Serve this Savory Sausage and Apple Rice Casserole with your holiday meals. A delicious alternative to traditional stuffing, so easy to prepare and great for parties.

Savory Sausage and Apple Rice Casserole

NOTE: This recipe has been updated 10/2019 with new pictures and text. Enjoy!

Can you believe the holiday season is upon us again? Before you know it we’ll be turning our calendars to 2016! WHAT???

Before that happens we have so many fabulous opportunities to enjoy holiday food. If you’re anything like me you’re looking forward to the holiday season which affords us opportunities to enjoy our family and friends while dining together. 

Friends and family gathering together and enjoying the season, it gives me the warm fuzzies! So many holiday memories are made while gathering around the table enjoying traditional holiday meals, wouldn’t you agree?

 

 

I’ve always enjoyed preparing holiday dishes, everything from oven-roasted turkey and ham to the sides. The sides are my personal favorites.

Mashed potatoes, corn casserole, warm buttery rolls…mmmm, I could go on and on! One side dish that I absolutely love is stuffing, homemade from scratch stuffing.

 

 

Not to boast, but I make fantastic stuffing. The problem is and it’s a big problem…my family doesn’t appreciate stuffing or even barely tolerate stuffing. I’ve stopped making it because I’m the only one eating it.

I have though found a way around my problem. How? By preparing this Savory Sausage and Apple Rice Casserole, I win. It has all the flavors of stuffing that I enjoy (minus the breads) and my family LOVES it! Right down to my finicky 4-year-old, they all eat it! PS-I’ve even served this as a main course meal and it was devoured!

 

This side dish helped me create a wonderful recipe that has all the flavors that I enjoy with a big juicy serving of turkey, making it ideal for holiday dining. As a time-saver, this casserole can also be prepared ahead of time and reheated prior to serving.  

I can hardly wait to start my shopping list for Thanksgiving dinner. And with a great side dish like this one, I know I’ll have happy faces all around.

 

 

What ingredients do you need to make Savory Sausage & Apple Rice Casserole?

• Crumbled Breakfast Sausage
• Seasonings: Salt, Pepper, Sage & Thyme
• Celery
• Apple
• Onion
• Butter
• Rice
• Chicken Broth

 

 

Some tips for making Savory Sausage & Apple Rice Casserole:

• Spray baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
• Top with chopped pecans if desired.
• I left the peel on the apples. It is a matter of preference. 
• I topped with a small amount of chopped parsley.
• If reheating, add additional chicken broth.
• I used low-sodium chicken broth.
• Check at 45 minutes for doneness of rice. Add additional broth if necessary. 

Simple steps for making Savory Sausage & Apple Rice Casserole:

Preheat oven to 350° degrees. Spray 9×13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, set aside.

In large non-stick skillet cook crumbled breakfast sausage over medium-high heat. Drain off any fat after the sausage is cooked through. 

Place cooked sausage into a large mixing bowl, add all seasonings, stir to combine. Set aside.

Chop and combine: celery, apple, and onion.

Using the same skillet, melt butter. Toss in apples, onion, and celery. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until onion is translucent, approximately 5 minutes. 

Add into a mixing bowl: rice and chicken broth. Combine all ingredients by stirring well. Add contents to baking dish, cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake approximately 1 hour until rice is cooked and liquid is absorbed.

Yield: 8-10 servings

Savory Sausage and Apple Rice Casserole

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Serve this Savory Sausage and Apple Rice Casserole with your holiday meals. A delicious alternative to traditional stuffing, so easy to prepare and great for parties.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 lb roll breakfast sausage
• 1.5 teaspoon dried sage
• 1.5 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper
• 1 cup apple, diced
• 1 cup onion, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 1.5 cups basamati rice
• 2 1/2 cups chicken broth

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350° degrees. Spray 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, set aside.
2. In large non-stick skillet cook crumbled breakfast sausage over medium-high heat. Drain off any fat after the sausage is cooked through. Place cooked sausage into a large mixing bowl, add all seasonings, stir to combine. Set aside.
3. Using the same skillet, melt butter. Toss in apples, onion, and celery. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until onion is translucent, approximately 5 minutes. (Don't let the mixture get too mushy, it will continue cooking in the oven). Remove from heat and add to the mixing bowl.
4. Add into mixing bowl rice and chicken broth. Combine all ingredients by stirring well. Add contents to a baking dish, cover tightly with aluminum foil.
5. Bake approximately 1 hour until rice is cooked and liquid is absorbed.

Notes

For even more flavor use sage breakfast sausage, or a spicy variety.

Find this recipe and more at Meal Plan Monday and the Weekend Potluck!