Pop-n-Fresh Breakfast Pinwheels

Just back from a quick weekend jaunt to St. Louis. Started off the weekend with a deep dish San Francisco-style pizza from a great new pizza place, Pi, in the Loop. The crust was perfect, but, Mark-it-Better tip about the toppings -- take it easy with the garlicky-stewed tomatoes, pizza man. It was all that we could taste (and keep tasting all night, if you know what i'm sayin').

Following dinner we headed across the street to the Pageant Theatre to see Idina Menzel (of Rent and Wicked) in concert. No one can dispute that her voice is uh-MAY-zing, but her stage show was so schmaltzy and such a cliche' of "Broadway Diva Does Cabaret" that I often times felt I was watching a Saturday Night Live parody. The highlight of the show, however, came when Idina called B out of the crowd for his unauthorized taping of her performance. She turned the camera, literally, on him and us all when she brought out her own camcorder to record herself and the audience during a (lame) free-style tribute to "St. Louie, rhymes with chewy, and phooey, and poo-pooey." Blyuck.

Saturday afternoon found us at an amazing new winery in Defiance, MO (just outside of St. Louis), called Chandler Hill. I say amazing not because of the wine (which was fine as Missouri wines go), but because the tasting room offers not only beautiful views of the Missouri Valley, but also gorgeous and movable soft seating and outdoor ceiling fans - an absolute must on a 101 degree day like it was on Saturday.

After the winery, the group of us headed back to B's for perfectly seasoned and grilled pork ribs with a raspberry-chipotle glaze (5-alarm SPICY!!!!), baked sweet potatoes, and cherry cornbread (unusual, but really nice), followed by a rousing round (or 20) of everyone's favorite, CatchPhrase (we're addicted) -- the perfect ending to a perfect day.

As wonderful as all of that was, it's really just a rambling digression from this post's true inspiration -- the AHHHHHH-SOME breakfast sausage rolls B whipped up and we scarfed down on our way out the door the next morning. SO simple to make and so, so good! All you need is a tube of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls, your favorite breakfast sausage, and a hot oven. Instead of tearing the uncooked dough into triangles, press together two perforated pieces to form a rectangle. Next, flattened a quarter-inch thick layer of raw sausage over the dough, then roll it from short end to short end. Lastly, use a serrated knife to cut the roll into half-in thick pieces and bake until meat is cooked and pastry is golden brown (8-10 minutes.)

B served these "as is" hot out of the oven and they were absolutely perfect. So yummy that I accidentally ate about 11 more than I should have. My Mark-it-Better suggestion at the time was that they'd be great with some white gravy to dip them in. B agreed, but said that would change it from super-easy to a little bit more of a chore. Good point. If you do have the time and inclination to whip some up though, homemade gravy only takes a couple of minutes and could ready to serve in the time it takes to bake your first batch. In a pinch, however, I've also tried some of the canned gravies on the market. Doctor them up with some extra black pepper, and for something like this, I think they'd work just fine.

On the car on the drive home, I also came up with a couple of other spins on B's pinwheels that could be served as hors d'oeuvres I know also would be great:

• Cheeseburger Pinwheels - subbing ground beef and cheese instead of sausage.
• Mushroom & Spinach Pinwheels - w/ sausage or without - sprinkled with fresh-grated Parmesan cheese just before baking.
• Pizza Pinwheels - over a thin layer of tomato sauce add a layer of pepperoni, then top with shredded mozzarella cheese.

The possibilities are endless... Let me know what you think if you try any of these or if you've got any other creative suggestions.