Kitchen Adventures || Fall Casserole

This recipe makes an insane amount of food….I filled 2 glass casserole dishes – a 9×13 dish and a 7×11 dish! I ended up giving an entire casserole to my mom. That said, you’ll eat insane amounts of this in one sitting so maybe it’s a good thing?

Anyway, there are a few steps to this, but it’s packed with good (and good for you) stuff. All the fall veggies and the warm and hearty spices make this feel like you’re indulging. I’d call this cozy comfort food for sure. For this one, I just happened to have some sausage in the freezer and thought it would go well (I was right) but if you’re not up for that you can stick with just the chicken, or lose the meat altogether and make this a vegetarian dish!

I’m including a spice blend recipe that’s needed for this recipe. You will have some extra, but it’s a fantastic blend that is really good in soups too so hang on to it!

INGREDIENTS
1.5 Lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 lb smoked sausage (I had some from Salt Lick!)
1/2 Yellow onion – rough chopped
2 cloves garlic – minced
2 celery stocks – chopped
1 large sweet potato – diced
Appx 2 cups  diced butternut squash – I buy pre-diced because cutting a butternut squash is a nightmare
1 lb brussels sprouts – quartered
1 large apple – diced
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup sliced almonds
6 cups cooked wild rice (about 2 cups dry)
1/2 cup broth
olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
2 tbsp thyme
1 tbsp spice blend (more to taste)

Spice blend –
1 tbsp celery salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1 pinch dry mustard
1 pinch cardamom
1 pinch nutmeg
1 pinch clove
1 pinch ground ginger
1 pinch allspice

Whisk together

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook the rice according to the instructions. While the rice is working, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add a tablespoon of oil. Once the oil is hot, season the chicken with salt and pepper and add it to the skillet. Cook until golden and fully cooked through. Set aside and let cool. When you can handle it, cut into 1″ pieces. Cut sausage (*note – if you aren’t using already cooked/smoked sausage, cook it first) into pieces and set aside.

Heat another tablespoon of oil and lower heat to medium. Add the onion, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, brussels sprouts, celery, garlic, thyme, 1 tbsp of seasoning mix and salt and pepper. Cook until vegetables begin to soften. Add 1/4 cup of broth to the mixture and simmer covered for about 5 minutes.

Grease a large casserole dish (you’ll likely need 2). Add chicken, sausage, rice, and vegetable mixture to a large bowl. Add the diced apple and raisins and mix until well combined. If you prefer more of the seasoning mix, add and combine here.

Pour the casserole mixture into your baking dish(es) and add the remaining broth. Top the dish(es) with almonds and bake until it’s heated throughout and the almonds are toasted. 15-18 minutes should do it.

Then, either serve immediately or divide into meal prep containers for the week!

This warming dish will really make you feel like it’s fall. Even if we get another Texas heat wave mid-November 😉