Making breakfast an event on Sunday is one of my favorite things. I’d much rather make something from scratch at home (in my PJ’s) than go wait in line for 45 minutes at a brunch spot, only to be rushed through the meal. I’ve been working on this recipe for Maple Sage Breakfast Sausage for the past couple of weeks and I’m delighted so say that it’s the perfect way to make your weekend breakfast a little extra special without having to put in a lot of extra work. It’s as easy as 1-2-3. Mix, shape, cook!
This recipe is super simple, super fast, and also reheats fabulously (hello, breakfast for dinner). So if you’re the type that likes to meal prep their breakfast, you’re going to love this Maple Sage Breakfast Sausage!
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Can I Use Pork instead of Turkey?
Yes! I used ground turkey for my Maple Sage Breakfast Sausage, but you can absolutely use ground pork. The ground turkey I used was 93% lean, 7% fat, so keep in mind that if you use a higher fat content pork your sausages may shrink more when cooked.
How to Prep Maple Sage Breakfast Sausage Ahead
If you want to prepare these breakfast sausages ahead, you have a few options. First, you can make the seasoned meat mixture the night before, either shaping them the night before or waiting until morning to shape and cook them. If shaping them the night before you can stack them between sheets of parchment or waxed paper for storage in the refrigerator.
If you’re meal prepping, simply fully cook the sausages as directed below, place them in meal prep containers, and refrigerate right away. To reheat you can either microwave, or reheat in a skillet.
How to Freeze Maple Sage Breakfast Sausage
You can also freeze the uncooked patties. Simply mix and shape the sausages, freeze them flat on a baking sheet lined with parchment, then once frozen transfer them to an air-tight freezer storage container, like a freezer bag. You can transfer to the refrigerator the night before to thaw, or thaw at room temperature for about 30 minutes before cooking (do not leave them at room temperature longer, or they can become a food safety hazard).
Do I have to use Maple Syrup?
While you don’t have to add maple syrup to these sausages, it does give them the most subtly delicious sweet maple flavor that I find absolutely to die for. It also helps caramelize the outsides of the sausages just a little. And you definitely want to use real maple syrup for this recipe, not “pancake syrup,” which is a cheaper maple syrup alternative (flavored and colored corn syrup).
Maple Sage Breakfast Sausage
Servings 5 two patties eachIngredients
- 19 oz. ground turkey ($3.49)
- 1 tsp dried sage ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.03)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1 Tbsp maple syrup ($0.30)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- freshly cracked pepper ($0.03)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
Instructions
- Add the ground turkey, sage, thyme, garlic powder, smoked paprika, maple syrup, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper to a bowl. Use your hands to mix the ingredients together until the ground turkey is evenly seasoned.
- Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, portion and shape the ground meat mixture into patties. After measuring out 1/4 cup, make sure to flatten the patties until they are very thin, as they'll shrink inward and get thicker in the center as they cook. The shaped patties should be about 3-inches wide.
- To cook the Maple Sage Breakfast Sausage, add 1 Tbsp cooking oil to a skillet and heat over medium. Once hot, add the sausage patties (working in two batches if needed to prevent over crowding the skillet) and cook 3-5 minutes on each side, or until browned on the outside and cooked through. Serve hot.
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Equipment
- Color Cutting Boards
- Cast Iron Skillet
- Enamelware Salad Plate
Nutrition
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Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Maple Sage Breakfast Sausage – Step by Step Photos
Add 19 oz. ground turkey, 1 tsp dried sage, 1/2 tsp dried thyme, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1 Tbsp maple syrup, 1/2 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper to a bowl. Use your hands to mix the ingredients together until the ground turkey is evenly seasoned.
Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to portion and shape the Maple Sage Breakfast Sausages. You’ll want to flatten the patties quite a bit, until they’re about 3-inches across, because they shrink inward and get a lot thicker as they cook.
To cook the sausage, heat 1 Tbsp cooking oil in a large skillet over medium. Once hot, add your maple sage breakfast sausage patties, working in two batches if needed to prevent over crowding the skillet. Cook the sausage patties for 3-5 minutes on each side, or until they are well browned and cooked through.
Serve immediately and enjoy!
Thinking of meal-prepping them, but how else can I use them?
I usually just serve them with breakfast, but I suppose you could also make breakfast sandwiches with them?
I’ve made these so many times, and they’re always great. Even reheated as leftovers.
I made this with extra-lean ground turkey so I added a tablespoon of rendered chicken fat to make up for that. Turned out great.
These were delicious. We used 16 oz of ground chicken. I wouldn’t change a thing!
These look fantastic! I regularly buy turkey or chicken breakfast sausage but they can be expensive, so this is a great option for me to make. Have you froze them once cooked? Have you tried with ground chicken?
