• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Food Meanderings
  • Start HERE
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Recipes
    • Courses
      • Breakfast and Brunch
        • Pancakes, Waffles & French Toast
        • Breakfast Potluck Ideas
      • Lunch
        • Sandwiches and Burgers
        • Salads
        • Soups, Stew & Chili Recipes
      • Dinner
        • Main dish
        • Pork Recipes
        • Pasta & Pizza Recipes
        • Casseroles
        • Chicken Recipes
        • Beef Recipes
        • Fish & Seafood
      • Desserts
        • Baked Goods
        • Bars and Squares
        • Cake
        • Cookies
        • Cupcakes
        • Frosting and Icing Recipes
        • Frozen Dessert Recipes
        • Healthy Dessert Recipes
        • No Bake Desserts
        • Pie and Pastry Recipes
        • Sweets
    • Cuisine
      • Asian-Inspired Recipes
      • Italian Recipes
      • Mediterranean Recipes
      • Mexican Recipes
      • Southern Recipes
    • Dish Type
      • Appetizers
        • Dip Recipes
      • Breads
        • Bread Machine Recipes
        • Muffins
      • Side Dishes
        • Vegetables
      • Snacks
      • Sauces, Spreads and Condiments
      • Drinks
        • Smoothies
        • Mocktails
      • One-Pot and One-Pan meals
    • Cooking Style
      • Dinner Party Recipes
      • BBQ & Grilling
      • Healthy Recipes
      • Seasonal Cooking
      • Slow Cooker Recipes
      • Vegetarian
    • Special Diet
      • Gluten-free Recipes
      • Vegan Recipes
      • Vegetarian
      • Weight Watchers Friendly Recipes
    • Holidays
      • Canada Day
      • Christmas Recipes
      • Easter Recipes
      • Earth Day Recipes
      • Father's Day Recipes
      • Cinco de Mayo Recipes
      • 4th of July Recipes
      • Halloween Recipes
      • Mother's Day Recipes
      • New Year's Eve Recipes
      • St. Patrick's Day Recipes
      • Stampede Recipes
      • Thanksgiving Recipes
      • Birthday Recipes
      • Valentine's Day Recipes
      • Game Day Recipes
    • Ingredient
      • Meat
        • Pork
        • Poultry
      • Pasta
      • Beans
      • Potatoes
      • Fruit
      • Rice
      • Egg Recipes
      • Chocolate
  • Meanderings
    • Articles
      • My Weight Watchers (WW) Journey
      • Weight Watchers Tips & Tricks
      • Comfort & Baked Expectations
      • Gingerbread: The Art of Food
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Start HERE
  • Recipes
  • About Me
  • Contact Me
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×
    Home » Recipes » Dish Type » Side Dishes

    Apple Rice (with Sausage)

    Published: Oct 1, 2017 by Terri Gilson · Modified: Sep 18, 2023 · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This post may contain affiliate links · 3 Comments

    Sharing is caring!

    402 shares
    • Share
    • Tweet
    • Reddit
    • Yummly
    • Mix
    Jump to Recipe
    Gluten-free Sausage & Apple side dish - foodmeanderings.com

    I am a creature of habit. Like most people, I have rituals that I cling to and these rituals give me comfort. It will likely come as no surprise, but most of my rituals are food-related. My morning ritual is COFFEE FIRST. Thanksgiving is no exception - roasted turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, peas, gravy, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie for dessert - that is the perma menu. But from time to time, I get adventurous and like to mix it up.

    Sausage & Apple Rice | #Thanksgivingsidedish

    And this Award-winning Gluten-free Apple Rice with Sausage recipe is the perfect opportunity to do just that - change it up, seize the day, and add this recipe to your Thanksgiving menu! However, mixing it up has not always served me well. I can recall one very bad attempt to mix up Thanksgiving dessert back in 2008.

    Jump to:
    • 🥘 Ingredients
    • 📖 Variations & Substitutions
    • 🍽Equipment
    • 💭Top Tip: How to Shape Rice
    • 👪 Serving size
    • 🌡️Storage
    • 🦺Food Safety
    • 📋 Apple Rice (with Sausage) Recipe
    • 🦃More Thanksgiving Recipes!

    🥘 Ingredients

    This apple rice recipe is a great Thanksgiving Stuffing Alternative, gluten-free and Weight Watchers friendly at only 7 WW points. It's full of fall flavors like apple, sage, and pine nuts and makes a wonderful Thanksgiving side, Christmas dinner side, or alternative to stuffing.

