Scotch Eggs...Not Scottish at all...

SCOTCH EGGS...

not Scottish at all ??? then why are they call Scotch Eggs ?!!! they were actually invented by the famous London department store, FORTNUM & MASON in 1851 and they were originally wrapped in SCOTCH Beef...just a fun little foodie fact i found at Wikipedia.

i don't recall where i first saw these and got the bee in my bonnet, but i knew i had to try them. i'm all about a good full protein breakfast and quite often i have to eat it on the go. these are perfect...and so dang CUTE as well.

so easy to make. i chose the easiest route. basically you cover a hard boiled egg in your favorite sausage, dip that in some breadcrumbs and bake 'till the sausage is done. there are so many variations out there with more involved meat recipes, but why go there when there are so many wonderful fresh handmade sausages at your favorite markets. Bristol Farms has an incredible selection. their Chicken Apple Sausage with chunks of granny smith is so delicious as well as the Chicken Jezebel and Spicy Italian Turkey. my first batch was made with good ol'Jenny-O's Spicy Italian Turkey Sausage found at most major markets. so... fancy sausage or packaged store bought, these are easy, fun, portable, ADORABLE and kids will love them.

i chose to bake these. i'm not a fan of deep frying YET. i like to leave that to the professionals. deep frying scares me a bit and since i don't do alot of it (YET), the oil would be a one time use. seems like a waste. then there's the pain of getting rid of it, not spilling it, letting it cool enough to pour it back into the container you were hopefully smart enough to keep and finally throwing away some perfectly good frying oil. i must admit, i think i secretly would love to fry more things. i kind of wish i could have a mini fryer in the kitchen. shhhhhhh.

SCOTCH EGGS
loosely adapted from Recipezaar #69970...

Ingredients
1 lb chicken, turkey or pork Italian sausage
4-5 large eggs, hard boiled (not too large)
flour (just a little to coat the eggs)
1 large egg
2 cups fine dry breadcrumbs (i used Panko). you don't need to use the whole 2 cups!!
Directions
1. remove meat from casing. one large sausage should cover 1 egg (a little less than 1/4 lb). use your judgement. i made 5 scotch eggs from a 1lb package of Jenny O Turkey Sausage for the first batch.
2. roll the eggs in flour. (this helps the meat stick to the egg)
3. wrap each egg evenly in a portion of meat, being sure they are covered completely. roll it around in your hands a bit to ensure even sausage coating.
4. beat the remaining egg in a small bowl
5. dip each egg/sausage ball in the beaten egg then coat thoroughly in breadcrumbs.
6. optional...chill for one hour...or don't...i didn't.
7. bake until golden brown on a cookie sheet (line with tin foil for easy clean up) at 375°F; about 30 minutes. mine took about 35 minutes.

these keep really well in the fridge for a few days. just warm in the microwave. i like to slice in half and eat like an apple...on the go. of course, you could fancy these up for a fun brunch treat. they make for such a cute presentation with the surprise egg inside.