I love the homemade chicken sausage at a favorite Atlanta breakfast spot, so upon returning from a trip to Atlanta I began toying with a version of my own.

Chicken sausage is simple to make with the ready availability of ground chicken. My spice mixture suits my palette and that of my family, but sausage making offers a great opportunity to improvise. Use the recipe as a springboard to come up with a delicious chicken sausage recipe all your own. Finely chopped sundried tomatoes (about ½ cup) would make an especially tasty addition to the recipe.

The flavor is best when you cover and refrigerate the sausage overnight, and you also can make the sausage mixture and freeze for up to three months in a zip-top plastic bag.

Cook up the sausages on top of your Viking range using the range-top griddle or the cast aluminum portable griddle that is made for your specific Viking range model.

Homemade Chicken Sausage

• 1 1/2 pounds ground chicken
• 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• Pinch ground cloves
• Pinch ground nutmeg

Place the chicken in a medium bowl and set aside. Combine the remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the chicken and then blend well. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Form the mixture into 16 2-inch patties and fry in a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray until completely cooked, about 5 minutes per side.

Makes 16 patties.

Note: Sausage mixture can be made ahead and frozen.