    This easy rice pilaf recipe was born out of a gluten-free rice recipe I made to accompany this Maple Cider Grilled Chicken Kabobs recipe for a cooking competition that ended up as a finalist in the Calgary Co op Freshipe Cook-off back in 2013.

    kabob being held with tongs

    However, the rice was sooo good that I decided to post it on its own~ It really is the perfect side dish!

    For this recipe, you'll need:

    • breakfast sausage links
    • dried/dehydrated apples
    • fresh sage
    • fresh baby spinach
    • brown/wild rice blend
    • chicken soup stock
    • pine nuts
    • olive oil
    Sausage & Apple Rice |#glutenfree, #Thanksgivingsidedish - Foodmeanderings.com

    If you're looking for a great recipe for a side dish that's also gluten-free, you'll love this apple rice recipe! I use dried/dehydrated apples in this dish because they are quicker, there is no peeling, coring or cooking and they give the dish such a unique texture that really works!  I also use breakfast sausages because I have them on hand and they are mild so they don't overpower the dish.

    📖 Variations & Substitutions

    • Sausage: you could mix it up and use a maple or brown sugar sausage or even a spicy sausage
    • Vegetarian: skip the sausage and use vegetable stock if you want to make it vegetarian. This will also bring down the Weight Watchers points.
    • Pine nuts: you could substitute toasted pecans or toasted almonds
    • Fresh sage - you could substitute dried sage, but you'll need half the amount as you would use fresh
    • Fresh spinach - you could substitute frozen, but I highly recommend using fresh

    I haven't found many easy Thanksgiving dinner sides that I'm willing to let into my little Thanksgiving dinner clique, but this one is in! However, the disaster of a dessert I tried to create back in 2008 is not welcome ...

    My daughter was born in 2007 and by the fall of 2008 I had lost almost all of my baby weight. However, I wanted to stay on track with my weight loss goals. And holidays are always a very challenging time. So, I was making Thanksgiving dinner and thought I'd try to create a low-fat, simple, and quick dessert; yet something that was similar to pumpkin pie. Also, I wanted something baby could eat - it was nice and mushy! In the end, I  created a parfait out of graham crackers, canned pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and light Coolwhip. All the main ingredients in pumpkin pie that should taste great, you say? But you guessed it- NOPE! Totally did not work - pretty gross AND unsatisfying! The sucky part is, I may as well just had pumpkin pie. In fact, I still wish I had. Oh, how I missed my pumpkin pie that year... I wish I had this Weight Watchers Crustless Pumpkin Pie back then!

    weight watchers crustless pumpkin pie on a white plate

    But I can guarantee you that you don't have to give anything up to add this delicious gluten-free apple rice with sausage dish to your repertoire.

    🍽Equipment

    You will need a frying pan, a medium saucepan, a sharp knife and a cutting board for this apple rice with sausage recipe (see recipe card for links and images).

    💭Top Tip: How to Shape Rice

    Serving your rice in a shape, as pictured below, is a great way to give it a little touch of elegance. If you're not sure how to do it, then check out this video: How to shape rice for serving   *NOTE: This rice isn't as sticky as your typical rice, so you really have to compress it as you spoon it into the bowl. Then you may also need to run a butter knife around the edges of the bowl to loosen it.

    apple rice with sausage on a white plate with pine cones in the background

    👪 Serving size

    This apple rice recipe makes 8 servings. You can cut this recipe in half, double it, or triple it by simply clicking on the blue servings number in the recipe card and the ingredient amounts will adjust accordingly.

    🌡️Storage

    • The delicious rice dish can be made ahead, and stored, in a sealed container, in the fridge for up to 3 days.
    • Reheat: Reheat this recipe in the microwave for 3-5 minutes or until warm.

    🦺Food Safety

    • Cook sausage to a minimum temperature of 160 °F (71 °C) . Temperature is the very best way to check for doneness. I use this instant read thermometer- (affiliate link) it's great for everything food related!
    • Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched the raw meat
    • Wash hands after touching raw meat
    • Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
    • Never leave cooking food unattended

    See more guidelines at USDA.gov.

