Autumn Hot Dish
Hot Dish is native to Minnesota, but any true Midwestern grew up eating some version of this “casserole.” Ours was always made with canned soup, canned vegetables, some kind of meat and topped with tater tots. With this recipe, I wanted to create something nostalgic, but skip the canned food and jazz it up with fresh vegetables, fruits, and herbs. Enter this autumn hot dish that will give you all the cozy feels of Fall.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small fennel bulb, fronds reserved, cored and sliced thin
1 leek, light green and white parts only, sliced into half-moons
1 celery ribs, diced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 gala apple (about 7 ounces), cored and diced
8 ounces ground mild Italian sausage
1 (12-ounce) bag frozen, diced butternut squash
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup parsley, chopped, plus more for garnish
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon lemon juice
32 sweet potato tater tots
Cooking Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the fennel, leeks, celery, 1 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of black pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the apples and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until just softened about 3 minutes.
Add the sausage, breaking it up into pieces with a spoon, and cook, stirring occasionally until the sausage is no longer pink in the middle, 6 to 7 minutes. Fold in the butternut squash, heavy cream, and pumpkin pie spice and bring to a simmer. Add the parsley, sage, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of black pepper and stir until just combined.
Transfer the mixture to a 9-inch-by-5-inch loaf pan. Gently press the tater tots on top of the filling so there are 8 rows of 4. Bake until the filling is bubbling around the edges and the tots are crispy on the top and cooked through, about 25 minutes, let cool for 10 minutes then garnish with the parsley. Scoop into bowls and serve.
Servings: 4 servings
Active time: 25 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
That’s all you need.