Deep South Eats: Sausage Pinwheels

Hold onto your seats ladies and gentlemen. I am presenting you with a superbly technical recipe. I mean we are talking difficult...well not really. If I were truly honest I imagine my little nut would be able to make these herself with a little help in the cutting and cooking department.

Sausage pinwheels are a regular attendee at any function where my side of the family has breakfast or the potential for breakfast. Have to bring a baked breakfast good for bible study and expect my dear mother to show up with a platter of these gems.

Ingredients:
1 lb. sausage
1 (8 oz) block of cream cheese - (A little secret for the non wimpy or shall we say not worried about overall appearance of their coronary arteries - I like to buy one of those little 3 oz blocks as well to make them extra creamy)
2 cans of crescent rolls

p.s. I know that this picture does not show a block of cream cheese. I sent my dear husband out to get fruit dip once for a party and he came back with two tubs of cream cheese, so I must get rid of it!

Directions:

Slice open your sausage. Someone once taught me this little trick to make getting the sausage out of the roll easier. This may be old news to some of you. Simply slice off the ends and then make a slit down the middle long ways. Doing this allows you to roll the sausage right out of their package and then squeeze the little bit out of the ends.

Brown your sausage until there is no pink remaining. I have found the easiest way to drain the grease out of sausage is to layer foil first and then 2 or 3 paper towels on top of a deep dinner plate. Then spoon the sausage onto the paper towels so it will soak up the grease. Once finished you just have to fold up the foil with the greasy paper towels inside - no mess!

Mix the cream cheese with the cooked sausage.

 Roll out one package of crescent rolls onto a piece of plastic wrap lightly dusted with flour. Pinch the seams of the crescent rolls together. Spread half of the sausage and cream cheese mixture all over the surface.

Roll the crescent rolls from the long end away from you to the long end close to you. Do not worry if a little squishes out the ends. Once completely rolled up, pinch the long end into the dough to seal it up. Then wrap the flour dusted plastic wrap very tightly and repeat with second set of crescent rolls. Refrigerate both rolls for at least an hour if not overnight.

 Slice the rolls about 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch thick slices. Place around an inch apart on a greased or parchment covered (my preference for any baking) baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-15

Allow them to cool slightly and then remove to a wire cooling rack. Enjoy right away, later, at 2 in the morning, or they may even be frozen in planning for future breakfasts.

with Belles and Beauxs