Recipe Flashback: Café Bacchus

Name: Café Bacchus’s Victoria Wise Chorizo Sausage
Ingredients: 2 ancho or dried New Mexico red chilies (stems and seeds removed); 1 cup water; 8 cloves garlic (coarsely chopped); 6 ounces salt pork (finely chopped); 2½ pounds ground pork; 3 tablespoons finely ground chili powder (preferably ancho); 1 teaspoon black pepper (coarsely ground); 2½ teaspoons kosher salt (divided)

Morgantown Magazine Staff

3 months ago

A special downtown gathering place remembered.

If you’re a truly longtime Morgantown resident, you will remember The Flame Steakhouse, which operated for decades in the 1895 home at 76 High Street, across from what is now the Monongalia County Justice Center. The Flame closed in 1999 and, a couple years later, Café Bacchus opened its doors.

Bacchus’s homey dining rooms and elevated, often Mexican-inspired seasonal menus at reasonable prices made it a quick favorite. Brunch, live music, wine tastings, and holiday meals continually came up on the calendar, so there was always a reason to visit, and Food Network raved about the restaurant’s signature Apple Butter Ice Cream with Mexican Applejack Caramel Sauce and Bacon Sprinkles.

Morgantown lost a lively downtown dining spot when Café Bacchus closed its doors in 2016—but before it closed, Morgantown magazine got Chef Heath Finnell’s recipe for his Victoria Wise Chorizo Sausage. This is a Mexican chorizo, meaning it’s fresh, not dried, as Spanish chorizo is. Don’t be intimidated! It doesn’t have to be stuffed into casings. Serve it with eggs and refried beans, crumble it over nachos, or cook it into a piquante chorizo chili.

Café Bacchus’s Victoria Wise Chorizo Sausage

Servings 3 lbs

Ingredients

2 ancho or dried New Mexico red chilies stems and seeds removed
1 cup water
8 cloves garlic coarsely chopped
6 ounces salt pork finely chopped
2½ pounds ground pork
3 tablespoons finely ground chili powder preferably ancho
1 teaspoon black pepper coarsely ground
2½ teaspoons kosher salt divided

Instructions

In a small saucepan, combine chilies and water and bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium and simmer until chilies are soft. Remove from heat and let cool
In a food processor, combine chilies, ¼ cup of the cooking water, and garlic until smooth. Add salt pork and process until well combined.
In a large bowl, combine ground pork, chili mixture, chili powder, pepper, and all but ½ teaspoon of the salt.
Knead with hands until blended. Spoon out one small piece and cook until done in a small pan. Taste the sample and add remaining salt to raw batter only if needed.
Form into patties by hand as needed for your recipe, or stuff into hog casings. Cover and refrigerate overnight to combine flavors.
Your sausage will keep in the refrigerator for up to five days, or in the freezer for up to six weeks.