sausage and potato cassarole {gluten-free and paleo}

Is one of your goals for 2016 to eat healthier?  Or to meal plan so that you don't get to 4:30PM and realize you don't know what you're going to feed your family?  Well, if you answered yes to either of those questions, I have a simple recipe that you will love.

I was given this recipe by a friend months ago and then she made it one night when I was at her house and it was delicious.  It was during my first Whole30 last fall and I was excited to realize that I could eat it.

This recipe has become one of my go-to recipes and is in my meal planning rotation twice a month.  It is is one of Mark's favorite meals and I sometimes make it just for him to reheat for lunch when he works from home or a snack after work.  My kids will eat the sausage out of it but Luke only likes potatoes in the french fried form and John doesn't like potatoes at all (silly boy).

 Ingredients

3 pounds organic potatoes (any kind you like, see notes below)
1 large sweet onion
1 pound pre-cooked sausage (check your labels if you are paleo or whole 30)
salt and pepper
avocado oil (or oil of your choice)

Instructions

1) Parboil potatoes and then cut into a large dice or cube.  Basically, all parboiling means is you precook your potatoes so that they are partially cooked.  This then cuts the cooking time down for the next time you use the potatoes.  Here's a helpful link on how to parboil if you aren't familiar.

2) Cut onion into large dice, about the same size as the potatoes.

3) Slice sausage into rounds, again about the same size as potatoes and onions.

4) Combine in oven safe dish.  Add about 1-2 tablespoons of avocado oil and season with salt & pepper.  I use my hands to get everything really mixed in well.

5) Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes.  You want to check and make sure the potatoes are soft and can be easily pierced with a fork.  We like ours a little crusty so I leave it in for 30 but you may want to check it after 20 minutes to see if it is done to your liking.

6) Serve with a side salad for an easy weeknight meal your family will love.

Notes

1) I use Aidell's chicken sausage since I'm eating gluten and sugar free.  But there are a number of quality pre-cooked sausages available that don't have a lot of added stuff.  Just check your labels and try to find one that has 5 or fewer ingredients and ingredients that you can pronounce and know what they are.

2) You can use any kind or combination of potatoes you want.  I use mainly organic red or organic yellow potatoes.  I have made it with white and orange sweet potatoes but my family didn't like it as much.  I also made it with purple potatoes once (as you can see in the above picture) and my family didn't know what they were so they were the only things left in the dish :).

3) You can also add in carrots which I have done but since I personally don't like cooked carrots I typically leave them out of the dish.  Adding carrots does make it prettier and adds a sweetness to the dish.  If you're going to add carrots, I would use 2-3 large organic carrots, wash them really well (leaving the skin on) and cut into rounds the same size as the rest of the ingredients.  Just check to make sure the carrots are cooked through when you test the potatoes.

4) Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for 3-5 days in a tightly covered container.  Ours never last more than 2 days, it is just too good!

5)  I have made this dish for several families and they love it.  It is easy to make and transport and stays good even if eaten the next day.  One friend is gluten and dairy free and she loved it because her whole family could eat the same meal she was eating.

Let me know if you make this dish.  Enjoy!