Pancake Sausage Dogs

Yes, I got out the deep fryer at 4:30 in the morning.  Sorry about the poor lighting in these photos.  These actually took far less time than I was expecting, maybe 45 minutes, mainly because I used frozen microwavable sausages.  You can also cook the sausage the day before, and even mix the pancake batter the day before, so all you have to do in the morning is dip and fry.

This is a Thrillist recipe that I picked because it makes a very thick batter.  If you use a boxed pancake mix, reduce the milk or water you add to it.  By how much will depend on the brand.  I do recommend making this from scratch.  It's a good pancake recipe.

You'll notice that this makes two dozen.  That's just how much batter you get with one egg.  You can freeze the leftovers.  Instead of breaking out a second package of sausages, I chopped up an apple and made fritters with the other half of the batter. They were at least as good as the sausage dogs.

1-1/2 C flour, plus 2 Tb for coating sausages
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 C buttermilk
1 egg
2 Tb vegetable oil
24 link breakfast sausages
2 qt canola or peanut oil for frying
syrup for serving
12 wooden kabob skewers, broken in half

1.  In a bowl, stir together dry ingredients.  I tossed in a shake each of cinnamon and nutmeg, but you can make these plain.  Separately, combine egg, milk, and 2 Tb oil.  I know, you're thinking why should I put oil in something I'm going to fry?  It will give the batter the proper consistency.  Pour the wet into the dry and stir into a batter.  Let sit for at least 10 minutes, or overnight in the fridge.

2.  Start heating 2 quarts of oil in a heavy pan or deep fryer to 375º.  It's going to take about 15 minutes, which should be plenty of time to cook the sausages to package directions.

3.  Pat the sausages dry, then roll in remaining 2 Tb of flour.  This will help the batter to stick.  Impale each sausage with a half-skewer about 2/3 of the way through.  Dip in the batter.  I used the spoon to encourage the thick goo to stick, then left them sitting in the bowl of batter until it was their turn.

4.  When oil is ready, gently lay the dog, stick and all, in the pot.  Fry until golden, turning if they don't submerge in the oil, about 4 minutes.  Remove from the pot with tongs and place on a paper towel-lined plate to drain.  Continue until all sausages are done.  If there's more batter left than you feel comfortable throwing away, drop it in the oil in soup spoon sized dollops and fry as fritters.

5.  Serve hot, with syrup for dipping.  Freeze leftovers as soon as they cool.  To reheat, warm in the microwave until at least room temperature, then finish in a 300º oven.

Makes 2 dozen, 8 to 12 servings

Difficulty rating  :)