Meat Cookies ...(aka. Sausage balls)

Okay, Okay, I know that this is about the most pedestrian and trailer park thing, but it is one of my favorite things.  My family has been making a version of these for years for the holiday parties.  Whenever the guys get together you have to be sure that I am making massive amounts of these Meat cookies.  I am sure you are asking yourself right now.. Self why does the chubby guy writing a blog call these meat cookies.  Lucky for you I have an answer....It was a cold winters night, the winds were strong and the cold was biting, I was dressed as a lumber jack and she...... Sorry started getting side tracked.  Andyway, back in the day, the guys would get together for a weekend of Halo, beer, the smelly jar(don't ask) and some macho bonding.  I made back then what I called sausage balls, and my Buddie Trent said, Damn those are some good meat cookies, and well not being very inventive on our own, it stuck.  And we have turned this not only into a tradition, but also a challenge.  These have been made a hundred different ways, but this is the tried and true!!  And before I go any farther I am going to let you know that I used store bought sausage for this dish.........I know, I know, the guy who is always talking about sourcing local and making everything from scratch used Bob Evans sausage. Bite me, I was out of pork and had this in the freezer, and when a fat man has a craving, watch your fingers.  So I got rolling.

Above you will see the main components of the Meat cookie.

• 1 pound Zesty Hot sausage (Bob Evans) or make your own, recipe to follow
• 8 ounces Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 1 1/2 cup Bisquick
• 2tsp Cayenne pepper
• 2tsp Garlic Powder
• 1tsp Onion Powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

The spices are optional, I tend to think everything needs a little more spice, except 'Nduja  that stuff will hurt ya, in a good way.  So now comes the hard part.  Mix all ingredients together until completely incorporated.  I use my kitchen aid mixer with the dough hook, or I have a special bowl just for the construction of the mystical meat cookie. This is what you will have.

Roll this into one inch balls and bake at 375F for 10-12 minutes.  You want the bottoms to be crispy and delicious.  You can also cook in the deep fryer.  My favorite way to make these is to  use the above recipe, and wrap it around a chunk of pepper jack cheese then bake.  Make sure you have some toilet paper in the freezer, cause you will need it.  Serve these with some ranch and BBQ sauce.  I prefer to get the hidden valley ranch dip and add 8oz of sour cream, 2Tbs of Paprika, 1tsp of garlic powder, and 1T of Pukka sauce.  Here is the result.

These will are amazing.  I took some over to AMIK and they were destroyed.  One of my favorite foods.  And you can play with them.  I love making them with turkey, roasted green chili's, and sun dried tomatoes, with a prickly pear mostarda,but that is for a later blog.  If you like, send me your recipe for meat cookies, I will make them and post the results on my blog.  Send to awinters813gmail.com and remember, Source local and love your meat!!