Jill Can Cook: Easy Cheesy Sausage Rice Bake

During my weekly grocery shopping excursion, I came across some sausage that was on sale, but needed to get used up right away. Being so frugal, I grabbed it.

When I decided to make it for dinner, I didn't want to make my usual spaghetti or sausage/pepper/onion sandwiches. We'd been having a lot of pasta recently and I think we were all getting bored with the same old, same old.  Here does nothing!

Easy Cheesy Sausage Rice Bake

Adapted from: Just a Pinch

Ingredients

• 2 c cooked rice, 
• 1 lb sausage 
• 1tbsp onion powder 
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes (I used chili powder)
• 2 c ( 8 ounces ) shedded cheese
• 1 - 14.75 oz cream of chicken soup
• 1 - 10 3/4 oz cream of mushroom soup

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Grease a 9 x 13 baking dish, set aside.
3. Brown sausage , onion, garlic, seasonings together in about 1 tablespoon oil, and drain.
4. Combine the rice with the sausage mixture. 
5. Add soups and shredded cheese; stir to mix thoroughly.
6. Pour mixture into greased casserole dish.
7. Bake 25-30 minutes or until casserole bubbles in the center.
8. Remove from oven and sprinkle additional cheese on top, if desired. Bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. Roughly 40 minutes in all.

For an easy casserole type recipe, I took a lot of pictures.

I cu the sausage out of the casing and browned it.

I precooked the rice. 

Added in the soups, seasonings and cheese.

Before it went into the oven. Looks pretty good already!

After it was done!! 

I make a lot of casseroles and a lot of dishes that are very similar. It's mostly because I search out recipes that are made up of ingredients I usually keep stocked in my pantry. That way, I can put together something different without needing to make a trip to the store.

Look at that cheesy goodness!

I love that I now have another easy to put together dinner recipe for my family. This recipe made a few more dirty pans than I would've preferred, but nothing I can't handle.

This was my portion for dinner... Well, my first portion anyway!!

The flavor was great! It was very sausagey and very cheesy. Even the amount of spice was spot on. Joe and I both loved it, although the kids were semi-picky about it.

 See that cheesy goodness.

The only issue that I had with this recipe (and most casserole recipes) is that we ended up with like a million leftovers. Some day, when the kids eat normal sized portions, we won't have as many leftovers and this won't be an issue.

Look at all that sausage!!

Overall, this recipe gets an A from the adults in our family. And I can't wait to make it again!