This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of COLEMAN NATURAL FOODS® for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.
Zesty spinach chicken sausage and fresh veggies in a vibrant tomato sauce and covered in cheese in this Cheesy Chicken Sausage and Spinach Skillet Dinner recipe for an easy family dinner made in just one skillet in 30 minutes. This quick and easy sausage, veggie and rice skillet is downright delicious!
Cheesy Chicken Sausage and Spinach Skillet Dinner
Our family has been moving toward a more “real food” diet for a while now. This past summer we decided to try something different and join a CSA program. If you don’t know what that is, it stands for “community shared agriculture,” and it’s when local families invest in a local farm and in return, receive a portion of their crop. Each week, we receive a box full of fresh veggies, some of which we’ve never been brave enough to even cook before! In our recipe experiments with these new veggies, I’ve found that having some go-to staples really helped to make fresh, real food meals, which is why I’m excited to partner with COLEMAN NATURAL FOODS® to share this super quick, easy, and fresh Cheesy Chicken Sausage and Spinach Skillet Dinner recipe.
A Super Simple Ingredient that can Finish Almost Every Recipe
Before we get to the recipe, I want to first talk about a true, life-saver staple in my kitchen. With three busy kids and activities after school every night, quick, easy, and delicious family meals are our lifeline. I like to have COLEMAN ORGANIC® Apple Chicken Sausage or Spinach Chicken Sausage (spinach is my favorite, but my hubby loves the apple. The obvious compromise is to have BOTH!) on hand, all the time for three major reasons.
1. COLEMAN ORGANIC® Chicken Sausage is incredibly versatile. It can literally be put in any dish, and the dish will taste amazing. Pasta, frittata, sheet pan dinners, soups and stews, or even just by itself or on a bun. There are so many ways that you can use it. It makes it a super handy ingredient to have on hand when you’re looking in your fridge for dinner and have a bunch of mod podge ingredients. The sausage will probably go with any of them!
2. It’s ridiculously easy to cook. COLEMAN ORGANIC® Chicken Sausage is pre-cooked and ready to eat, so you really only need to heat it up. So, grill it, boil it, brown it in a skillet, or microwave it. Super-fast and convenient for those busy weeknights. Or if you have growing, and always hungry, boys like me, who are in constant need of another snack, the sausages are also easy for them to cook for themselves for a healthier after-school or after-sports snack. Lifesaver.
3. COLEMAN ORGANIC® Products are made with real, pronounceable ingredients. The best part about these sausages (and also their chicken breast strips and chicken hot dogs that my kids love, which are not included in the recipe I’m sharing today, but are super yummy!) is the quality. They’re made with real ingredients from real farmers that believe in raising animal the right way. That means that COLEMAN ORGANIC® chicken products are raised with NO antibiotics ever, no hormones or steroids added*, and no animal by-products. Plus, they’re fed an all vegetarian feed and are non-GMO**. It’s the kind of food you can feel good about feeding your family.
*Federal regulations prohibit the use of hormones or steroids in pork and poultry.
**The USDA organic regulations do not permit the use of GMOs.
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Cheesy Chicken Sausage and Spinach Skillet Dinner Recipe
The Cheesy Chicken Sausage and Spinach Skillet Dinner recipe that I’m sharing today is quick, easy, and fresh. It’s what I sometimes refer to as a “dump” dinner. You know, like a dump cake, except… for dinner. I’ve listed my favorite fresh veggies to include in the recipe below, but you can sub out any veggies you don’t have or like and add any that you do! Try adding bell peppers or cauliflower. We’ve been getting lots of Swiss chard in our CSA basket, so the purple-ish-red in the picture is actually Swiss chard stems, which blend flavors with pretty much anything you cook them with. So, get creative!
If you want a low carb option, sub the rice for some pre-roasted spaghetti squash. Or hey, just add some in either way. Super tasty, especially fresh from the garden!
To make this Cheesy Chicken Sausage and Spinach Skillet Dinner, start by sauteing the veggies and COLEMAN ORGANIC® Spinach Chicken Sausage in a big skillet until they’re tender. Then pour in some spaghetti sauce (homemade or jarred both work!) and a little bit of water, which is used to cook the rice. Stir in the rice, and let it simmer for about 15 minutes. You can either use instant rice, or you can use pre-cooked brown rice. Regular brown rice increases the cooking time to almost an hour, and you’ll probably need an additional cup of water, if you really want to use uncooked brown rice.
Then just stir in the cheese and spinach, and a little more cheese on top. Let it melt, and there you have it! Dinner in 30 minutes in one skillet! Win!
Cheesy Chicken Sausage and Spinach Skillet Dinner
Ingredients
- 1 package COLEMAN ORGANIC® Spinach Chicken Sausage (4 links - 12 ounces), sliced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium red onion, coarsely chopped
- 1 small zucchini, thickly sliced and quartered
- 1 small summer squash, thickly sliced and quartered
- 4 ounces chopped broccoli or broccoli florets
- 2-3 ounces sliced cremini mushrooms
- 1-2 tablespoons minced garlic
- Salt & black pepper to taste
- 1 jar spaghetti sauce (24 ounces)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup Instant Brown Rice (or 2 cups pre-cooked brown rice)
- 4 ounces spinach
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella, divided
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter.
- Add COLEMAN ORGANIC® Spinach Chicken Sausage, onion, zucchini, summer squash, broccoli, mushrooms, and garlic to skillet. Season with salt and pepper.
- Saute until tender.
- When vegetables are tender, about 7-10 minutes, pour in spaghetti sauce and 1/2 cup water. Stir to combine.
- Add instant rice, and stir to combine.
- Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until rice is tender.
- Uncover. Stir in spinach and 1/2 cup mozzarella. Stir to combine.
- Top with remaining 1 cup mozzarella. Cover just until cheese is melted. Remove from heat.
- Serve warm.
Nutrition
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Ellen says
August 26, 2018 at 5:06 pmLove meals made in one skillet and even more in 30 minutes! Hearty and delicious.
Tara says
August 26, 2018 at 6:01 pmSuch a great use of the spinach chicken sausage. I will definitely need to look out for this. The flavors sound incredible and I love how easily the meal comes together.
Ginny McMeans says
August 26, 2018 at 6:10 pmI love one pot meals! You put lots of goodie in this one. I do need to leave out a couple of the ingredients but everything else is golden. A great way to use summer vegetables.
Lauren Vavala DeliciousLittleBites says
August 26, 2018 at 6:28 pmI love a cheesy one-pan meal! This looks SO good! The combination of chicken apple sausage and veggies is amazing!
Lisa Bryan says
August 26, 2018 at 7:24 pmOne skillet meals are the best and love all of the flavors and veggies in this recipe!