Pancake & Sausage on a Stick - Cheap$kate Review

My latest Deal of the Day should not be so good. I think you can understand my suspicion of any meat that's on a stick from a frozen deli case.

But I am a fan of McDonald's McGriddle, a hybrid breakfast sandwich with a pancake bun that's injected with maple sryup. I like my McGriddle with egg and a sausage patty.

So when I saw Pancake & Sausage on a Stick by Snapps  in my local Dollar Tree deli case, I just had to get it. The concept of a breakfast corn dog rang my bell.

And you can check out my Deal of the Day cheap$kate video review at the end of this blog post.

And you get 2 pancake/sausage corn dogs for a buck, Wow!

This is an easy breakfast, just zap it in the microwave for a minute. You want it to be hot to the touch, so you know the inside sausage link is defrosted. Mine was ready in a minute, I might have added a couple of  10 second microwave bursts to finish.

I was quite impressed with the pancake envelope. It was spongy and light like a typical pancake you would make from the box, or even get at a local breakfast joint. I mean nothing out of the ordinary, and that's a good thing.

The pancake was a little over-sweet, but that's because no packet of maple syrup was included. Now, who ever has pancakes without syrup?

I guess I could take off a couple of points for a lack of syrup, but I think everyone has leftover  maple syrup in the refrigerator anyway. I had mine with it and boy did it take it over the top.

Maple syrup not included in box.

For my typical pancake stack with bacon or sausage, the best part is sloshing the meat into the syrup. Well with this all-in-one meal on a stick you do the same without utensils.

The sausage link is standard Farmer John's or Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage. Course ground and a little fatty, but that's okay by me. Seasonings are light and the flavor mildly pleasing.

All in all I was quite taken with this guilty pleasure of a start to my day. The pancake shell was not soggy, just springy in texture  and slightly moist. Even the sausage reheated well, not dried out or tough.

Well, by now you can tell I'm giving my latest Deal of the Day, Pancake & Sausage on a Stick by Snapps, a high Cheap$kate Dining score, of 1 to 9, 9 being best. Just watch the video below to get all the goods. 

Play it here, video runs 2 minutes 27 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Corn Dog Party ! - Video

The Chef thought he had eaten his last Vienna sausage as an adolescent. Well the only thing that will get me to change my mind is turning them into mini-corn dogs!

What fun this party food is. Sure to surprise and delight your carnivorous revelers, Vienna sausage corn dogs are simple to make and you can get your guests in on the frank frying fun.

 The corn dough coating is simple to do, just cornmeal, flour, baking power, egg, sugar and milk - a corn muffin mix from the 99c only Store is an easy way to go, as well.

And they always carry Vienna sausages -- two seven-wiener cans for 99.99 cents.

So, surprise (and shock) your guest at the next party you throw by serving these crunchy coated mini-delights and...Party On!

Corn Dog Party - Video

Play it here. The video runs 4 minutes.

Ingredients (about 20 mini-corn dogs)
3-4 small 99c cans of Vienna sausage
1 egg
1cup flour
1cup cornmeal
1tbsp. baking power
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tbsp. sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
4 cups oil for deep frying (enough to cover a Vienna sausage - about 3 inches deep)
 
Or 99.99c Corn Muffin Mix - follow box instructions and use as a corn dog batter.

Dipping sauces
Honey/mustard - half cup of mustard and 3 tbsp. honey.
Spicy Dijon - half cup of Dijon mustard and about a tsp. of horseradish sauce (add a little at a time to reach desired heat).
Oriental - 1/4 cup each of ketchup, steak sauce, and soy sauce and/or oyster sauce.

Directions

Start heating oil to 350 degrees (medium/high heat - battered corn dogs should cause oil to roil when added).

 Mix all ingredients into a batter that is slightly thicker than pancake batter; this will make a typical corn dog coating - the thicker the batter the thicker the corn coating.

 Drain Vienna sausages and pat dry. Insert wood skewers into wieners (5 inch wood shish kabob sticks - cut in half from 10 inches) and coat with corn dog batter.


Deep fry in batches of five or so for about five minutes, depending on how hot your fryer is. Done when corn dogs are golden brown; watch carefully, as they will burn easily in hot oil.

When adding to hot oil, allow corn dog to cook for a few seconds before adding the next one, so they do not stick together.

 Drain cooked corn dogs on paper towels and serve with dipping sauces.

99 thanks to Charlie from NYC for his camerawork, and also all the party corn dog tasters!
Also a special featurette. The Chef's mom & sisters watch "Corn Dog Party" adding funny comments. Click here.

Go here to embed or view video at youtube.