Pancake sausage balls are the perfect breakfast bites. A simple recipe for baked sausage balls has a touch of maple, cheddar and uses pancake mix to bring them together. These little bites are perfect during the holidays.
Recipe Highlights
How they taste: Pancake sausage balls are mainly breakfast sausage. Choose your favorite breakfast sausage then add a touch of maple syrup and cheese to the mixture. They are have a taste very similar to a sausage and cheese McGriddle.
Skill level: With simple ingredients and an easy process, these pancake sausage balls are super beginner and time friendly. A popular dish during the holidays these are perfect because they can be prepped and they don’t take much time to make.
Storing: They can be kept in the fridge and frozen if needed. Prep them beforehand then bake when you’re ready to serve.
Ingredient tips
- Sausage: Use your favorite ground breakfast sausage. This will the the primary flavor so make sure to choose a sausage you enjoy. It can be ground turkey, Italian or chicken sausage for the recipe and they can all be swapped 1:1.
- Pancake mix: The pancake mix can be any brand or even Bisquick. You can sub with equal parts without any issues. But, if you want to use flour, you’ll need this recipe instead.
- Cheese: Any cheese will work for the recipe but sharp cheddar gives that nice bite to stand out in the baked sausage balls. You can also use pre-shredded cheese in this recipe without any problems for the ease.
Chef’s tips
- This is a great recipe to prep ahead of time. Mix the ingredients, cover, then leave in the fridge until you’re ready to roll the balls out. You can also roll them, then freeze them and bake from frozen if needed.
- Have fun with mix in’s! A bunch of people stick to the basics which can work but you can make them more savory with veggies or make them cheddar bay style.
- If there are extras, you can make these babies in the air fryer. There is no secret to that. Simply use the same cooking times as provided but in the air fryer instead. You can just bake more in the oven.
How to make pancake sausage balls
- To start, you’ll need to mix the ground sausage with pancake mix.
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Next, fold in the shredded cheese and the maple syrup. Then, roll the pancake sausage balls out by hand.
- Place the rolled sausage balls on a sheet pan then place in the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes.
- Allow to cool a bit then serve.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can I use Bisquick for the pancake mix?
Of course, Bisquick is a pancake mix. It will work perfectly, one to one.
How many sausage balls does the recipe make?
Depending on size, you’ll get anywhere from 20-30. I use a large cookie scoop or a large spoon so when I make them I normally get 20-25.
Can the recipe be made if I don’t have pancake mix?
Yes, but you’ll need a different recipe. Here is my sausage balls without pancake mix recipe.
Do they freeze well?
Yes, you can freeze them before or after baking if you’d like. If you want to cook later I do suggest adding to the cooking time when cooking from frozen.
Serving suggestions
During the holidays is when these pancake sausage balls are the most popular. Here are some great holiday breakfast dishes to pair them with:
- Blueberry French Toast Casserole
- Pancake Casserole
- Crockpot Breakfast Casserole
- Croissant Breakfast Casserole
- Crockpot French Toast Casserole
- Biscuits & Gravy Breakfast Casserole
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Pancake Sausage Balls
Ingredients
- 1 pound breakfast sausage
- 2 cup pancake mix (see recipe notes)
- 2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
Instructions
- To start, you'll need to mix the ground sausage with pancake mix. Some people use a mixer but I just fold it in until everything is mixed together evenly. It will require a little elbow grease to do it by hand.
- Preheat the oven to 400℉.
- Next, fold in the shredded cheese and the maple syrup. Then, roll the pancake sausage balls out by hand. I used a spoon but you can use a cookie scoop and make them about 2 inches in diameter. You can get 20-30 sausage balls out of this recipe.
- Place the rolled sausage balls on a sheet pan then place in the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes. This will change on how big you made the sausage balls. But from experience at least 12-15 minutes minimum is needed regardless of the size.
- Allow to cool a bit then serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
My husband loves these
The instructions are a little confusing. I’ve never made them before and when it says complete mix it sounds like just the powder. The correct term would be batter. it’s important to use correct terms when cooking. now I don’t know how this is going to turn out since I added the liquid when I added the syrup. Takes the joy out of making things
My apologies if the wording confused you. I addressed it immediately and made a note for anyone else to avoid any future confusion.