Anyone making sausage?

[CigarDood]

Originally Posted by Kreth

My wife and I got a KitchenAid Pro stand mixer with several attachments for a wedding gift. By far, we've got the most use out of the meat grinder and sausage stuffer attachments. So far, we've made breakfast sausage, hot Italian sausage, and "saucisses au champagne." I want to pick up a smoker next and try some smoked sausages, or maybe bratwurst.

I've been thinking about picking up a sausage maker. Worth it?

[Kreth]

Originally Posted by CigarDood

I've been thinking about picking up a sausage maker. Worth it?

It depends on how much you plan to make. If you have a mixer that takes attachments, I'd go that route, as the the meat grinder is handy for other stuff like making fresh ground beef.
If you really like sausage and plan on making a lot of it, then I'd go with dedicated equipment, as it's generally a little more heavy-duty.
The taste of fresh sausage is great, as is the ability to adjust spices to your liking. For example, my wife doesn't care for fennel, so when we make Italian sausage, we substitute cumin and a touch of curry.
We probably make a batch of sausage about once every month or two. My wife keeps an eye out for sales on pork butt/shoulder, then we make up a big batch.