Whew, what a busy start to fall we’ve had around here. I know we’re officially less than a week into fall, but we have been going and going since September 1. Like it or not, summer is over and it’s time to get back into the swing of things! That means fast family-friendly weeknight meals like this simple Roasted Squash, Sausage and Apple One Pan Dinner are so helpful to have on hand!
Weekdays have been going by in a flurry. How have the girls been back in school for almost a full month already?? We have after school activities almost every day. I’m thinking I need to paint my car school bus yellow…
The weekends this September have been busy too, and equally as productive. Jase is building us a real sugar house for maple season next spring. Woohoo. This backyard sugaring operation is about to go legit! The sugar house, is coming right along and a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be. But I guess I shouldn’t be surprised since Jase is obsessed with out buildings and sugaring, so I should have known it would be more than a shack!
Last weekend, I went to Blog Brulee at Smugglers’ Notch to speak about food photography. It was my second year with the honor of being invited to talk about food photography for food bloggers, and I had a wonderful time. And I learned a lot too.
My girls and I went also went apple picking at my favorite local orchard. We picked McIntosh and Galas. The Honey Crisp were only available pre-picked in the farm store, I paid a premium for a bag of those as well. They are totally and completely worth it!
I have been baking and cooking with the apples since we brought them all home. Luckily, I have a second fridge in the basement, so I haven’t been worried about them going bad. I hope they last until Thanksgiving. If we don’t eat them all first!
I used some of the apples in this one-pan dinner recipe today, and I have at least two more recipes coming soon with apples so be on the lookout for those in the next couple of weeks.
So, speaking of this one-pan dinner recipe… um, you guys. Trust me, you are going to LOVE the taste of this dinner! The flavor is so good. The butternut squash gets roasted for a little bit, because it takes longer than everything else, then I added in kale from our garden, our fresh picked local apples and sliced organic Applegate Organic Chicken Apple Sausage.
I’m also in love with the whole one-pan dinner concept! They’re so easy to make and clean up! So check out this Lemon Butter Chicken from Veggie Balance. It’s another awesome one-pan dinner featuring chicken.
I have to confess, I sent an earlier draft of it to Sarah, who helps me with cross-testing, and she sent the test report back requesting more flavor. You don’t have to tell a flavor hound like me to up the flavor more than once! I added smoked paprika, nutmeg and Dijon mustard. Plus it has sherry vinegar and dark maple syrup. I am so glad she did say something, because though I liked it pretty well when I sent it to her the first time, after I added some oomph, now it is simply delicious! Like everybody-had-seconds-good!
Friends, one more thing, before we get to the recipe. I am please to let you know that the Intuitive Eating Program (for which I am an affiliate) is open to new members. If you read about it last time, but didn’t sign up in time, now is your chance! Click here to visit Joyful Eating, Nourished Life Program . Or if you want to hear more about intuitive eating and read about the program. Here’s the link to sign up if you’re ready to get away from the diet mentality and off the diet rollercoaster. Here is my post about the how I became a fan of intuitive eating. Just to be 100% transparent about this, I want you to know that as an affiliate of the Joyful Eating plan, I receive a small commission for every client that signs up for the program. This is at no extra cost to the client. I have chosen to become an affiliate because I believe in intuitive eating and this program.
Fall means busier schedules, so fast family-friendly weeknight meals like this simple Roasted Squash, Sausage and Apple One Pan Dinner are so helpful to have on hand!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup, dark or amber
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 medium-small butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1 ½-inch chunks (1 ½ to 2 pounds)
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 3 small apples, cored and cut into 1 ½-inch chunks
- 4 links chicken apple sausages, sliced
- 4 cups finely shredded kale
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Shake vinegar, maple syrup and mustard in a small jar.
- Meanwhile, toss squash, oil, smoked paprika, salt, nutmeg and pepper in a large bowl to coat. Spread out on a large rimmed baking sheet.
- Transfer squash to the oven and roast 10 minutes. Add apples, sausage and kale and toss to coat. Return to the oven and roast, stirring once or twice until the apples are softened and the squash is tender, about 18 to 22 minutes longer. Remove from the oven.
- Drizzle the vinegar mixture over the roasted mixture and toss to coat. Serve immediately.
This looks so good, apples go so well with sausage!
Hi Marye, Thank you! Happy fall to you.
Your sweet girls–so precious!! We have a trip planned to the orchard this weekend. I can’t wait to have some apples and will be making this easy meal for sure!
Thank you so much. They melt me. (Most of the time, ha ha.) Have a great time apple picking. I love the tradition every year.
Squash and sausage are literally two of my favorites! AMAZING dish!
I am totally with you Maria!
Yum! Such nice flavors for fall!
Thanks so much Diane. I get a little squash obsessed every fall. Ha ha.
This meal sounds SO satisfying. Love that you used the apples you picked as a family 🙂
There is total satisfaction in using fruit (or any ingredient) that you picked or grew. I think it’s great for the girls to be aware of that too.
This sounds like such a great fall meal and a great use of all those apples!
We really loved the final version of this recipe. The flavors are so good together. I will be making it again for sure. We have a ton of apples to get through, lol.
Oh my goodness, this sounds heavenly!!!
Thank you Lauren.
I’ve been ALL about the apples this season as well, and this looks like a perfect fall dinner! And so easy!
I can’t get enough of them! Ha ha!
There appears to be a typo at the maple syrup ingredient. How much?
Thank you for pointing that out Marylyn. It is 1 tablespoon. I made the change on the recipe above and updated it as well. Have a wonderful day.
Does the kale need to be in the oven for that long? I am concerned about it getting burnt.
I tested it twice and my cross-tester tested it twice. Neither of us had a problem with burnt kale. The sheet pan is quite full which insulates it a bit. That said, if you’re worried about it you could try adding it in a bit later. Please let me know if you try it. Happy cooking Lauren.
Hi, Katie! Love your blog and your recipes! Made this over the weekend. We tossed it with penne (I know – added carbs – but everyone loved it!). Still enjoying the leftovers – thanks for the recipe!
Betsy, thank you so much for coming back and letting me know. That means so much! And for the record I love the idea of adding pasta to this to extend it a bit. Our family devoured the whole pan and I know left-overs would have been appreciated! Ha ha! Hope you have a great week.
We made this today and loved it! It was delicious, fun to do and I had all the ingredients on hand. Thanks
Can you substitute spinach for the kale? I have every thin in house except the kale.
Yes, but because it is more tender than kale I would say do not roast it. Just add it in in step 4 and allow the heat of the hot roasted veggies to wilt it.
Any options for the sherry vinegar?
Red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar are good substitutes for the sherry vinegar. Hope you enjoy it!
I made this tonight and it’s really tasty! I plan to eat this as a snack in the afternoon!! Great recipe! i’m sharing this one with my mom!
Let look this dish’s colour, so amazing!
Should the apple be peeled as well?
You can peel the apple, but it is a little healthier to leave it on. If you don’t mind the texture- it’s totally fine to leave it on.