Maple Sausage and Sweet Potato Waffles
These pork sausage patties are easy to put together--the ground meat is just tossed with Maple Sausage Seasoning, there isn't even any chopping--and this is a great way to use up leftover baked sweet potatoes. We made a Compound Butter with this blend; it sounds fancy, is super-easy, and adds a terrific layer of flavor to this dish. You may find yourself with more butter than you use in this recipe, but it will keep in the fridge for about a month and is terrific on roasted corn.
For best results, let the batter sit for at least half an hour once you've mixed it. It will help make the waffles fluffy as the flour fully hydrates in the liquid. Let buttermilk and milk come up to room temperature before mixing into the batter to prevent the butter in the batter from seizing. Keep the pork patties relatively small, so they cook thoroughly over medium heat. There's sugar in the blend so cooking at too high a temperature, or trying to cook a hamburger-sized patty, could scorch the sugar before the meat is cooked.
We used a Belgian-style waffle maker for this dish. Rectangular waffle makers will deliver a different yield, so if that's your equipment of choice, plan accordingly.
For the compound butter:
1 stick unsalted butter
1 Tablespoon Maple Sausage Seasoning, or more to taste
For the waffles:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Granulated Molasses
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
1 teaspoon Ground Korintje Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper Fine Grind
1 cup cold or room-temperature mashed sweet potato (approximately 1 medium sweet potato)
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
2 large eggs
For the pork sausage patties:
1.5 pounds ground pork
2 Tablespoons Maple Sausage Seasoning
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
Maple syrup, for serving
- Bake, steam, or microwave the sweet potato if necessary. When it is done, set it aside to cool.
- Make compound butter. Soften butter on countertop or in microwave until it is soft but not melted. Mix in Maple Sausage Seasoning. Taste, and add more if desired. Drop onto a piece of wax paper or plastic wrap and roll into a smooth cylinder. Place in the freezer to firm up.
- Make the waffles. Whisk together flour, Granulated Molasses, baking soda, Fine Sea Salt, Ground Korintje Cinnamon, Ground Nutmeg, and Black Pepper Fine Grind into a large mixing bowl.
- In a separate bowl, place sweet potato. Mash it with a fork if necessary, until it is completely pulpy.
- Mix melted butter in with sweet potato.
- Pour in buttermilk, milk, and eggs. Whisk together until smooth and then whisk into dry ingredients until fully combined. Set aside to rest.
- As the batter rests, mix ground pork with Maple Sausage Seasoning. Shape into 10 small patties.
- Remove compound butter from freezer and slice into pats. Put them in the refrigerator until they are ready to use.
- Pour vegetable oil in a non-stick or cast iron skillet, over medium heat. When the oil is ready, add a few patties into the pan. It should easily hold 3 or 4. Don't crowd the patties. Cook until brown, about 5 minutes per side. Continue cooking in batches until the patties are all cooked. Keep cooked pork patties warm on a plate, under a foil tent.
- Heat up waffle iron. When it is hot, pour approximately one cup of batter into the waffle maker. Each waffle will need approximately four minutes to cook. Continue cooking until all batter is used. You should have 5 waffles.
- Assemble by placing a pat of butter in the middle of two waffle wedges. Lay a sausage patty on top, and drizzle with maple syrup before serving.
