Homemade Turkey Sausage Cheese Balls

This post is sponsored by Honest Turkey by Honeysuckle White; all opinions are my own.

In case you haven’t heard, Mother’s Day is coming up and guys? If you’ve been looking for a way to up your celebration game, this is IT.

 

Let’s do a quick show of hands here – who has heard of/tried/made sausage balls before? They are delicious in every sense of the word, an unlikely combination of breakfast sausage (usually pork), baking mix, and a silly amount of cheese. Just looking at that ingredient list makes me drool, so it’s no wonder I think sausage balls are incredible. I could eat them any time of day, warm or cold, and be absolutely ecstatic about it!

I also have a confession to make: I don’t actually love brunch. Can I even say that and not get fired as a food blogger? It’s not that I have anything against brunch food; in fact, I like it more than just about anything. My issue is with the timing of brunch. I’m old-fashioned and enjoy the whole “3 square meals a day” thing, so having a big one at an off time throws me for a loop. I feel like I’m off the rest of the day – do I eat breakfast? Is that allowed? What about lunch? What if it bleeds into dinner time? What am I allowed to do?!

 

Of course I’m sort of joking, but the reality is that you can make these sausage balls for any meal and it will still be a huge win. I’m posting it just in time for you to plan an amazing Mother’s Day brunch (or breakfast) because it really is just the perfect addition to any celebration, so make sure you have your colorful fruit and stunning flower arrangement ready to sweet Mom off her feet!

 

A couple of cook’s notes:

• IF you don’t have time to make the turkey sausage in advance you can certainly just mix everything together at once and it will still taste terrific – I just prefer the texture and flavor after letting the sausage spices marry for a while.
• A great tip for mixing: use your stand mixer. I never thought it would be OK to do this with meat, but I love how much easier it was to get the consistency I want using my stand mixer. If you have it, use it!
• Parchment paper is your friend! Because these sausage balls don’t contain as much fat as the original pork version, using parchment paper keeps cleanup easy and keeps these babies from sticking!
• Finally I just have to brag on Honest Turkey by Honeysuckle White. I’ve been a big fan of their turkey from first bite because it tastes amazing, but the reality is that it’s raised by independent farmers with no antibiotics (ever!) and no added steroids or hormones. I get mine at Walmart!

TURKEY SAUSAGE CHEESE BALLS
Makes approximately 36 balls

Ingredients:

• 1 pound 99% fat free Honest Turkey
• 2 teaspoons dried sage
• 1-1/4 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• pinch of nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon honey1 pound sharp cheddar cheese
• 2 cups baking mix of choice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a small bowl mix together the spices and ground turkey until well combined.
3. Cover and refrigerate for 24-36 hours.
4. In a large bowl combine the ground turkey mixture, cheese and baking mix.
5. Stir together until completely combined; the mixture will be slightly crumbly.
6. Form into balls about 1 inch in diameter and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
7. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, then increase the temperature to 375 and bake an additional 15 minutes.
8. Serve hot or at room temperature with dipping sauce of choice.