Sausage Bites
I realize we might not be getting together with a lot of people this holiday season. It will be hard not to have our usual parties to look forward to. I know for me, we usually have a party with friends, old roommates, work parties, and church parties. Of course, none of those will be happening for us so it has inspired me to get creative.
Each weekend before Christmas we’ll be having our own, Hartline family party. Each party will have a different theme. The first one will be German – I will be making all the German food. I’ll make German pancakes for breakfast and for dinner: rouladen and rotkohl (red cabbage) or schnitzel and noodles. The next week will be a dip party. All the food will be dips: artichoke dip, cranberry salsa, southwest ranch layer dip, fruit dip, (there are so many options). Another week I’ll do an appetizer party. All the food will be appetizers. Some of my favorites are chicken salad cream puffs, and artichoke pinwheels, or zucchini fries.
For sure, these sausage bites will be included in the appetizer spread. They are so tasty with ground sausage, onions, and celery surrounded by a flakey rough puff pastry.
Sausage Bites
Ground sausage with onion and celery surrounded by a flakey rough puff pastry are sure to please at any party.
Ingredients
Sausage Filling
- 1 lb ground sausage
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 1 cup celery chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
Rough Puff Pastry
- 2 cups flour
- ½ cup butter cold
- ½ cup vegetable shortening
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup cold water
Egg Wash
- 1 egg
- 2 Tbsp water
Instructions
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In a 12 inch skillet on medium heat, brown the sausage and drain any excess grease. Add the the onions and celery and cook until just tender. You want the celery to still have a bite to it. Add the salt and pepper. Set aside.
Pastry
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Place the flour in a medium bowl and add the butter, shortening, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Using a pastry cutter, push down on the butter and shortening, cutting into it and repeating, turning the bowl each time you cut. You should end up with a crumbly mixture. If you do not have a pastry cutter you could put the mixture in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. You could also use two knives, cutting the mixture like scissors.
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Add the cold water and mix with your hands. You are really just bringing the mixture together. The idea is to still have small slumps of butter and shortening visible so do not overmix.
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Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 400°F.
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On a floured surface. Flatten the dough out slightly and then fold over. Do this a few times. This will help make the pastry flakey. Finally, separate the dough into two pieces. Flour the surface a bit more and roll one piece of dough out into a square. You want the dough to be thin, a little less than pie crust thick.
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Cut the dough into three inch squares. Place a spoonful of the sausage mixture onto a square and fold the dough over along the diagonal to make a triangle. Pinch the dough together or use the tines of a fork to seal. If it is not sticking well, just dip your finger in some water and rub along the edges. Continue until all of the sausage is used. If you have left over dough, wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze it.
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Place the triangles on the baking sheet. Mix the egg and water in a small bowl and then brush the egg wash on the triangles. This will make them nice and shiney. Bake for 15 minutes, until golden brown. Enjoy!
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