I agree with the others that 19 oz of turkey is an odd amount. I only see it in 16 oz packages here, unless I am at Sam’s Club which is 2.5 lbs.
Wow! This recipe is delicious. The sausages were juicy and had the perfect amount of sweetness from the maple syrup, with an added depth of flavor from the caramelization . I did adjust it slightly for my tastes – onion powder instead of garlic powder and regular paprika instead of smoked – but I’m sure it is just as good when followed exactly too. This recipe was enjoyed by all. Thank you!
Hi! Do you think these would work in the oven instead of fried in a pan? Would I need to add oil so they don’t stick? Thanks
I made these in the frying pan just now, and they are pretty tasty! I had slightly less turkey (454g which is 16oz) and I played with the seasoning a little, adding herb de provence instead of thyme and a spicy salt blend I had. Here’s hoping they taste just as good reheated for breakfast!
No need to add extra oil for the oven. You’ll be fine!
These were pretty bland. I’m going to add double the spices but the sage before freezing the rest.
Update..after having 4 small pattues for breakfast I added another TBS of maple syrup and 1/2 tsp more thyme and a TBS of a local product called ” garlic lovers garlic”.ingredients are garlic, garlic oil, parsley and other herbs.
Now this version was REALLY tasty.
So unfortunately here in Sweden I cannot find ground turkey, but I can find ground pork. Is it possible to use only pork for this recipe?
Yes you can definitely swap the pork for the turkey. It will be delicious!
Made these for breakfast this morning and they were a big hit. I doubled and put some in the fridge for english muffin sandwiches tomorrow. All day long my husband talked about how good these were. Thanks for another keeper
I’ve tried other sausage recipes before, but this spice combo is the one for me! Absolutely loved it! My tweak was making it half pork and half turkey. I will be adding these to my regular rotation. Thanks for all the great recipes :)
I make these all the time. One of the easiest ground turkey recipes I have found! I reccomend using a bit more spice than suggested and quite a bit more maple syrup for those delicious breakfast bytes. Thank you SO much for the recipe!
Happy to hear it Harry!
Would ground beef work just as well? I have oodles in my freezer and have been trying to find new ways to use it. Thanks!
While we haven’t tried out beef specifically for this recipe, you could certainly give it a try. It may be drier than the pork, but it’s worth a try!
My mom used to make something similar when I was a kid, because of budget it was usually a pound of ground turkey from Aldi mixed with sage, black pepper, and cayenne. She’d chill the patties in the fridge overnight before cooking them, something about it helping the flavors mix. Either way, I couldn’t taste much of a difference as a kid between the homemade and store bought sausage. They’re easy and fast!
I made this recipe exactly as outlined and it turned out just ok. I think it needs a bit of reworking – like maybe what Jasmine suggested, doubling all the spices. There was not much flavor.
I had to make serious adjustments to the recipe because when I followed it as is, there was hardly any flavor (and I only used 16 oz of meat). I doubled all of the seasonings and maple syrup (except the sage, I didn’t double that because it has a strong flavor). Doing that made delicious sausages!
Happy to hear it Jasmine!
19oz is such an odd amount of meat. Do you find it in supermarkets? I’ve only seen 16oz, 24oz and 1lb…..
These were really tasty. Sadly, I accidentally bought 93% lean turkey – I think it would be much better with regular fattier meat. I little confused about the 19oz of turkey – do you mean 16oz? Also, using a 1/4 cup scoop with 16oz of turkey gave me 7 patties.
Nope, my package was 19 oz. I don’t know why, but a lot of brands sell it in 19 oz. packages.
Your article was featured on a finance article, The Moneyist. This is definitely a dish that my family and I can enjoy. Looks pretty easy to make. I’d top it off with some sriracha. Thank you!
Just made these. They were easy to make and tasty! I couldn’t really taste the maple syrup over the sage, though. I think next time I’d try half the sage or double the maple syrup.
Hi Beth! Any idea how to veganize these? Maybe a tofu/lentil combo or lentil/oats in place of the meat? Love your site! Thanks!
Hi Trish! Unfortunately I don’t have an easy swap for this one. Veganizing sausage and meatballs is really difficult because it’s hard to recreate the same binding action of ground meat. I tried several rounds of vegan meatballs recently and still couldn’t get them to be anywhere near what I wanted. :(
Thank you for your response, Beth! No worries there, you take care of us vegans so much already with your fantastic recipes. If I manage to make it work, I’ll report back!
Ooo, I like getting pre-formed breakfast sausage patties but they’re always made with pork and tend to be a bit on the greasy side, never even thought of making them myself. I’ll have to do this!
Give it a try and let us know what you think.
Breakfast is by far my favourite meal of the day and I often have friends over for brunch. Such an awesome recipe!
This looks so good! It has my husband’s name written all over it!
Paige
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