Baked Sausage with Apples, Potatoes, and Onions

I'm feeling a little left out of the butternut squash loop this morning, but honestly, I've been a little slow to hop on that wagon.  Even though the girls and I had the most amazing butternut squash ravioli at The Pizza Grill one afternoon, it's still one of the last vegetables I ever think to cook.  Both of those recipes sound really good, though, so I'm going to have to give it a try.  (And just so you know, Carrie's totally telling the truth about her butternut squash obsession...it's for real.)

My recipe comes from Jenny's Rosenstrach's Dinner: A Love Story.  I've made it twice now, and it's definitely a winner at our house.  It's super easy to throw together and if you happen to have potatoes and onions and thyme in your fall garden, you don't have to go far for your ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 425.  Combine 3 cups whole small potatoes and 1 onion (chopped in large chunks) in a large baking dish and toss with 1Tbsp olive oil, the leaves from 4 sprigs of fresh thyme, salt, and pepper.

Place 4 sweet Italian pork sausages on top of vegetables. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes, until sausage is brown on top. Using tongs, flip over the sausage and bake for 10 more minutes.

Meanwhile, chop 2 Granny Smith apples (unpeeled) and toss with a little more olive oil, salt, and pepper. Scatter the apples around the sausage, drizzle 2 tablespoons cider vinegar over the whole dish, and bake for 5 more minutes. Serve with dollops of spicy brown or Dijon mustard.

That's it!  So easy and really good.  I added a garden salad (lettuce, spinach, and radishes right from my garden!) on the side.  Try chicken sausage if you'd rather skip the pork, but put the veggies in the oven without the sausage for about 15 minutes, and then add it on top for the rest of the time.  Otherwise, the sausage gets a little golden-brown (read: burnt) and dried out.  Believe me, I know  :)  When you take your first bite, try to get a little of everything on your fork...it's the perfect combination.  Hope you give it a try!