    So, if you are looking for the perfect side dish for Thanksgiving this year, you can welcome this Apple Rice with Sausage into the Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner fold with no regrets!

    apple rice with sausage on a white plate with pine cones in the background
    Food Meandering Logo

    📋 Apple Rice (with Sausage) Recipe

    This award-winning Gluten-free Apple Rice (with sausage), dehydrated/dried apples, sage, wild rice, spinach and pine nuts is a great fall dish and perfect for a Thanksgiving or holiday side.⅖
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Side Dish
    Cuisine: North American
    Keyword: apple rice, sage, sausage
    Special Diet: Gluten-free, Weight Watchers
    Servings: 8 servings
    Calories: 210kcal
    Author: Terri Gilson
    Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 45 minutes minutes
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Equipment

    saucepan
    cutting board
    frying pan
    sharp knife

    Ingredients

    • 6 fresh breakfast sausage links chopped into ¼ inch circles
    • 1 cup finely chopped dried/dehydrated apples
    • 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh sage
    • 1 ½ cups fresh baby spinach washed and dried
    • 2 cups dry brown rice and wild rice blend cook as per package directions
    • Chicken stock or vegetable stock amount according to package direction of rice
    • ½ cup pine nuts
    • 1 teaspoon olive oil
    US Customary - Metric

    Instructions

    • Make the rice: Cook rice according to package directions, but use chicken stock or vegetable stock in place of water.
    • Cook sausage in a frying pan on stove top over medium heat until no longer pink and set aside.
    • Heat a frying pan on medium high heat. Add 1 teaspoon of olive oil and the pine nuts. Toast, for a minute or so, stirring, then add sage and spinach.
    • Continue to stir until spinach is soft and pine nuts are fragrant.  Remove the mixture and stir into rice mixture.
    • Stir in chopped dried apples and sausage into the rice and serve warm.

    Notes

    *See post contents for important recipe information and tips!
    Nutrition Facts
    📋 Apple Rice (with Sausage) Recipe
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 210 Calories from Fat 90
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 10g15%
    Saturated Fat 1g6%
    Cholesterol 33mg11%
    Sodium 149mg6%
    Potassium 283mg8%
    Carbohydrates 24g8%
    Fiber 3g13%
    Sugar 7g8%
    Protein 7g14%
    Vitamin A 635IU13%
    Vitamin C 2.7mg3%
    Calcium 50mg5%
    Iron 1.9mg11%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 210kcal (11%) | Carbohydrates: 24g (8%) | Protein: 7g (14%) | Fat: 10g (15%) | Saturated Fat: 1g (6%) | Cholesterol: 33mg (11%) | Sodium: 149mg (6%) | Potassium: 283mg (8%) | Fiber: 3g (13%) | Sugar: 7g (8%) | Vitamin A: 635IU (13%) | Vitamin C: 2.7mg (3%) | Calcium: 50mg (5%) | Iron: 1.9mg (11%)
    Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating and review below!
    Rate this Recipe

    🦃More Thanksgiving Recipes!

    • a piece of skinny pumpkin cheesecake being lifted off a plate
      Skinny Pumpkin Cheesecake (with Oreo Crust)
    • green beans and mushrooms in a white casserole dish on brown surface with red oven mitt in background
      Green beans and Mushrooms
    • carrot casserole in white casserole dish with a brown wooden spoon scooping casserole (on blue background) with dish of green onions and oven mitts in the background
      Carrot Casserole
    • old fashioned turkey stuffing in a green dish with spoon
      Old Fashioned Stuffing

     

    « Butterscotch Toffee Cookies
    Parsnip Crisps (deep fried parsnips) »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sara

      October 06, 2017 at 7:34 am

      This looks so good! Love the apples you've added into this!

      Reply
      • Terri Gilson

        October 06, 2017 at 7:35 am

        Thanks, Sara!

        Reply
    2. Colleen Milne

      October 06, 2017 at 9:13 am

      I love changing things up and this rice looks delicious with sausage and apples. Yum!

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    I'm Terri, a passionate home cook and baker, an award-winning recipe developer, and a busy working mom who is trying to eat healthy and fit everything into not enough hours in a day! My mission is to share not only my recipes, cooking hacks, and tips with you, but also my secrets to successful weight maintenance.

    More about me →

    Fall Recipes

    • coconut pumpkin chicken on jasmine rice, in black bowl, with rice and more of the chicken dish in background
      Coconut Pumpkin Chicken
    • broccoli cheese soup in a blue bowl with a spoon, with broccoli scattered around
      Slow Cooker Broccoli Cheese Soup
    • Halloween Buffalo Chicken Dip on a black platter with black nacho chips and orange peppers
      Slow Cooker Halloween Buffalo Chicken Dip
    • pumpkin pie ice cream in a cone, being held by a hand, in front of a container of ice cream and a pumpkin
      Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream (no churn)

    More Fall Recipes -->

    Footer

    Featured On:

    Taste Of Home Logo Parade Logo MSN Logo Master Chef Canada Logo Huffpost Logo Good Housekeeping Logo

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy & Terms of Use
    • Accessibility Policy

    Subscribe

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Work with me

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2023 Foodmeanderings.com

    402 shares