Sausage Cheese Balls - Rolling into Christmas

What these sausage cheese balls lack in sophistication, they more than make up for with their taste, simplicity, and proven track record for making party-goers happy. No one goes to a holiday party thinking, "I hope they serve sausage cheese balls," but they all leave very grateful you did.

I'm not sure how these evolved into a Christmas snack, but I bet it has something to do with the fact you can stretch a few pounds of meat and cheese into enough finger food for a large crowd. They can also be made ahead, which helps in the old holiday time management department.

This is a recipe where everyone uses the same basic ingredients, but in wildly different proportions. Look online, and you'll see versions with half the amount of biscuit mix, as well as ones with three times as much. It all depends on how bready verses cheesy/meaty you want your balls to be.

The bad news is, the only way to figure out your ideal formula is to test multiple versions. This is also the good news. Speaking of formulas, this originally calls for biscuit mix (like Bisquick), but I prefer to use self-rising flour. Besides some added fat, that's all biscuit mix is, and a little extra cheese more than makes up for any missing shortening.

If you have some biscuit mix in the cupboard, by all means use it, but otherwise I see no need to go out and buy a box. If you don't have self-rising flour, I've given instructions below for how to make your own. I really hope you give these sausage cheese balls a try soon. Enjoy!

Makes about 48 sausage cheese balls: 1 1/4 pounds raw hot Italian pork sausage meat (just remove the casing from uncooked, link-style sausages) pinch of nutmeg 1/2 cup finely sliced green onions 1/2 pound shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese (about 3 cups) 2 cups biscuit mix, or self-rising flour (*see below to make your own) 2 tablespoons milk

- Bake at 450F. for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until cooked through (I like to broil for a minute or two for extra color)

* To make your own self-rising flour, sift together 2 cups of all-purpose flour, with 1 tablespoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon fine salt.