The 9×13 Dinner

Back in August of 2015 Nate and I dove headfirst into a Whole30 challenge, and y’all? It’s called a challenge for a reason. We researched and planned our brains out, but nothing really prepared us for trying to do a challenge like Whole30 on a budget and with two kiddos in the house.

 

Have I mentioned I’m still getting used to having two kids? Is this a lifetime endeavor?

 

Anyway, there were times it was just so hard to figure out what to make for dinner that didn’t break the bank and would actually fill us up too. We found that getting full seemed harder to accomplish unless sweet potatoes were on the menu, but there are only so many times you can bake or microwave a sweet potato before you wish for a bowl of ice cream instead.

 

One day I was scrolling through Instagram when I found a photo of almost this exact recipe – and y’all? I canNOT for the life of me figure out where I got it! I wrote it down on a sticky note and moved on, not knowing how life-changing this would be for us. SO if you had this recipe posted on your Instagram account in August(ish) of last year, thank you from the bottom of my heart for making dinner a happy time again – Whole30 or not!

 

The beauty of this is that you can truly season it however you want. I like to use a taco seasoning and top with sliced avocado for a little Tex-Mex flair, but Old Bay is great too, as is almost any BBQ seasoning or Italian seasoning. The only note with the seasoning thing is you’ll want to see if what you’re using has salt in it or not, and then adjust accordingly.

 

I like to prep this ahead of time, pop it in the fridge until I need it, and then just place the cold pan in the cold oven as it preheats. Then just bake as directed and voila! Dinner, easy, healthy, good. I’ll take it.

 

Y’all enjoy!

THE 9X13 DINNER

Serves 2-4

 

Ingredients:

• 1 package (4 links) chicken apple sausage
• 1 large onion
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 large or 2 small sweet potatoes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon seasoning of choice (Italian seasoning, BBQ seasoning, Old Bay, etc)
• salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375º F.
2. Slice the chicken apple sausage into 1/4-inch slices
3. Cut the onion into 1-inch pieces.
4. Seed the pepper and cut into 1-inch pieces.
5. Peel and chop the sweet potato into 1-inch pieces.
6. Toss everything with the olive oil and seasoning in a 9- x 13-inch baking dish.
7. Season with salt and pepper as needed.
8. Bake at 375º F for 1 hour, stirring halfway through.
9. Let cool for about 5-10 minutes before digging in.
10. Enjoy!