Sausage Balls

Before I was born, my mother was the youth minister at First Baptist Church in Monahans, Texas. In the months just prior to my birth, the FBC youth group solicited recipes from the women of the church and published and sold cookbooks as a fundraiser for an upcoming trip. My grandmother, Mimi,knowing my mother was expecting a girl, purchased an extra cookbook that she gave to me when I got married.

This cookbook contains so many recipes that my mother and grandmother made while I was growing up. Some of these great recipes have already been featured on A Thyme to Eat: Barbeque Meatloaf, Corn and Squash and Okra and Tomatoes. It really is a treasured addition to my ever growing cookbook library.

These sausage balls hold a special place in my heart for a few reasons. First, every time we would drive to Pampa, Texas to visit my mother's family, my grandmother, Memaw, would always bake a batch of these sausage balls for me to enjoy for breakfast during my visit. Second, when I left for college, sausage balls were a staple for the finals care packages sent by my mother every semester. As we approach December, Robert is rapidly approaching exam season and exam study mode so I thought I'd go ahead and whip up a batch for this week to fuel his studies.

The sausage balls taste like a sausage cheese biscuit and are great for the grab and go breakfast mornings that are a daily ritual in my life. Usually I'm fine with my banana with almond butter or instant oatmeal I make when I get to work, but every now and then, I want something with a little more heft. Sausage balls are great for such occasions. I hope you enjoy them as much as we have.

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Sausage Balls


Ingredients
2 1/2 cups Bisquick
1 lb ground sausage
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl combine the Bisquick and sausage.

Using your hands, mix until the Bisquick and sausage are fully blended into a nice ball.

Add the cheese.

Work the cheese into the ball with your hands being sure to incorporate into all of the ball and not just the edges.

Using your hands, form into small balls and place on a greased cookie sheet.

Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown on top.

Bunker Sliders

My husband makes the best burgers. They are always so flavorful and juicy, nicely balanced, and especially fun because he loves making them. So I call his burgers "Bunker Burgers" as they are so special and unique! He spent many tailgating years at Notre Dame perfecting his technique and recipe, and since then, he has tried out all kinds of new combinations, often to meet the tastes of his wife, a self proclaimed picky eater.

Happy 4th of July!

These sliders were born from our nostalgia for the Little Leaguers from "Ball's Hamburgers," a mainstay in the lives of anyone who grew up in Dallas, Texas. The one in our neighborhood (in Snider Plaza) closed a few years ago, and was replaced by, of all things, a Dunkin' Doughnuts Shop. I was unhappy for quite a few reasons, and very pleased when Dunkin' Doughnuts left that location after about a year. Ball's Hamburgers is still open on Northwest Highway and Midway, the burgers are still yummy, but the atmosphere is just not the same. Anyways, Bunker and I grew up eating these sliders after soccer games, during birthday parties, and for off-campus high school lunches. It is a sweet memory and an easy one to recreate at home!

These have a sweet twist by featuring Hawaiian Sweet Rolls!

My husband did ALL of the cooking on this one!

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Ingredients:
-We purchased .6 pounds of ground meat which equals .1 pounds of ground meat per burger (we used rather lean meat...98% lean...but you can use whatever you like).
-1 Tablespoon BBQ Sauces of your choice
-1 Tablespoon Ranch Dressing
-1/2 Tablespoon Horseradish
-Jack's Burger House Seasoned Salt to taste, at least 1 to 2 teaspoons (or your seasoning of choice...Jack's Burger House is another local burger joint that is just delicious! I think it is just called Burger House now, but people that have lived in Dallas for a long time remember it as Jack's...it is one of those places you could carve your name into the tables and write on the walls...those walls actually can tell a lot of stories!)
-Sliced cheeses of your choice, cut into four pieces each. Bunker used Muenster on his and he used Cheddar on mine.
-6 Hawaiian Sweet Rolls cut in half

Steps:
1. Mix together the ground meat, Tablespoon of BBQ sauce, Tablespoon of Ranch Dressing, 1/2 Tablespoon of Horseradish, and seasoned salt.
2. Form the mixture into 1/4 cup sized patties.

