Homemade Apple-Maple Sausage and Buttermilk Pancakes

Photo by Michael Piazza / Styled by Catrine Kelty

A classic. Pancakes, sausage and fruit on the side with syrup. But this is sausage you’ve made yourself, these pancakes have a touch of local whole grain flour, you’re pouring local maple syrup and slicing whatever fruit looked best at your farmers market. A true tribute to our state!

Serves 4

For the sausages:
¾ pound ground pork, local if possible
½ apple, peeled and cut into ¼-inch dice
1 ½ tablespoons minced shallot
1 clove garlic, minced or grated
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, minced
1 teaspoon fresh sage leaves, minced
pinch chili flakes, optional
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 tablespoon local maple syrup
1 teaspoon sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil

For the pancakes:
1½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup local whole grain pastry flour, like Four Star Farms (or substitute ¼ cup whole wheat flour and ¼ cup raw wheat germ)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon sea salt
2 eggs
3 cups buttermilk
6 tablespoons cooled melted butter or any neutral oil, plus more for cooking
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

To serve:
Softened butter
2 cups local whole milk yogurt, like Sidehill Farm
¼ cup honey
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups seasonal local fruit, like strawberries, blueberries and blackberries, or fresh apricots and cherries, or apples and pears, depending on the time of year
Massachusetts maple syrup, warmed

Preheat the oven to 200°F.

To make the sausage, blend together all the ingredients minus the olive oil in a mixing bowl with your hands, being careful not to work the meat too much (that’ll make for tough sausages). Form 12 small patties and set aside in the fridge for the flavors to come together, at least 20 minutes to an hour, but overnight is even better.

For the pancake batter, whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk the eggs and then add the buttermilk and vanilla. If using melted butter, add it to the cold buttermilk mixture while constantly whisking so the butter doesn’t solidify and clump up.

With a wooden spoon, stir the wet ingredients into the dry, folding to combine, but refrain from mixing too much: lumps are okay, and stirring too much will make tough pancakes.

Heat a cast iron pan and add the olive oil and sausage patties (you may have to cook the sausage in batches) and cook until golden brown on one side, then flip. When the sausages are cooked, remove them to an ovenproof platter, cover with foil, and place in the oven to keep warm while you cook the rest.

When all the sausages are cooked and keeping warm in the oven, heat a griddle or large frying pan and grease it with butter or oil. Using a ¼-cup ice cream scoop, portion out pancakes. When each cake is covered in large bubbles, flip and cook the other side. Remove cooked pancakes to a platter, cover with foil, and keep warm in the oven. Repeat until all the batter is gone.

Stir together the yogurt, honey and cinnamon and place in a bowl at the table with the fruit. Serve each person a stack of pancakes, 3 sausage patties, and let them dress their plate with butter, yogurt, fruit, and syrup.

This story appeared in the Spring 2016 issue as part of a larger story on Breakfast and Brunch.