This Sausage and Baked Bean Casserole recipe is a great staple and goes well with pumpkin or other squashes. It's a great way to use up the insides of a pumpkin around Halloween rather than letting it go to waste. The large pumpkins you buy for carving are perfectly good to eat, but you can also buy much smaller cooking pumpkins throughout Autumn.
Pumpkins are relatively cheap and are also highly nutritious. They are also a low carb alternative to pasta rice and potatoes. If you're looking for more sausage recipes you might also like Sausage Pasta Bake, Sausage Tray Bake. I also have a great Vegan Sausage Casserole or Vegan Toad in the Hole if you're looking for easy ways to reduce your meat consumption.
Veggie Sausage Casserole
It's easy to make this recipe vegetarian as there are such good vegetarian sausages available. Vegetarian sausages usually work best when cooked from frozen so just add them in frozen at step 1. You should also be aware when it comes to worcestershire sauce that it contains fish sauce or anchovies so is not suitable for vegans or those who don't eat fish. You can however buy vegan versions of worcestershire sauce. Also, be sure to use vegetable stock and not chicken stock. These are all really easy substitutions to make this a great tasting vegetarian sausage casserole.
Recipe Tips and Variations
- You can make this recipe with pumpkin or any other squash such as butternut squash. Adding a squash is nutritious and is a relatively cheap way to make this casserole go further and feed more mouths. If you don't want to add a squash, you can leave it out. I would add an extra can of baked beans instead.
- When it comes to sausages, use the best quality sausages you can as these will have a lower fat content. I use cumberland pork link sausages.
- Baked beans are a great staple. You can buy baked beans with no added sugar which are a healthier option. You could also use other beans such as cannelloni or white butter beans.
- I cook this sausage casserole in the oven as I like to serve it with baked or jacket potatoes and this saves on energy usage and cost. You can however simmer it on the hob or stove top if you prefer.
How to cut and peel a pumpkin
Pumpkins are quite hard vegetables and can be tricky to cut and peel due to their size. You will need a large, sharp knife. Cut the pumpkin into quarters to make it more manageable. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds. A potato peeler is good for removing the skin, or you can use a sharp knife. Once the skin is removed, chop the pumpkin flesh into bite sized chunks.
Sustainability
Each year in the UK, we throw away around 15 million pumpkins. It’s crazy to think this vegetable is mainly grown only to be binned. It takes five whole months to grow a pumpkin and when we waste it, we waste all the resources that go into growing them. Food waste also produces harmful methane gases which contribute significantly towards climate change. This Sausage Casserole recipe is a great way to use the insides of a pumpkin.
How to make Sausage and Baked Bean Casserole
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°F/350°F/gas mark 4. Heat the oil in a large pan or oven proof casserole dish over a medium heat and fry the sausages for 4 - 5 minutes until they have some colour. If you are using vegetarian sausages, add them in frozen.
- Add the onion and fry for 3 minutes, then add the garlic and sage and fry for a further 3 minutes, whilst stirring.
- Stir in the pumpkin and flour then add the honey, dijon mustard worcestershire sauce, baked beans, tinned tomatoes and stock. Season with salt and pepper and bring to the boil.
- Wash the potatoes and prick the skins with a fork then place on a baking tray in the oven.
- Cover the casserole dish and bake in the oven for about 1 hour. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve with the baked potatoes. If you prefer to cook the casserole on the hob or stove top, simmer for 30 minutes stirring occasionally to make sure it doesn't stick.
Serving Suggestions
Serve with a nice jacket potato or mashed potato. It also goes well with crusty bread. You don't need any other sides as it already has lots of vegetables in it, but if you would like more then any green vegetable will bring some nice extra colour to your plate.
Storage
You can store a sausage casserole in the fridge for 2 -3 days. It will also freeze and is best eaten within 3 months. It will still be safe to eat after the 3 months, but the quality and texture may start to deteriorate.
📖 Recipe
Sausage and Baked Bean Casserole with Pumpkin
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil organic, fairtrade
- 8 thin pork sausages organic, cut in half
- 1 onions organic, peeled and diced
- 1 garlic cloves organic, peeled and crushed
- 1 tablespoon fresh sage organic, chopped
- 1 kg pumpkin organic, small/medium, flesh cut into bite sized chunks
- 2 tablespoon plain flour organic
- 1 teaspoon runny honey organic, fairtrade
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard organic
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce organic
- 415 g baked beans organic, tinned
- 400 g chopped tomatoes organic, tinned
- 500 ml chicken stock organic
- 1 dash salt
- 1 dash black pepper organic, fairtrade, freshly ground
- 2 tablespoon fresh parsley organic, chopped
- 4 baking potaotes organic
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°F/350°F/gas mark 4. Heat the oil in a large pan or oven proof casserole dish over a medium heat and fry the sausages for 4 - 5 minutes until they have some colour.2 tablespoon olive oil, 8 thin pork sausages
- Add the onion and fry for 3 minutes, then add the garlic and sage and fry for a further 3 minutes, whilst stirring.1 onions, 1 tablespoon fresh sage, 1 garlic cloves
- Stir in the pumpkin and flour then add the honey, dijon mustard worcestershire sauce, baked beans, tinned tomatoes and stock. Season with salt and pepper and bring to the boil. The flour will help to give a nice thick sauce.2 tablespoon olive oil, 1 kg pumpkin, 2 tablespoon plain flour, 1 teaspoon runny honey, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce, 415 g baked beans, 400 g chopped tomatoes, 500 ml chicken stock, 1 dash salt, 1 dash black pepper
- Wash the potatoes and prick the skins with a fork then place on a baking tray in the oven.4 baking potaotes
- Cover the casserole dish and bake in the oven for about 1 hour. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve with the baked potatoes. Alternatively, simmer on the hob or stove top for 30 minutes.2 tablespoon fresh parsley
Notes
- Use pumpkin or any other squash such as butternut squash. If you don't want to add a squash, leave it out but add an extra can of baked beans instead.
- Use the best quality sausages you can as these will have a lower fat content. I use cumberland pork link sausages.
- Baked beans are a great staple. You can buy baked beans with no added sugar which are a healthier option. You could also substitute other beans such as cannelloni or white butter beans.
- I cook this sausage casserole in the oven as I like to serve it with baked or jacket potatoes and this saves on energy. You can however simmer it on the hob or stove top for 30 minutes if you prefer.
Nutrition per serving
The Nutritional Values are computer generated estimates based on industry standards and are provided as a helpful guide only.
Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think