3. On your outside or inside grill, cook the burgers for about 2 minutes per side.

4. Add the sliced cheese to the burgers and cook for another 2 minutes. We covered the burgers to let them steam.

5. Stack on top of your sliced Hawaiian rolls and enjoy!

 Cort was on the move!

Puppies cooperated far better than we expected!!

 

Harris Family Breakfast Casserole

We spent Memorial Day weekend at the lakehouse with my parents and my sister, her husband and their precious son Jackson (9 months old!). We spend pretty much every Memorial Day together: 2006 Jeanie and Andy's wedding in Mexico (Bunker was my date), Bunker's and my wedding in 2007, other family friend weddings in 2008 and 2009, and last year we went to Pinehurst together to celebrate Bunker's graduation from Fuqua (Duke MBA).

Pinehurst 2010

We also had five dogs in one house for the weekend at the lake (my parent's beagle Jack, our two girls the beagle Cort and the Golden-Cava-Doodle puppy Shafer, and Jeanie and Andy's two boy Yorkies George and Henry). All of the dogs did just wonderfully together, however, George was a bit too affectionate towards Shafer, Henry did steal all of the puppy toys, Shafer was pretty skeptical of everyone until Monday, Cort gave Jackson kisses the whole weekend and Jack (the elder of the group) pretty much ignored all of the other dogs and Jackson. Needless to say, it was an active weekend, and everyone was sleepy by Monday!

Last year at Jeanie and Andy's...the cousins together (before Shafer joined the family)! (Cort, Henry and George)

When we go to the lake, we eat very nicely. My mom always prepares way to much food for fear that someone might have even the tiniest rumble in their tummy that cannot be satisfied. We all contribute in some way or another, whether that be helping to prepare the meals, clean up, set the table, bring part of the meal from home, or at least just enjoy the deliciousness! Andy Harris (my brother-in-law....really more like the brother I finally got 23 years late when he and my sister Jeanie got married) decided to share one of his family recipes with us for breakfast. The boys had a 10 a.m. tee time for golf, so they needed a big breakfast to get them through the round, and this casserole did the trick! Bunker and Andy put the casserole together the night before and then popped it in the oven that morning for a hearty and delicious treat! It was so cute watching them work together in the kitchen, and so fun to have brothers-in-law that are actually fantastic friends.

Andy is from Clarksdale, Mississippi, aka, "The Delta." It is a beautiful part of the country and a very different place from Dallas. Time really does seem to slow down a bit there; perhaps it is due to their unmistakable accents, perhaps the gorgeous old trees and homes, perhaps their deeply entrenched Southern manners, perhaps the food? I am not sure, but I am certainly glad Andy is in our lives so that we can have a touch of "The Delta" in our lives.

Without further ado: my guest blog post from Andy Harris (which I am actually writing)

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Ingredients:
You will need a 13 x 9 casserole dish
12 eggs
12 slices of bread
3 cups of cheese (I suppose whatever you have on hand will work...they used cheddar here)
2 pounds of hot sausage
4 cups of milk
2 teaspoons of dry mustard
2 teaspoons of salt
pepper to taste

Steps:
1. Brown the sausage.
2. Drain the grease from the sausage using a slotted spoon or paper towels.
3. Cube the bread slices. (They just used standard sliced bread from the store but feel free to use whatever you like, a brioche would be a sweet compliment to the spicy sausage.)
4. In your 13 x 9 casserole dish, evenly layer half of the bread cubes in the casserole dish.
5. Cover the layer of bread with a layer of half of the cooked sausage.
6. Cover the layer of sausage with a layer of half of the cheese.
7. Repeat the layering of the bread, sausage and cheese with the half of everything that remains.
8. In a separate bowl, beat the 12 eggs. (Using a fork is just fine, no need to drag out the electric mixer.)
9. Add the 4 cups of milk to the beaten eggs. (The boys used skim milk, I am sure to the disappointment of Andy, he far prefers whole milk. It was indeed a shock when he became part of our family that skim milk is the only option in the fridge!)
10. Add the 2 teaspoons of dry mustard and the 2 teaspoons of salt and pepper to the egg and milk mixture.
11. Stir the egg and milk mixture to combine.
12. Pour the egg and milk mixture over the bread, sausage and cheese layers evenly.
13. Cover the casserole with foil and refrigerate for 12 hours. (Makes for an easy morning if you make this the night before!)
14. Cook the casserole covered with the foil in a 350 degree oven for one hour.
15. Let the casserole sit uncovered for 10 minutes before serving.

