BREAKFAST SAUSAGE SPICE BLEND RECIPES

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
• Finely crumble the sage into a large bowl. Add salt, black pepper, nutmeg, coriander and cayenne to the sage, and stir to combine. Add pork and syrup to the spice mixture.
• Using your hands, mix thoroughly for 1 full minute, until the pork begins to appear tacky and sticks to the palm of your hand.
• Heat a cast-iron pan over medium heat. Use a heaping tablespoon of pork mixture to make a small, thin sausage patty. Add a teaspoon or so of olive oil to the pan. and cook the patty for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Taste, and if needed, add salt or any other seasonings to the uncooked sausage mixture, and mix to combine.
• Divide and form the remaining sausage into 8 2 1/2-inch patties, placing them on the prepared baking sheet as you go. Cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to come together. (Patties can be made ahead and covered and refrigerated or frozen at this point until ready to use.)
• To cook, wipe out cast-iron pan, and return it to medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil. When it shimmers, add patties in a single layer, leaving space between them. Cook 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until browned on the surface and just cooked through.
• Drain sausages on paper towels. Serve hot.

Steps:

• Chop the pork fatback and meat into 2-inch pieces. Use any tough cut, such as the bottom round, neck meat, or shoulder.
• Mix the salt, herbs, garlic, black pepper, red pepper, sugar, and cloves. Sprinkle the spices across the meat and mix thoroughly.
• Spread the seasoned meat across a metal sheet tray or in a metal bowl. Stick it in the freezer for 30 minutes to chill. The texture should be a little crunchy, but not frozen solid.
• Using the coarse die on your meat grinder, grind the meat into a chilled bowl (I set a smaller bowl inside of a bigger bowl containing ice). If at any point the mixture begins to smear or come out of the grinder mushy, it’s too warm. Transfer the meat back to the freezer for another 30 minutes.
• After the first pass, switch out the coarse grinding plate for the plate with a fine die and grind again. Or, if your meat is sliced into smaller cubes, you can grind it just once through the small die.
• At this point, you have loose sausage that can be cooked as is or formed into small patties. Eat the fresh sausage within a week, or freeze patties in between sheets of parchment paper.