueberry pie for his birthday. Some of the birthday pies have gone well and some have been terrible. For years I have searched for the recipe that will give me a berry pie that slices and when you lift it up all the filling does not fall out, but stays in a perfect purple wedge. I have finally found a recipe that works really well. Depending on the berries, some juicier varieties take a little longer to cook, but this recipe works EVERY TIME.

Thanksgiving pies 2021: Black Raspberry pie

There are two key secrets to a good berry pie:

1. Frozen berries

2. Grated apples

The frozen berries seem to keep the pie from going to watery syrup too fast. And I have learned that with berries, frozen does not have to mean processed or sub-par quality. We pick our black raspberries from the yard and put them directly in the freezer until we have enough to make a pie. If you are not freezing your own berries, just make sure you are purchasing organic, good quality berries. If you use strawberries (which you can) you do need to cut them up a bit. The huge frozen ones will give you trouble whole

fresh picked black raspberries (and some peas) on their way to the freezer awaiting their pie debut

The grated apple is a wonderful trick. The pectin in the apple works as a binder for the pie, and it helps with sweetness and consistency. Genius!

Check out that clean cut! That is what you want

This Pie uses two pie crusts. You can find a pie crust recipe HERE. The top crust is going to need vent holes. I latticed my top, but you can just cut slits to vent the steam too.

Berry Pie

Ingredients:

For the Filling:

• 1 small golden delicious apple (shredded on the side of a box grater)
• 5 cups berries (frozen)
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar packed
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
• pinch of ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

For Finishing:

• 1 large egg white
• 1 teaspoon water
• 2 tablespoons raw coarse sugar

Directions:

or the Filling:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Place a foil lined sheet pan in the oven as it preheats. Combine the apple, blackberries, blueberries, lemon juice, lemon zest, sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and salt.
• Pour the filling into a chilled pie crust.
• Place the pie into the freezer while rolling out the top pastry. Keeping everything cold is key!
• Roll out the second piece of dough so it fits the cover of the pie.
• Cover the filling with the second piece of pastry.
• Cut slits into the pie for venting. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar.
• Bake on the pre-heated baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes.
• Lower the oven to 375 degrees. Bake for another 35 to 40 minutes or until the pastry it a golden brown.
• Remove from oven and allow it to cool for 2 to 3 hours to allow the pie filling to thicken.