pancakes and sausage on a stick

Back in March when I was doing all of my meal prep, I realized that Mother’s Day would happen soon after I gave birth! It was a wild realization that I’d suddenly be an honoree of the day and I obviously immediately got the urge to cry and be emotional. I imagined my perfect Mother’s Day with a newborn (which is different than my perfect Mother’s Day with, say, a 6-year-old because by that time I can expect some super cute breakfast in bed, right?!) and what I imagined was holding a little nugget in one hand and eating my special brunch in another. A brunch on a stick. And one of my favorite brunches ever, pancakes and sausage! I mean, a bouquet of flowers would be nice but a bouquet of pancakes and sausage on a stick would be nice and tasty. So here we are, I made my own Mother’s Day brunch and it’s in the freezer now waiting to be microwaved. Lol. Pressure’s off, Eggboy! 

Pancakes and sausage on a stick were one of my faaaavorite breakfasts growing up. We’d get them in bulk from Market Day at school (does Market Day still exist?! Omg, it does!) and I’d have them before early morning ice skating practices. These days I can’t walk by them in the freezer section of the Super Target without seriously considering buying them every single time but then I look at the ingredients and have to put them down. So with this homemade version, even though they’re a totally fried breakfast version of a corn dog, I feel a little better about eating them because I can use my fave sausages (I like Applegate’s natural chicken sausages) and then also add some oat flour to the batter. More oats = more boob milk! Yeah! And the oats add a nice nuttiness to the pancake.

So here’s a big batch that you can make, freeze, and nuke for breakfast in a snap and Mother’s Day with a newborn and the like! 


Pancakes and Sausage on a Stick

Makes 18

Ingredients

1/2 c (65g) all-purpose flour

1/2 c (65g) oat flour, or more all-purpose flour

2 tb sugar

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 large egg

2 tb flavorless oil

1/2 c (120g) buttermilk

18 pre-cooked breakfast sausages (if frozen, heat them a little just until they’re soft enough to insert with lollipop sticks)

Flavorless oil, for frying

Maple syrup, optional, for serving

Clues

Fill a large heavy pot or high sided skillet fitted with a thermometer with 1” of oil and heat over medium high heat to 360º F.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. In a separate small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the egg, oil, and buttermilk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Transfer the batter to a tall skinny glass or measuring cup (this step isn’t completely necessary, but it will make coating the sausages easier). Working in batches of 3 or 4 sausages at a time, insert popsicle sticks or lollipop sticks into the sausages, pat off any excess moisture with a paper towel, and dip them into the pancake batter to fully coat, scraping off excess. It doesn’t need to be a very thick coating as the batter will puff up when frying. Carefully lower the entire thing (stick included) into the hot oil and fry until golden, 1 1/2-2 minutes. Use tongs to transfer to a paper towel or wire rack. Repeat with the remaining sausages. Cool slightly before serving. 

To freeze, cool completely and then store in a ziploc bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat, wrap loosely in a paper towel and microwave for about 40 seconds, or until heated through. Let cool slightly and enjoy!


-yeh!

photos by chantell and brett quernemoen

corn dog in a bowl

hiiii from san fran where i am full on spam, pizza, and happiness because go cubs!!!!! i had such a great night last night at my signing at the mill (people made t-shirts about it!!!) and then hurry scurried back to my hotel to watch the cubs win. i screamed, duh. today i am guest chef-ing at the twitter office and then i'm hoping to go see the golden gate bridge and eat some vegetables! it has been sunny and perfect scarf weather and ok let's talk about corn dogs! 

one of my favorite recipes that was cut from molly on the range is also one of my oldest blog recipes. it emerged when I was deep in preparations for my senior recital and feeling blobby about a breakup. It was enough stress to cause me to not eat for like, a day, and when I snapped out of it I found polenta and a sausage in my fridge and whittled this meal which was enjoyed from under a layer of pink juicy velour. It tasted just like a corn dog and you could eat it with a spoon.

Since then, I’ve shepherded this dish into adulthood with a smooth buttery polenta, a big thick wiener, and a pile of sautéed greens to class up the joint. The greens are optional, of course, but i think they add some nice color, and kind round everything out into a dish that's fit for a quick yet civilized supper. 

I'm posting it today in celebration of cynthia from two red bowls and her new baby (bowl 3!!!!!). seriously look at this little nugget. i mean, that nose!! those cheeks! so squishy and cute. if you know cynthia, you know that she is the sweetest, and her man, b2, is also the sweetest, therefore we can pretty much bank on little b3 growing up to be a total heartbreaker. watch out, future kiddoes of the world! 

so... we know that baby showers are supposed to happen before the baby is born but b3 jumped the gun a little so now it's just a big old party of food in bowls, hosted by alana and steph. you should head over to their sites for a list of all of the other great bowl food that was birthed onto the web today for this tasty celebration (pun intended). welcome to the world, b3!!!! 


corn dog in a bowl

makes 4 servings

ingredients

2 c water

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 c corn meal

1/4 c whole milk

3 tb unsalted butter

1/4 tsp paprika

2 tsp sugar

Black pepper

4 hot dogs or sausages, heated until cooked through

Hot sauce, to taste

Sautéed greens, optional

Ketchup, if you’re into that kind of thing

clues

Place the water and salt in a medium saucepan and bring it to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, gradually whisk in the corn meal, and continue to whisk until the mixture has thickened. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the milk, butter, paprika, sugar, and a few turns of black pepper. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired, and stir in additional milk if the polenta gets too thick. 

Serve in a bowl topped with a hot dog and a few shakes of hot sauce. Add greens and/or ketchup, if desired. 


-yeh!