Sausage and Potatoes Casserole

Two words - Comfort food.  Okay, one more word - Delicious.   All contained in one casserole dish. 


Nothing else really needs to be said about this recipe.  Well except for maybe that I even managed to sneak in a vegetable too  :-) 


Enjoy it.  My family sure does!

Sausage and Potatoes Casserole

(Serves 6 to 8)

4 cups of cubed potatoes

3 cups of diced turkey sausage, pre-cooked

1 cup of pureed or finely chopped cauliflower

1/2 cup light butter, melted

1/2 cup green onions, chopped

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Dash of Cajun seasoning

For the sauce:

2 and 1/2 cups of reduced fat or skim milk (fat-free evaporated milk is fine)

2 cups of reduced fat shredded cheese

2/3 cup of organic, unbleached flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 13x9 inch baking pan (or large casserole dish) with cooking spray. Peel and cut potatoes.  Boil them until just soft  but not completely done. Drain water and set aside. 


In a large pot, place the potatoes with cut up sausage, chopped (or pureed) cauliflower, butter, green onions, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and seasoning.  Create sauce by pouring in all of the milk and 1 cup of the cheese, adding the flour last to thicken.   Cook on medium heat until mixture starts to boil. 


Spoon potato casserole into baking pan.  Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of cheese on top.  Bake for 30 minutes or until potatoes are slightly brown on top.  Serve hot. 

Freeze leftovers in plastic containers for up to four months.  Reheat in microwave or in the oven. 

Tomorrow I'll share an easy, delicious dessert recipe that was a hit in my house!  This week is all about comfort.  Then we'll end it with an Easter fun treat. So come on back and kick your shoes off for some great family recipes. 

Mexican Biscuit and Doritos Casserole

We love Mexican in my house!  The combination of meat, cheese and the fiesta-style seasonings always seem to satisfy my palette.  Still, sometimes you have to change up your old stand-by Mexican style dishes. 


My mom and several of my aunts used to make a "Doritos Casserole" for nearly every family gathering when I was a kid.  It involved using Doritos chips of course, along with ranch style beans, taco meat and other spices.  I generally took a big heaping of it during our reunions.  (Still do if I'm lucky enough to attend one these days).  

It seems my three year old girl loves Doritos (and all potato chips) just as much as I do!  As I was making this, her hands found their way into the bag as evidence in this below photo:




My silly Vivian! Here she is covered in orange chips, on her nose, her mouth and her fingers! 


Anyway, I took the inspiration from that family tradition dish (and my daughter's love of Doritos) to make a new dish.  I changed it up with the addition of biscuits.  I also snuck in a small amount of broccoli, which you can't even taste.    So here you go -  a new Doritos casserole "classic" for my loved ones:






Mexican Biscuit and Doritos Casserole
(Serves 6-8)

1 lb. ground turkey or beef
1 can of Grand biscuits, divided in half so they make 16 (I use the whole wheat, flaky can of 8)
1 can of refried beans
1/2 cup of pureed broccoli
1 packet of taco seasoning (minus two teaspoons to reserve later for guacamole dip)
3/4 cup of water
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
1 cup of sour cream
1/3 cup of salsa
1 and 2/3 cup of shredded cheese, reduced fat
2 cups of crushed Doritos (I used the baked kind)


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease a 13x9 inch baking pan with cooking spray.  Set aside.  In a large skillet on the stove, brown your ground turkey or meat.  Add in the taco seasoning and water.  Cook on high for a few minutes.  Then lower heat and simmer for about five minutes.  Add in the refried beans, 1/2 cup of pureed (or chopped finely) broccoli, tomato sauce and salsa.  Cook for another five to seven minutes. 


While the meat is cooking, assemble the biscuits at the bottom of the baking pan.   Divide each biscuit in half and place it at the bottom of the greased dish.  (Note: It's important to divide the biscuits in half.  It makes it easier for them to cook and it makes more of a meal since you can spread them out and they rise)  Sprinkle 1/3 of the cheese across the biscuits.  Then top with 1 cup (half) of the crushed Doritos chips. Then layer the meat-bean mixture over the chips.  Top with more of the cheese, about 1 cup.  Then add a layer of the sour cream.  Use the entire 1 cup.  Sprinkle the final 1/3 cup of cheese. Top with the remaining crushed Doritos chips. 


Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.  Remove from heat and let it cool for about five minutes.  Cut and serve.  This would be great with a side salad and corn or even guacamole dip.  Enjoy!





Do you ever use potato chips in any of your meals?  It's not something I do often.  But every now and then, it's kind of a treat for us! 

Easy Breakfast Sausage and Biscuit Casserole

Did I catch your attention with the word"easy?"  Those four letters always captivate me when I'm looking for recipes.  Plus, I needed something simple after yesterday's cooking disaster.  Thank goodness this turned out so manageable and delicious.  I mean, it would be ridiculous if I managed to screw up a can of biscuits, pre-cooked turkey sausage, eggs and cheese!  Am I right?

So here it is, my quick and easy breakfast sausage and biscuit casserole.  Think of it like a breakfast pizza.  It can be thrown together right before you bake it or you can let it sit overnight in the fridge.  It's your choice.

This would be a great recipe to use with leftover holiday ham or any other meat you have after Christmas.  Mix it up!  You could even throw in some veggies too, such as chopped spinach or broccoli.  Even though I call this "Breakfast" casserole, we ate ours for lunch and dinner!  It can be enjoyed any time of the day!






Easy Breakfast Sausage and Biscuit Casserole

(Serves 6 to 8)

2 cans of  8 grand biscuits (I used the reduced fat, whole wheat kind)
1 package (14 oz) or two links of pre-cooked turkey sausage, cut up into small pieces
4  large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup of reduced fat milk
1/8 cup of parmesan cheese (optional)
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp gr. pepper
dash of Cajun seasoning
1/2 cup or more of reduced fat shredded cheese, any variety you like (cheddar, monterey, etc.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Generously grease a 13x9 inch baking pan with cooking spray.  Open your can of biscuits.  Divide or cut them in half.  Layer them at the bottom of the greased baking dish, just like this:





Then dice your pre-cooked turkey sausage (or ham, bacon or other meats you have) and toss them over the biscuits.  In a small bowl, beat the eggs with the milk, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and seasonings.  Pour eggs evenly over the sausage and biscuits.   Sprinkle shredded cheese on top. 

The uncooked casserole will look like this:




Place it in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and sprinkle with additional cheese if desired.  Let cool for about five minutes before cutting.   I cut mine into eight rectangles. 






Yummy and super duper easy!   Enjoy!

This would be fantastic if you served it with my shrimp and grits recipe too.  Just sayin'.  Hint, hint.