Stuffed Sausage Bites

I created a new appetizer a few weeks ago. It's called Stuffed Sausage Bites, and here's what I did.

I boiled (cooked) some mild Italian sausages in beer until done, then cooled. Once cooled I put them on the grill and grilled then until nicely charred. Then I set them aside to cook, and refrigerated.

Once nicely chilled, I took a sausage and sliced it longitudinally almost all the way through (butterflied it) and then split it open. Once open, I used a sharp melon baller to remove a "trench" of the sausage from both sides. See the picture at left. Now I was ready for the stuffing.

To make the stuffing, I softened a cake of cream cheese, then i took two chipotle peppers and chopped them finely. I added them to the cream cheese with about two teaspoons of the adobo sauce and mixed it thoroughly. Now i was faced with a dilemma--how to keep the filling in?  Easy! I took a piece of thinly sliced turkey or chicken lunchmeat (a nice, neutral flavor) and laid it flat. Then i took a "rope" of the creamcheese/chipotle mixture and rolled it up, cut it to length then place it in the sausage. I closed the sausage (gently), then placed 8-12 toothpicks about 3/8" to 1/2" apart and sliced the sausage, then did the rest, placed them on a bed of lettuce, and served.

They were at their best once they warmed up a bit. All I had to do was sit back, watch them get gobbled up, and enjoy all the compliments! Bardzo Smaczne!