Simple Sausage Balls With Pumpkin For Fall
Level up your classic sausage ball recipe by adding pumpkin purée! I tested dozens of savory pumpkin recipes before coming up with this, and I can tell you these simple sausage balls with pumpkin are the fall appetizer everyone needs!
Pumpkin is earthy and has a subtle sweetness that pairs beautifully with the savory spicy flavor of sausage. It’s a classic combination that you see a lot in pasta recipes. I often add sausage to my pumpkin rice recipe, and the whole family loves it!
After Thanksgiving, when you have leftover pumpkin purée sitting in the fridge, these sausage balls are the perfect way to use it up. They make an incredible fall appetizer, and when football season is in full swing, they’re part of our rotation of game day snacks!
Since I don’t go crazy for all the pumpkin desserts, I love the challenge of coming up with new savory pumpkin recipes every year, and these simple little sausage balls have become one of our favorites. They work as a grab-and-go breakfast, an easy fall appetizer, and when I don’t feel like cooking, they’re dinner with a side salad.
Sausage is an underrated shortcut ingredient. It packs a huge flavor punch, eliminating the need for many other ingredients. Its intensely savory flavor also offsets the pumpkin’s tanginess. Double the batch and freeze for easy meal prep. They’re gluten-free, high in protein, and the pumpkin adds a decent amount of fiber!
Simple Sausage Balls
Speaking of protein, each sausage ball delivers approximately 6 grams of protein, depending on the brand of sausage you use. And if you’re like me and prefer sausage balls without Bisquick, this recipe is for you!
Want to use them as part of a whole fall brunch spread? Serve them with my easy pumpkin dip and pumpkin spice sauce for sweet options, plus this sausage egg bake and easy spice-roasted carrots to balance out the meal.
Main Ingredients
Four simple ingredients are all you need, with a few optional ones to boost the flavor.
- Sausage. Any type of pork sausage, including breakfast sausage or Italian sausage, will work.
- Pumpkin. Use canned pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie filling.
- Almond flour. I love using almond flour in savory dishes. It’s ground almonds, so it adds richness and fat that work well in this recipe.
- Parmesan cheese. It adds a savory, salty flavor to these simple sausage balls and also binds them together. Freshly grated Parmesan works best. If you can’t have dairy, swap it for your favorite dairy-free Parmesan cheese.
Optional seasonings. You can make this with the four ingredients listed above, and it’s fantastic. The sausage and Parmesan add plenty of salt, and depending on the sausage you’re using, you may already have a bit of kick from the pepper in the sausage. However, I like to add a touch of smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. These aren’t necessary, but recommended.
Sausage Balls With Pumpkin & Parmesan
This recipe takes ten minutes to prepare, and you can clean the kitchen while they bake.
- After preheating the oven, add the sausage, almond flour, Parmesan cheese, egg, and pumpkin purée to a large bowl. If you’re using additional seasonings, add them now.
- Gently combine the mixture with your fingertips. When you can no longer see any almond flour or streaks of pumpkin, it’s ready to roll.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Form the meat mixture into walnut-sized balls, trying not to compact it too tightly. I use a medium-sized cookie scoop to do this, releasing the mixture directly onto the cookie sheet. (no need for rolling) Repeat until you’ve used all the meat mixture.
- Bake at 325°F on convection for approximately 20 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. If you don’t have a convection oven, bake for 25 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Cooking on convection is essentially a giant air fryer, which helps the sausage balls get a golden brown exterior, but they’ll come out perfectly fine without it.
Garnish with extra Parmesan and chopped chives, and enjoy immediately, or hold off on the garnish, refrigerate, and garnish just before serving. For dipping, a cool and creamy sour cream mustard sauce is perfect!
Recipe Tips & Variations
- Some brands of pumpkin purée contain more moisture than others. To keep your pumpkin sausage balls from falling apart, watch the consistency as you roll them. If they seem too wet, add a little more almond flour.
- Overworking and overcompacting the meat can result in a tough and dense meatball. Using your fingertips, a light touch, and a lifting-and-folding method keeps the mixture from becoming overly compacted while you mix.
- You can prepare these 24 hours before baking. Prepare the entire recipe as instructed, but don’t bake it. After placing the sausage balls on the baking sheet, cover them with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook.
- Since Parmesan cheese acts as a binder, I don’t recommend swapping it for a soft cheese like cheddar or mozzarella. However, any finely grated hard cheese will work. I’ve used pecorino and manchego with great results!
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Simple Sausage Balls With Pumpkin For Fall
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 ounces mild Italian sausage
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Add all of the ingredients to a large bowl.
- If using the additional seasonings, add those too.
- Gently and thoroughly combine the ingredients.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Roll or scoop the meat mixture into balls, then place them on the baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. ** see notes