Shafer says hi! Cooling off in the backyard with the water hose...one of her many her favorite outdoor activities!

Asparagus and Corn Risotto

Risotto is one of my most comforting dishes. The combination of the rich creaminess and dense flavor of the rice and the irresistible aroma that penetrates the entire house makes me feel very warm and comforted. There are endless possibilities with risotto. I know technically I am sure there are many rules, but I do not tend to cook by rules, I just cook by what tastes delicious to me at that moment. Right or wrong, it is how my mom cooks, and therefore how I cook. As a nod to our beautiful spring weather, this particular risotto features a crisp Napa Chardonnay (which we then paired with dinner), fresh asparagus, and sweet corn.  

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Ingredients:

1 Cup of Arborio rice

1 Tablespoon of Butter

1 Bunch of Asparagus, cut into 2 to 3 inch pieces

1/2 Can of Sweet Corn

 1/2 a Sweet Vidalia Onion, minced

2 Cloves of Garlic, minced

1 Cup of Chardonnay

4 to 5 Cups of Chicken Stock, heated

1 Lemon, juiced

1 Teaspoon of Rosemary (or really whatever herb you have fresh or whatever you prefer taste-wise)

Fresh Parmesan

Steps:

1. Prepare everything before you begin. This makes for a much more pleasant risotto making experience. Prepping includes mincing 1/2 of the Onion and 2 cloves of Garlic, cutting the Asparagus stalks into 2 to 3 inch pieces (your own preference on size and cooking method, I use the microwave), drain the corn and pour half into a small bowl, cut your lemon in half, heating the Chicken Stock over the stove to boiling and then reduce the heat to the lowest level, and measure our your cup of rice and your cup of Chardonnay.

2. Heat the Tablespoon of Butter over medium-high heat in a heavy and large pan. Saute the Onions until browned, about 5 minutes. Add some salt and pepper or other seasonings at this point.

3. Add the minced Garlic and saute for another 2 minutes.

4. Add the rice to the pan and coat with the butter, onion and garlic mixture. Lower the temperature to medium. I like to do this for about 4 to 5 minutes, until most of the liquid is absorbed, but not all.

5. Add the cup of Chardonnay and stir the rice until the liquid is almost fully absorbed.

6. Add the juice of one lemon.

7. Then begin adding the chicken stock one ladle at a time, making sure the liquid is almost fully absorbed by the rice before adding the next ladle. This process takes between 20 and 30 minutes, and you really must stir continuously. So, have a glass of wine in hand and a good partner to chat with in the kitchen so that you can stand at the stove. Or, I have also found risotto making to be therapeutic and I really work out life problems as I stir, add liquid, stir, taste, add liquid....

8. At this point, I really have to start tasting the rice to see the consistency, you do not want it to have a bite but you do not want it to be mushy either. You want each individual piece of rice to be identifiable within the overall creaminess of the dish. I also taste at this point to see if I need to add more salt and pepper or other seasonings, I usually do.  

9. Add in your asparagus (I just heat this in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes in a microwave safe bowl with a teaspoon of olive oil) and sweet corn.

10. Right before your risotto has reached the perfect level of creaminess, add in your fresh herbs and as much or as little freshly shaved Parmesan as you would like.

11. I usually top mine off with more freshly shaved Parmesan and enjoy it with crusty bread and the rest of the Chardonnay!