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Sausage balls. Have you ever heard of them?
If you are from the South, there is a strong chance you have and grew up eating them around the holidays and at any potluck. Personally, I grew up eating them at my best friend Lindy’s house. Her dad, Coach Davis, was also one of my track coaches in high school. He would always make us his famous “sausage balls” when we went over to their house for breakfast and I could still eat a whole batch of them myself.
I’m not certain of Coach Davis’s exact recipe (so if you’re reading this Coach, don’t get angry) but I am pretty sure it contained the following ingredients: Bisquick, pork sausage, milk and cheese. There were likely a few other ingredients in there, but from my food-loving memory, that’s how Coach made them and they were absolutely delicious.
Because this recipe was a childhood favorite of mine, I wanted to recreate it using healthier, cleaner ingredients for my kiddos and I had some fun throughout the process! While these Gluten-Free Sausage Balls aren’t paleo or Whole30, as I am pretty sure if I even tried to make them Whole30 they’d be considered SWYPO and against the rules. Plus, when I did try to make them using paleo flours, they got way too dense and just didn’t taste quite right. Recreating them as healthy as possible, while still keeping their true flavors that I grew up eating, was important to me so I ended up choosing (after countless attempts) Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Gluten-Free Flour and I am so happy with how they turned out. I highly recommend making these at the beginning of the week to have a grab-and-go breakfast or even as a make-ahead appetizer or side dish for a Thanksgiving or holiday party coming up.
For a dairy-free and gluten-free version, these Gluten-Free Sausage Balls are truly fantastic! The flavors brought back so many fond memories of my childhood friends and spending time with their families. I was so lucky to have friends with families that were so kind and generous to me growing up! I hope these bring back similar memories for those who grew up eating them as well.
For another gluten-free breakfast idea, try my Gluten-Free Ham and Cheese Quiche!
Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Sausage Balls
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten-Free Flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast (you can sub 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese)
- 1.5 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped about 5 sprigs
- 4 tbsp ghee (melted and cooled slightly) (to keep Dairy Free, sub vegan butter)
- 1 lb bulk pork breakfast sausage
- 1 large egg, whisked
- 1/2 cup nutpods original dairy-free creamer (you can sub whole milk here)
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the gluten-free baking flour, baking powder, salt, nutritional yeast, baking soda, thyme and melted ghee. Stir until it turns into a crumbly, dough-like texture.
- Using your hands, add the pork sausage into the bowl by breaking into smaller pieces. Continue to use your hands to work the pork into the flour mixture until evenly combined.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, creamer and dijon until well combined. Pour into the sausage mixture. Using the back of a fork, work the contents in the bowl (by stirring and mashing) until they are well combined.
- Using a small cookie scoop (about 1 tbsp) drop sausage ball mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Using damp hands, go back through and roll into balls.
- Place in the preheated oven and cook until the pork is cooked through, about 15 minutes.
- Remove from oven and enjoy!
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I LOVE these! I’ve made them so many times, and they are always a crowd pleaser! Is there a way to find the nutritional facts on your recipes…especially these? Thank you so much!
My fitness pal (the app) has a ‘create a recipe’ option and you’re able to break down the macros by Typing in all ingredients + serving amount! But sometimes the defined dish recipes are already added in if you search for them 🙂
Do you know if these freeze well? Thanks!
They do!!! 🙂
can you freeze pre-cooked and then cook as needed
Yes!!
Is there a nut-based flour (or normal flour) you could use instead of the gluten free flour?
Hi Kelly/Alex! do you thaw before cooking or pop in the oven from the freezer? Thanks!
hey there! My daughter doesn’t do gluten/grains, dairy OR nightshades (potatoes) and most gluten-free flours have potato starch in them… Do you think there would be a variation with cassava that would work? I would try almond, but I am allergic to almonds. So tough with multiples allergies! UGH! I may try full fat coconut milk instead of nut pods, but was wondering if changing the flour to something grain/gluten/and potato/rice-free would not turn out. Thoughts?
hi Becki! I originally tried so hard to make these paleo/grain-free… but was having a hard time and never got the right concotion. I really need to try again soon!!
Does it work with the coconut milk?
yes i does!
Hi Becki! I wonder if this recipe would be of benefit. Personally sorghum, millet flour and tapioca starch are nice alternatives. This sausage ball recipe could work with this biscuit recipe just add the sausage. I think coconut milk would work. Allergy free Alaska has a good biscuit recipe you might want to try. https://www.allergyfreealaska.com/gluten-free-biscuits/
Love this recipe!! I usually triple it which gives me some slight difficulty mixing it – used potato masher this time and helped so much!
Great for meal prep! These are dangerous in our house because they are so tasty!
I love this recipe! I live in Georgia and grew up eating sausage balls around Christmas. My husband and I love them and they are a go-to about once a month. I sub in milk, cheese and dried thyme. They are so good I have to beg my hubby not to eat them all in one day so we can have them for breakfast at least one more day. 😂
Haha I’m so glad! So hard not to eat them all
Another perfect 5 star recipe by Alex! I used to look up recipes on Pinterest and other Google searches, but between DD blog and cookbook, I don’t need to look anywhere, as every recipe has been a complete hit! These sausage balls leave nothing to be missed in flavor or texture. When going gluten and dairy free, you always think you’ll miss certain things, but Alex always knocks it out of the park with substitutions, that you don’t even notice they are “healthy”. Moral of the story- just make anything from her blog and cookbook, you won’t be sorry 🙂
What do you pair these with when doing Whole30? Or do you just eat these straight for breakfast?
Hi! While these Sausage balls are Gluten-Free, they are not Whole30 compliant as they are not grain-free.
Alex!!!! This recipe is AMAZING. My family grew up making sausage balls for every holiday occasion – it is a staple in our family. Like we fight over how many we get and who gets the last one, and my mom always makes so many and keeps them in the freezer too. All that to say, I just made this recipe hoping that they would be just as good and cleaned up, and WOW. I am so impressed, you nailed it!! I am so thankful for you and the way you clean up recipes I know and love!
My store doesn’t have the 1 to 1 gluten free, just Bob’s Red Mill gluten free will that work?
I haven’t yet tried it using that flour so I can’t say for sure, I am sorry
I use the King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour and it works great. Maybe your store carries that one instead?