Not only do these savory, meaty sausages taste better, but they are richer in nutrition than your typical pork patty.

It’s Healthy Kitchen Hacks Wednesday – the day we share our favorite time-saving kitchen tricks and cooking shortcuts to help you make healthy and delicious meals.

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Now…onto today’s featured Healthy Kitchen Hack:

BETTER-TASTING BREAKFAST SAUSAGE [WITH MUSHROOMS!] VIDEO

EQUIPMENT: My favorite pan to saute mushrooms: All-Clad Saute Pan [affiliate link]

“They’re really good.”

That’s what my 10-year old said when I asked her what I should write about these Mushroom Breakfast Sausages.

Pork sausage was not something that often made it onto this dietitian’s menu. I just never had a craving for it. (But, bacon? That’s another story altogether. See >> Maple Bacon Scones and Butternut Squash and Bacon One-Pot Pasta.

Then, a farmer friend gave us some of his farm-raised ground pork. I had some mushrooms in the fridge; these breakfast sausages were born.

Now we buy ground pork and have these breakfast sausages often. And not just for breakfast.

The Mushroom folks call this #HealthyKitchenHack of replacing some of the meat with mushrooms, The Blend. Here’s the formula I use:

>> Add an 8-ounce package of mushrooms to each 1-pound of meat

Here are a few other tips I use for mushroom ‘Blend-ing’:

Mince finely with a knife. Or pulse mushrooms a few times in your food processor.
Saute 8-ounces of mushrooms in 1 tablespoon oil
Mushrooms act as a binder, so no other binders are needed in meat patties. No breadcrumbs. no eggs. #easypeasy
Use spices:
- For pork, go Italian: fennel, oregano, garlic powder, black pepper
- For beef, go spicy: cumin, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes

Mushroom add the goodness of veggies to meat:

Lower fat – Mushrooms replace some of the saturated fat in meat by decreasing the amount of meat in 1 patty (see below.) But meat tastes just as ‘meaty,’ because mushrooms soak up flavorful meat juices.
More for your money – Normally a pound of meat yields 4 burgers, by adding (inexpensive) white mushrooms, you get at least 6-7 big meaty burgers.
Increased nutrients – Mushrooms contain potassium, selenium, vitamin D, and fiber, among other nutrients.

Plus, IMO, Mushroom Breakfast Sausage Patties just taste better than plain old sausage patties. Better-Tasting Breakfast Sausage (with Mushrooms!) #HealthyKitchenHack via @TspCurry Click To Tweet