It is a unique sweet and spicy breakfast dish that has found a special place in the palates, hearts and stomachs of our meat-loving guests and was once described as "The Ode to Breakfast Meats"! Our guests keep going gaga and wow over this dish! Until today, you could only try it here at our Inn. But now - now you can make it at home. Get very, very excited!

Like every dish worth making, it requires high quality ingredients, a strong sense of adventure, culinary curiosity, dexterity and patience.

Ingredients (based on one serving, but the more the merrier!):

1 breakfast sausage double link. Get the best double links you can find, from either a grocery store or from a butcher. Thick, meaty, full of flavor. If they are already Maple syrup flavored, that's fine! Avoid any sausage with more periodic table elements on the ingredient list than you care to know.2 strips of thinly sliced bacon (so that it stretches really well when you let it sit for about half an hour at room temp). Added points for a smoked version.1 oz maple syrup (Vermont-made, of course)2 tbsp maple sugar (because Vermont - but raw sugar will work just fine)1 tsp cayenne pepper1/2 tsp cinnamon1/2 tsp nutmeg1 giant leaf of kale (because vitamins!) - if you are truly adventurous, a mix of fresh stemless basil, mint, and spinach leaves is even better!

Steps:

In the evening: 1. Soak the sausage links for 30 minutes in maple syrup to create that magical natural sticky magnetism 2. Allow the bacon to mellow at room temperature so it becomes very stretchable in the meantime 3. Mix maple sugar, cayenne, cinnamon, and nutmeg (and whatever other sweet/hot spices you like, use your imagination) 4. Create a layered bed of bacon strips arranged side by side with two strips of kale on top (easily done by cutting out the stem from the kale leaf) 5. Generously sprinkle the mix onto the syrup-soaked sausage links placed on top of bacon and kale 6. Apply two kale leaf slices to a sausage link to form a future cigar 7. Stretch-wrap the bacon over that goodness in an overlapping spiral fashion 8. Let the cigar(s) rest overnight in a covered container in a fridge to let the flavors mingle and mellow while you aren't looking

In the morning: 9. Preheat the oven to 375 F 10. Line a metal baking tray with two layers of heavy-duty foil 11. Grease the foil with a bit of non-stick spray. Proudly and confidently, place the future Vermont Cigar™ in the center of the tray on a middle rack 12. Check on each cigar every 10 minutes to turn it over to prevent over roasting - individual oven conditions may vary. It takes anywhere between 45 minutes to an hour and a half to roast a cigar to your personal level of perfection. 13. Once done, either put the final product in a preheated warmer drawer for about 10 minutes to allow it to mellow a bit or enjoy right away!

Vermont Cigar™, Breakfast Cigar™, Maple Cigar™, Heart of the Village Inn™ are trademarks of Heart of the Village Inn™, Modern Vermont Bed & Breakfast in Shelburne, VT

That's it - enjoy! If you liked this post, we appreciate a Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google+ share. Sharing is caring!