How can you not fall in love with crispy little bites of delicious homemade biscuit dough filled with maple sausage and cheddar cheese? Trust me no one other than M2 can resist them in my house. My boys have weird palates, I get that. Pinwheels have been around for eons. Some brilliant woman back in the day probably had her husband spring a last minute visit with friends on her. Having on hand only the ingredients for breakfast the following morning, she turned her would be sausage biscuits into a treasure that would last throughout the ages. At least that’s my theory and I’m sticking with it.
Okay if you must know, according to popular belief sometime after WW II when brunches and luncheons started becoming the rage, an anonymous Southerner took our love of sausage biscuits and came up with this masterpiece of a recipe that transformed our breakfast treat into a scrumptious little appetizer. You have to give it up for Southern Love when it comes to all things edible. It is a passion.
Gather all of your ingredients together along with a pastry cutter (or fork) and a rolling pin.
Sift all of your dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl, combining thoroughly.
Add the shorting in small pieces to your dry mix and blend well with a pastry cutter. Yes I said shortening, this a really old recipe so just go with the flow people. If you don’t have a pastry cutter a fork will work fine and one day you’ll be able to win the National Arm Wrestling Championship. Is there one? I don’t know but there very well could be and you’ll be ready.
Add half a cup of milk and mix well. Then it’s time to use the best two tools out there for baking, your hands. With your hands work everything together into a nice neat dough.
Divide your dough into two smaller balls of equal size and refrigerate for about 15 min. or until completely cooled. The dough will be easier to work with after that.
After your dough has cooled the fun begins. Sprinkle a little flour, along with some herbs if you like, over the surface of your work area. Roll out each dough ball into a neat rectangle approx. 8×12 without it being too thin or tearing. Now if you have skipped the pleasure of making your own dough due to the fact that you are up to you’re ears in Thanksgiving prep work you get a pass…this time. Go ahead and lay out your prepackaged dough. If you need to, roll it out a little bit to give yourself a larger surface to work with.
Divide the sausage using 1/2lb for each piece of dough. Spread the sausage in a thin even layer over the dough.
Generously sprinkle with cheddar cheese and more herbs if that floats your boat. It always floats mine. Starting with the short end of the rectangle, tuck it under and simply roll, like you would with a jelly roll, until you have a roll approx. 2×8 inches.
Smooth out the edges as much a possible and tuck the ends under or pinch them. Voila! A lovely little roll of goodness just waiting to be baked.
But you will have to wait so wrap your rolls up in wax paper and place in the fridge to cool for about 30 minutes for easier slicing. You can even leave the pinwheel rolls in the fridge overnight if you are going to make these fresh for Thanksgiving Day or a party during the holidays.
Slice them no more than a inch thick, but I like mine to be thin crisps so I slice them about yea thick. Don’t you just love how I measure, it’s like when you go fishing…” That flounder was yea big, I swear!”
Place those little cuties on a cookie sheet coated with cooking spray and bake until golden brown or the sausage has cooked all the way through.
Can I just say YUM! please. Sausage, herbs, crispy bread and golden baked cheddar…Oh my word, I’m in love! To bad I only had one of these when I baked them the first time. My surfer and M1 devoured the entire plate during the short time it took me to straighten up the kitchen. The next time I’m squirreling away half of the batch and I’m not divulging to anyone where they’re hidden. Mine y’all, make your own… just kidding, maybe. I hope that you guys enjoy making a batch of pinwheels in the near future. Have a great evening everyone and have fun getting everything ready for tomorrows big feast.
Love ya,
Tickled Red
Sausage & Cheese Pinwheels-Makes Approx. 30
Prep Time: Approx. 1 1/2 hrs (including cool time)
Cook Time: Approx. 20 minutes
Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar (1 tbsp more if you like your biscuit dough sweet)
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup milk
1 pound sausage
1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon dried oregano, basil, rosemary mix
Gather all of your ingredients together along with a pastry cutter (or fork) and a rolling pin.
Sift all of your dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl, combining thoroughly.
Add the shorting in small pieces to your dry mix and work it in well with a pastry cutter. If you don’t have a pastry cutter a fork will work fine.
Add half a cup of milk and mix well. With your hands work everything together into a nice neat dough.
Divide your dough into two smaller balls of equal size and refrigerate for about 15 min. or until completely cooled. The dough will be easier to work with after that.
After your dough has cooled sprinkle a little flour, along with some herbs if you like, over the surface of your work area. Roll out each dough ball into a neat rectangle as far as it will spread without being too thin or tearing. If you are using prepackaged dough go ahead and lay out the dough. If you need to, roll it out a little bit to give yourself a larger surface to work with.
Divide the sausage using 1/2lb for each piece of dough. Spread the sausage in a thin even layer over the dough.
Generously sprinkle with cheddar cheese and add more herbs if you like.
Starting with the end of the dough rectangle, tuck it under and simply roll, like you would with a jelly roll, until you have a roll approx. 2×8 inches.
Smooth out the edges as much a possible and tuck in the ends.
Wrap the rolls in wax paper and place in the fridge to cool for about 30 minutes. You can easily make the pinwheel rolls ahead of time for parties during the holidays and keep them refrigerated or frozen until you need them.
Slice them no more than an inch thick, I slice mine 1/2 inch.
Lay them on a cookie sheet coated with cooking spray and bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for approx. 20 minutes or until golden brown and the sausage has cooked all the way through.
Enjoy!
Shari/Red
*Recipe adapted from Southern Food-a school book*
Hi there guys I'm Shari, but y'all can call me Red.
Southern nut. Perpetual optimist. Food adventurer. Creative dabbler. Lovin' an impromptu surf life with my darlin' & two groms. We're so glad you stopped by! 
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
omg these look soooooooo YummY. After the holiday’s I’m going to give them a try at making them gluten free. Thank you for sharing the recipe and your great pics.
These look so delicious!!
–>Those look delicious!
Love you! Thanks for correcting my recipe> had the rihjt idea wrong technique. God bless your family. Happpy New Year ! Keep Cookin!