Football season is here and I’m doing touchdown dances all over the place. Truthfully, it’s not really about the game for me—it’s about the food, and picking the team with the coolest uniforms to root for. Unless it’s the Seahawks, because well, they’re my hometown team after all.
Football Sunday is sacrosanct around this household. My husband flips between the channels, I make the food. It is the perfect system for us. To gear up for this season, tuck these Baked Sausage Fontina Sandwiches from TK member Christy into your arsenal. Let me tell you, these will be making game day appearances the whole season long.
The line up of goods is a real simple one, and that’s great for Sunday game day because if you want to catch any of the action, you don’t want to be standing over the stove four quarters straight.
Instead of using the ground chuck and pork sausage for this recipe, I opted for ground turkey and ground Italian chicken sausage.
In a large skillet, brown the ground turkey and sausage until cooked through and browned. Drain any fat that might have rendered.
Season the sausage and stir to combine.
Next, in goes the tomato sauce. I was a total genius and picked up tomato paste in a mad rush at the store. To make the paste into sauce, I did a quick calculation and included enough water to the paste to equal the required 15 ounces of tomato sauce. It worked out wonderfully.
In it went, and the smell was incredible.
Over the tomato sauce and sausage went the oregano and basil.
Once all your herbs are incorporated into the mix, it’s time to fill the buns! Split all of buns in half, and if you’re feeling daring, toast them. Top the bottom half of the buns with the sausage mixture.
Then top the sausage with the shredded fontina. Put the other half of the bun in place and wrap the whole sandwich in a square of foil.
Can’t you just imagine the awesomeness happening inside here? Bake the lot of them in a preheated 350ºF oven for about 15 minutes.
Unwrap and serve!
Be sure to check out Christy’s TK recipe box and her site, Sunsets on the Side, for more game day sweets and savories! My eye is on this Chuck Roast Chili! Thanks, Christy!
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Description
These warm, gooey sandwiches are hearty and comforting, and they’re easy to make ahead for a crowd.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Ground Italian Sausage (hot Or Mild)
- 1 pound Ground Chuck
- ½ teaspoons Kosher Salt
- ½ teaspoons Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- ½ teaspoons Garlic Powder
- 1 can (15 Oz. Can) Tomato Sauce
- ½ teaspoons Dried Oregano
- 3 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Fresh Basil
- 8 whole French Hamburger Buns (or Any Sturdy Roll)
- 4 ounces, weight Fontina, Sliced
- 8 Sheets Of Aluminum Foil (big Enough To Wrap Each Sandwich)
Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Place the sausage and ground chuck in a large, non-stick skillet. Add the salt, pepper and garlic powder, and cook over medium heat, stirring often and breaking the meat up with your spatula, until it is cooked through and browned (about 10-12 minutes). Turn off the heat and drain the grease from the pan.
Place the skillet back over medium heat. Add the tomato sauce and oregano, and stir to combine. Simmer until mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat, and stir in the basil.
Spoon the meat mixture evenly onto the the bottom half of each of the hamburger buns, top the meat with Fontina slices, add the top of the bun and then wrap each sandwich in foil.
Place the sandwiches on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.
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Megan Keno is the writer and photographer of Country Cleaver, a food blog fueled by Nutella and images of June Cleaver—if June wore cowboy boots and flannel, that is. A self-proclaimed country bum, Megan creates from-scratch recipes that range from simple to sublime and how-to’s to build your cooking repertoire. But she couldn’t do it without the help of her trusty—and furry—sous chef, Huckleberry. He’s a world class floor cleaner.
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