Sausage Rice Casserole

Yep, the dang cold/flu stuff is still permeating through our household which means we popped in another freezer meal for dinner.  I think we are all on the upswing but the lack of energy is still a barrier to cooking.  But hey the idea of freezer meals can have more than one use: get out of "cooking" or provide nurishment when you need it the most and without your food already being cooked you wouldn't bother eating. HA!  Our colds aren't that bad but I am nothing if not creative with my perceptions.

Taste: For me this was one of those meals that was very much a comforting nostaglic dish.  It reminds me of my childhood and all the good casserole type dishes my mom would make for us.  Granted I would have never ate this specific meal because I wouldn't have been caught dead eating cooked carrots when I was young but now yum yum.  Plus this dish has cream of chicken/mushroom soup, has anyone ever ate anything that didnt' taste good that had those two things in it?  Andrew and I both gave this meal a BIG thumbs up.  Definite make again but if I was looking to make it a little healthier I would add some more veggies because the meal is mainly rice and meat.  I think it would still taste great with more veggies but I love veggies so keep that in mind (Grayson ate Andrew's carrots). :)

Portion: I separated this recipe into two freezer Ziploc bags. We thawed one bag and had enough for 4 large portions.  Umm num num, I can't wait for the leftovers!!


Sausage Rice Casserole

Ingredients:
2 packages (7.2 oz each) rice pilaf
2 lbs turkey sausage (I used 1 lb ground turkey & 1 lb ground sausage)
6 celery ribs, chopped
1 (12 oz) bag frozen carrots, sliced
1 can cream of mushroom soup (I used 98% Fat-Free)
1 can cream of chicken soup (I used 98% Fat-Free)
2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt

Assembly:
Prepare rice according to directions on the box.  While rice is cooking, cook the sausage, celery, and carrots on medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Drain fat.  In large bowl combine all ingredients.  Tranfer into Ziploc freezer bag(s).

Serving Day: Thaw and bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.

*I cooked the meat and veggies until the point of the veggies being tender.  This allowed us to dethaw the bag overnight and just portion out what we wanted and heat up plates in the microwave, no oven necessary.  So this meal was from fridge to belly in 5 minutes.