Sausage cheese balls
Three cheers for sausage cheese balls–a southern staple with four ingredients, we make these for breakfast, baby showers, busy weekday breakfasts, you name it. 15 minutes and they’re perfectly crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside.
Right now I’m wondering if you are scratching your head–wondering what sausage cheese balls are. Are you? I hope not. Because if you are, that means you’ve never had one.
And that would be sad.
All of my growing up life, sausage cheese balls were reserved for Christmas parties and weddings. And if you got one you were lucky because they always got eaten up before you could stuff any more in a napkin, or your mouth. Or your pockets.
Worse things have happened.
My mom used to sneak six slices of pizza out of the Mr. Gatti’s buffet line in her purse when I was a kid. A snack for my brother (who had already had 15 slices in the restaurant) for the ride home. This is not a lie.
Today my family eats sausage cheese balls as a breakfast staple. I don’t know why you wouldn’t. And of course because they are so basic, you could add some jalapeno’s if you wanted some heat, pepper jack cheese (or another of your favorites), some sauteed onions and peppers…whatever floats your boat.
Or you could eat them like God intended. Straight up. You won’t be sorry either way. I make a big batch and stick them in the fridge for the week. A few seconds in the microwave and you’re good to go.
What do I serve sausage cheese balls with?
I consider sausage balls to be an appetizer. Sometimes I make them larger for breakfast and we just have them with juice but if you are serving yours for a wedding, baby shower or event where other food is going to be served, consider having loaded hash brown potato skins, fruit tea punch, or my favorite bacon and cheese quiche.
Can I freeze sausage balls?
Yes! You can bake them and let them come to room temperature then put them in an air tight container and freeze for up to a month. To thaw, do it in the fridge then wrap them in foil and place them in a 300 degree oven until they are warm throughout.
If you are going to serve them in a day or two, just put them in the fridge covered and rewarm them the same way before serving. They are also fabulous at room temperature too.
Sausage Cheese Balls
Ingredients
- 3 cups Bisquick or other baking mix
- 2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
- 1 pound ground pork breakfast sausage turkey would also work
- 1/4 cup milk or a few tablespoons more as needed to bring the mix together see instructions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 and generously spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray or line with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the baking mix and cheese and toss to coat.
- Add the sausage and mix to combine.
- Add 1/4 cup milk to help mix in any dry baking mix. If you still have some in the bottom, go ahead and add 1 tablespoon more at a time until it blends well and no baking mix is left in the bottom.
- Form balls of the mix a little smaller than a golf ball.
- Place on your baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes until they are evenly golden and sizzling. Makes about 3 dozen.
Can these be served room temperature after cooking? In other words can they be left out as an appetizer for a couple of hours?
Yes Donna for sure! In fact these are originally an appetizer that I make larger for snacking on. Make yours bite size (and cook them just until they are browned and sizzling) and you’ll be good to go. 🙂 –Rachel
Could you add some cream cheese in addition to the sharp cheddar cheese to make up the 2 cups needed for this recipe?
Hey Robin, I guess you could. Technically it would work fine but my question would be do you like cream cheese on a sausage biscuit? If you do, then go for it because the flavors are pretty identical to that. I just don’t know if it would be my favorite flavor to throw in there. –Rachel
I made it this way until 2017, when I dated a man with a different family recipe: added cream cheese! Now, I always add 1 block of room temperature cream cheese INSTEAD of the milk. It makes everything mix up fine and gives the biscuits a really moist, creamier texture.
Yep I’ve seen versions that use cream cheese Angela. I’ve never personally tried it but I’d say it would be great! Thanks for the tip. –Rachel
Turkey works, but I think they’re drier than pork. That’s not a bad thing, just don’t expect them to be sizzling when you pull them out of the oven!
Absolutely Karen. Turkey is much more low fat and won’t give you that signature texture, but it would probably work in a pinch. –Rachel
I used homemade baking mix followed your instructions, had to use full cup of milk so they would stick together, had to bake for almost 40 minutes, next time going to spice it up, really liked them?
At first it sounded like you weren’t happy with them Dennis! Hahaha! I’m glad they worked for you either way. And yes, the amount of liquid you need can certainly vary depending on humidity and bake time will vary based on how big you made them. Either way, I’m glad they worked out for you. We love super hot sausage and pepper jack cheese in ours too. I agree on spice! –Rachel
Should the sausage be pre-cooked or raw when you mix/roll it into the ball & place on the cookie sheet.
Hi Anne, the sausage goes in uncooked and will cook in the oven. As always, if it should be cooked before hand you’ll find that information either in the ingredients like this: “1 pound sausage, cooked and crumbled” or in the instructions it would say to cook the sausage first before adding it to the bowl. Sorry if things weren’t clear. –Rachel
Just used this recipe for sausage balls for a morning wedding reception. I used Jimmy Dean maple sausage for a twist, and the crowd loved them. Bride and Groom texted me for the recipe, after freezing them and having them for breakfast a few mornings.
Oh maple sounds awesome Sheila! Great idea to try that. I’m so glad they all enjoyed it. Doesn’t it feel good to have someone ask for the recipe? And you gave the newlyweds some delicious breakfasts for a while. Wins all around! –Rachel
I wonder if you could use these like meatballs???? (In spaghetti)
Nope. Sausage balls are made with flour so they are more like biscuits with sausage in them than they are anything else. I doubt you’d want biscuits in your spaghetti! –Rachel
hi! If i wanted to make these ahead of time could I freeze them before cooking? And if so, should I thaw completely before baking or adjust baking time from frozen?
thank you!
Hey Meg! Yes you sure can. I freeze them totally cooked, then just wrap them frozen in some aluminum foil and put them in a 300/325 oven for about 15 or 20 minutes until they are hot all the way through. I hope you enjoy them! –Rachel
The perfect easy appetizer for a crowd.
No head scratching here!! I am happy to say I have eaten my share of these little bites of deliciousness! My first time having these was when a friend had them at a Halloween party and I fell in love with them!! Thank you for sharing this!! I definitely PINNED IT!!
I’m glad you’ve had a chance to know the joys of the sausage ball Kim. I love that you love them. 🙂