MEANDERER'S GENTLE MAPLE-APPLE CHICKEN SAUSAGE

Over the past couple of years I've stopped liking sausage. It's too greasy and too strong in the seasonings. I tried vegetarian and didn't like that. So, I've been looking around and finally found a recipe for making sausage myself.

The first time I made it (following the recipe to all jots and tittles), there was one spice that seemed to me to be poking its elbows out -- too strong and not blending in with the other spices. A couple days ago I did a little revising of the recipe before cooking up a new batch, and Wow! Now I can make a gentle but tasty sausage. Now I can taste all the flavors. I really like it a lot! As you might guess, the apple and maple add so much!

Meanderer's Gentle Maple-Apple Chicken Sausage

1 tablespoon vegetable oil, 1 turn of the pan
1 tablespoon butter
1 pound ground chicken breast
1 small McIntosh apple peeled and finely chopped
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 tablespoon grill seasoning blend (recommended: Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick)
1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat a medium skillet over medium-high heat with 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter. Mix chicken with apple, syrup, grill seasoning, poultry seasoning, cinnamon and nutmeg and score the meat into 8 to 10 sections. Form thin, round patties and set into hot butter and oil. Cook 3 to 5 minutes on each side. Set on paper towel to drain excess grease.

Additional notes:
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You can substitute unsweetened applesauce for the fresh apples.
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If you use ground turkey:
I made 2 pounds, used 3 McIntosh apples and an extra 1/2 c. maple syrup, since turkey is so dry. Good stuff, but I like the chicken better.
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I make the big Grands Biscuits to go with my sausage. So, to size my sausage patties for the biscuits, I use an ice cream scoop to plop the soggy sausage mixture into the frying pan.
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Now that the flavors are nicely balanced, I’m surprised how much the combination of tastes is similar to the blending of sounds of an orchestra or a choir. One strident voice can unbalance all the others.

I have a feeling that there’s a deep, rich truth here: that any one overplayed factor – of anything -- can unbalance the whole – whatever. Any time. Anywhere. I bet we do that a lot.