Grandma's Sausage Bread

Hey there! It's been a couple of weeks since I've been here. Things got a little...hectic? Crazy? Wacko? Hopeless? Nuts? Around here. Let's just say it involved kidney stones, an eye injury, two respiratory infections, and a husband that had to work away from home for a couple of days...can you say STRESS??? Oh, and there was an ambulance ride mixed in there somewhere.

But...fingers are crossed because stones are passed, eye is unpatched, and lungs are slowly healing, so let's keep heading to HEALTHY days ahead of us, shall we?

Now, on to my Grandma's Sausage Bread. This is a traditional dish every Christmas Eve. And I had decided to make it when I had my Girl's Weekend Away (which seems like a lifetime ago.)

It's so simple. So easy. So tasty. So awesome!!! It's a real comfort food in my house.

All you need is Italian Sausage. Shredded Mozzarella Cheese. Onions. And Pizza Dough. Get the real kind of Pizza Dough. Not the kind that comes in a cardboard can with a little puffy white man on it. Most Supermarkets sell real Pizza Dough. There are Pizza Places that will sell you their dough too.

First thing you want to do is cook your Sausage. This has been done many ways over the years in my family. My mother would bake the Sausage, then when cooled, she would slice them thin. Sometimes she would get the skinny Sausage, bake them, then leave them whole or sliced a couple of inches thick.

Me? My new thing is to take the Sausage out of the casing and brown it up in a pan until it's nice and crumbly.



The hardest part? It's stretching that Pizza Dough. There's a knack to it. There's a reason why they toss the dough as opposed to rolling it out. Pizza Dough doesn't roll out very well. It just keeps shrinking. You need to sssstttrrreeeettcchh the dough. Make the weight of the dough do the work for you.

I hold the dough by one end and keep turning it, letting it hang down and stretch. Kind of like as if it was "dripping".

Pre-heat your oven at a high heat...like 450. When the dough is stretched, place it on a baking sheet. I LOVE to use a STONE baking sheet. The stone gets the dough PERFECT!! It gives it a great crust!

On one half of the dough, sprinkle the Sausage.


Then some onions that are sliced or diced...however way you like it.


Then some cheese.


Then carefully fold the dough over the meat/cheese to meet the other side. Then pinch the sides shut. Seal that dough with all that goodness inside it.


Then bake until the dough is nice and brown.


And slice and eat.


Mmmmmm!!! This is a great appetizer. A great party food. A great Brunch Dish. A great Dinner. It works in so many ways. And the best part? You can make it in advance!!

Just let it cool completely, then wrap in foil and refrigerate. When you want to serve it, just take it out of the fridge and pop it in the oven to heat up! You don't even have to take the foil off!!

Hawaiian Meatballs

This is a wonderful, little appetizer, finger food, party food, cocktail hour hors deovers (note to self: if you are going to blog about food, learn how to spell hors deovers!). It's a meatball, but a break away from the traditional Italian style meatball. They look pretty and taste awesome. We love these in my house!! Easy to make. Great to make ahead. And great as a leftover too.

The Hawaiian Meatball!! Who knew that something that is based on an Italian food could be so tropical.

You start off with Ground Turkey. I have used Ground Beef when I was in a pinch, but honestly, the Ground Turkey works much, much better. Drop the Ground Turkey in a bowl.

To the Ground Turkey, you will add half of a finely chopped bell pepper. I've used green. I've used red. Don't matter, though I think the red looks prettier. Also add a finely chopped onion (a small one or half of one.)

Next comes some Ginger. I've done minced Ginger from a tube. I've done Ground Ginger from the spice rack. I just happen to have had Ginger in my fridge, so I packed it up and took it to my friend's house. If using fresh Ginger, make sure you mince it well. My friend had some sort of gadget that when you cranked it, it grated the Ginger. Pretty cool. That's why I love cooking in other people's kitchens. You get to play with their toys.

Add Plain Breadcrumbs and the juice of a can of chunk Pineapples. Take off your rings and dig into that mixture and mix it up just like you are mixing a meatloaf...or meatballs. You want it to be the same texture. If too wet, add more Breadcrumbs. Too Dry? Add some more Pineapple juice.

Now comes the part that I think makes the meatballs bring on that something "special". With a bottle of Teriyaki Sauce, create a shallow "bath" in a baking pan. Then, roll the Ground Turkey mixture into a Cocktail sized meatball (golf ball? ping pong ball?), and then "bathe" the meatball in the Teriyaki bath. What do I mean by bathe? Roll it in the sauce to coat it, then push it to the side of the pan and park it.

After your last meatball is bathed and park and they are all lined up like little meatball soldiers, pop them in a 350 degrees oven and bake for about 20 minutes.


Mmmmm......looking good. And they smell so good too. The Teriyaki and the Pineapple Juice come together. Very tropical....Asian scented.


But we're not done yet. Now, if you are making them ahead of time, let them cool, wrap up, and refrigerate. When you are ready, take the chunks of Pineapples from the can (or if you accidentally bought Pineapple rings like I did, chunk them yourself) and with toothpicks, top each meatball with a Pineapple.


Then back in the oven until they are cooked through.


These really are so good. They almost taste like a dumpling filling. They are always a big hit. Men, Women, and Kids love 'em!! Great for sports parties, cocktail parties, holidays, and of course....Girls' Weekend Away.
Aloha!

(Just looked it up. It's hors d'oevres. That's how you spell it. I like it better the way my husband says it: Whore Doovers. Witty guy, ain't he?)