Like all of us, I try to make healthy food choices. I don’t eat junk food, I select fresh local ingredients over frozen or processed food. My eating destinations are locally owned and operated restaurants. I’d NEVER even think to go to a Harley Davidson dealership for a lunch … In fact I didn’t even know they had cafes.
Imagine my surprise when I received a press release from Harley Davidson touting Chef Travis Taylor’s new state farm menu. I almost hit delete, except it included a recipe for a corn dog casserole. Corn dogs are indeed my guilty pleasure (I like to pretend I only have one but … that’s another post). But they have to be made fresh I can taste freezer from a mile away and I DO NOT LIKE IT. The biggest down side of fresh corn dogs is that they are deep fried and therefore so greasy I usually cannot finish one. Chef Taylor’s casserole has all the flavors of a corn dog and none of the deep frying. I received the message while traveling for business and I had to wait until I was back to make it.
It was super easy to make and took about 20 minutes of active cooking time. The sage and celery brought a grown-up distinction while staying true to the childhood corn dog memory. Pre-browning the hot dogs helped release some of the fat. You could easily use turkey hot dogs and reduce the fat further. I used Hebrew National because they don’t have by-products.
Depending on how many people in your family I think you could easily cut this in half. We ate leftovers and still ended up tossing some. But it was a family hit that is sure to return to the table and I’m absolutely considering a trip to a Motor Cafe to try the rest of the state farm menu which features funnel cakes and cheese curds.
For a printable Recipe click here
