Egg and Sausage Bake

By Lucy Malloy

Serves 8-10

1 lb sausage

6 eggs

6 slices bread, cubed

1 tsp dry mustard

2 cups milk

1 tsp salt

1 cup grated cheese

1.  Brown sausage and drain.  

2.  Mix eggs, milk, salt and mustard.  Add bread, cheese, and sausage.  Pour into lightly greased 8 x 11-inch glass pan and refrigerate overnight.

3.  Bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees.  Let stand a few minutes.

Skier's Sausage

By Lucy Malloy

Makes 6 servings

1 lb fresh pork sausage links
6 medium cooking apples, cored and each cut into 8 wedges (2 lbs total)
2 TB brown sugar
1 TB lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

1.  Cook sausage over medium heat in a 12-inch skillet about 10 minutes or until no longer pink. 
2.  Drain and discard juices.  Cut sausage links crosswise in half. 
3.  Return sausage lings to the skillet.  Add apple wedges, then sprinkle with brown sugar, lemon juice, salt and pepper. 
4.  Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes or until apples are just tender, gently stirring once or twice. 

Frijoles Puercos

By Malu Valenzuela

From Malu's mother, Veneranda's famous recipe. "Pig Beans"—so called because they have so many ingredients.  Well worth the effort if you can find all the ingredients, and you can't get more authentically Mexican!  This recipe is not too spicy and can be varied by increasing or decreasing the amount of chiles and chorizo.

2 lbs dry "mayocabo" beans, or pinto beans
1/2 lb chorizo sausage
1 jar (8 oz) green stuffed olives (without pits)
1/2 lb white cheese ("queso fresco"—a white, somewhat watery cheese that crumbles easily but doesn't melt.)
3 "chiles anchos," a black chili pepper that comes dried in a package (one of the ingredients in "mole" sauce) It's about 5" long and 2-3" wide.

1. Cook beans according to package directions.  (A pressure cooker is faster and doesn't require soaking first.)  Don't add salt to the beans.
2. Wash the chiles and soak them in hot water until saturated.
3. While chiles are soaking, in a large pot, break up chorizo sausage and cook in a little oil.  Be sure sausage is well cooked.
4. Rinse chiles well and remove stems and seeds. (This way they won't be too spicy.)
5. Place chiles, olives, and chorizo in a blender and mix well, adding a little liquid from the beans if necessary.
6. Return mixture to pot. 
7. Drain most (not all) of the liquid from the cooked beans and mash them. (A hand blender works well.)
8. Add mashed beans to the mixture in the pot, stir, and cook over medium high heat.  Gradually add crumbled white cheese, stirring constantly, and bring to a boil.  Boil 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Biscuits and Gravy

By Ciara Cox

For the Biscuits:
2 ¼ cups flour
¾ tsp salt   
1 tsp sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup butter, very cold
1 cup milk, very cold

For the Gravy:
1 pound ground sausage
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2-3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2-3 cups milk

1.  Preheat oven to 450° with a pizza stone in the oven (can also use a baking sheet with parchment paper).  Place flour, salt, sugar and baking powder in bowl and mix together.
2.  Cut butter into small pieces and add to flour mixture. Mix together and use a pastry cutter to make the pieces about the size of a pea. (Can also use a food processor for this step.)
Add the cold milk to the flour and butter. Toss together gently until barely combined.
3.  As soon as the dough holds together, turn it out on a lightly floured counter. Gently "knead" the dough a few strokes until it forms a ball. (Make sure you do not knead it for too long or the butter will get soft. You need cold butter to make the biscuits flaky!)
4.  Roll the dough into a rectangle 1/2-3/4 inch thick, depending on how tall you like your biscuits. Cut into 2 inch circles (I use a glass cup and it works great). Place on pre-heated pizza stone.
5.  Bake at 450° for 8-10 minutes.
6.  For the gravy:  preheat a large pan to medium heat. Add the sausage and break it up into crumbles. While it is cooking, season with salt and pepper. Once the sausage is finished cooking, add the flour and mix to combine.
7.  Slowly add 2 cups of milk while stirring. Bring to a low boil and stir occasionally. If the gravy is too thick, add more milk. (If too thin, add more flour.) Serve over your fresh biscuits and enjoy!

Lentils Coriander

by Febrina Malloy.

8 servings

Ingredients:
1 pound Italian sausage links, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 large onions, thinly sliced
2 tsp ground coriander
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 cups dry lentils
1 TB lemon juice
Dairy sour cream
Lemon slices

Directions:
1. Spray a Dutch oven with olive oil cooking spray, or coat with a little olive oil, and heat to medium high.  Brown sausage on all sides.  Lower heat, add a little water, and cover pan.  Cook until done.
2.  Remove sausage and cut into 1 inch pieces.  Return to pan; add onions and cook over medium-low heat until tender but not brown.
3. Drain excess fat. Stir in coriander, salt, ginger, lentils and 7 cups water.  Bring to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 50 minutes.  Stir in lemon juice. Serve in bowls; top with a dollop of sour cream and a lemon.

Quick Italian Sausage

By Dorothea Brandt Malloy

Ingredients:
1 lb ground pork
1 tsp fennel or anise seed
1 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp grated Romano cheese
1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
1/2 tsp pepper (or to taste)
2 TB water

Directions:
Mix all ingredients. Form into small patties and fry in a skillet over medium heat.

Italian Sausage

by Bessie Picone and Febrina Malloy

One time Bessie came to visit the family in Texas and we asked her for her sausage recipe.  This is an approximation of what she told us in broken English, with helpful additions by Febrina.

Ingredients:
5 lbs pork (leg), 9:1 ratio of meat to fat
1 TB fennel
salt and pepper to taste
1 TB fresh parsley
1 TB Romano cheese
8 oz water

Directions:
1. Cut meat from bone and grind with coarse blade of meat grinder, or use a food processor (should be ground like meat sold as chile meat). For about 9 cups of lean pork, add 1 cup of pork fat. The fat could be ground a bit finer if desired.
2. Mix in 1 TB fennel or anise seed, about 2 ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper, 1 TB fresh parsley, 1 TB Romano or Parmesan grated cheese and 8 oz water. (Seasonings are “to taste”. The first time you try recipe, it’s best to use less of the seasonings, but carefully measured. Then take a spoonful and fry it until well done and taste it. If necessary, add measured amounts of additional salt and pepper including a bit of cayenne if desired. Repeat process to get it just right.) Pack loosely in casings.
3. To cook, cut into links, place in a cold frying pan with about 3 tablespoons water. Cover and cook over medium heat about 5 minutes. Prick with a needle when it swells while cooking. Uncover and saute until well browned on all sides.

Variation:

Ingredients:
2 lbs ground pork
1 1/2 tsp fennel
pepper, to taste
1 1/2 tsp dried parsley
1 TB grated Romano cheese
1/4 cup water
salt, optional

Directions:
1.  Mix all ingredients.
2.  Fry a small piece, taste, and adjust seasonings.
3.  Shape into half-dollar size patties and fry until cooked through and lightly browned.
4.  If using in lasagna, slice in half.