Happy New Year (a bit late)! OK, so I'm also really tardy with this post. Holidays, travel, broken computer - blah, blah, blah. I'm back now.
Like most people I resolved to be healthier this year. Luckily, experience has taught me that you don't have to sacrifice everything you love in order to eat in a more healthy way. That is one of the things I love most about cooking. When you prepare your own meals you control what goes into it and, more importantly, what doesn't.
Karl and I looove to have breakfast sandwiches on Saturday mornings. You really can't beat a bacon, egg and cheese on an English muffin. And I honestly think the sandwiches I make at home are better than what you would get at a diner. Plus, we don't need to put on real pants. I also love a good sausage patty with my eggs but even turkey sausage often has a lot of added fat and fillers. It's pretty scary if you read the ingredients on the average box of breakfast sausage. Ick.
I decided to try to make my own breakfast sausage using extra lean ground turkey. This is a lighter substitute for bacon (and wayyyyy better for you than prepared sausage) and the patties were really easy to make. This recipe makes about 10-12, depending on how large you make them. You could even freeze them and then microwave one to make a quick weekday breakfast later on.
What you'll need:
1 lb extra lean turkey sausage
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp thyme
1 tsp ground fennel seed
1/2 tsp ground sage
generous pinch red pepper flakes (1/8 to 1/4 tsp depending on how spicy you like it)
2 Tbs maple syrup (use the real stuff)
freshly ground black pepper
drizzle of olive or canola oil for cooking the patties
How to do it:
Put the ground turkey into a large mixing bowl. Add the salt through maple syrup. Crack a good amount of black pepper on top.
Mix up the meat and spices with your (clean) hands. Lean ground turkey is pretty sticky and annoying to work with. If you start with wet hands it will be a bit easier. Thoroughly combine without over mixing.
Next heat a non stick skillet and add a bit of oil. Once the skillet is hot scoop the turkey mixture in. I used a 1/4 c measuring cup but next time I think I would use a 1/3 c. At first you will keep the sausage in these little round balls but don't worry - they'll be patties soon.
After the sausage browns on one side flip it and then use your spatula to push it in patty. It is very important that you push down on the side that's already browned. If not the mushy turkey will get stuck in your spatula and will basically ruin your life. Trust me. I am speaking from experience.
See? Push on the browned side. Cook a few minutes per side until each side is browned like this.
Then drizzle about one tablespoon of water into the pan and cover for a minute or so until the water evaporates. This helps to deglaze the pan and the steam ensures that the turkey is cooked all way.
I like tons of flavor in my sausage so I sprinkled it with a bit more salt, pepper and red pepper once it was cooked. You can do the same or you can cook a small test patty and then adjust your seasonings as necessary.
The patties are great on a breakfast sandwich (see above) or crumbled into an omelet, served next to scrambled eggs, with french toast. You name it.
They reheat easily in the microwave (30-60 seconds). You can also put them in a single layer on a plate in the freezer. Once they freeze throw them into a freezer baggie. This makes it easy to grab one at a time later on.
Enjoy!
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