You survived the holiday gauntlet—the cookies, the distant cousins, the seasonal cold that kept you from the gym for three weeks. Now society’s signaling that you need to eat steamed broccoli, walk at least 40k steps a day, and actually like it. But it’s cold outside, your couch is comfy, and the idea of eating anything that won’t dopamine-blast your brain makes you want to go to sleep for three days.
We get it. You want to be healthy. But hearty’s where your heart is.
Thing is, you don’t need to sacrifice one to have the other. Hearty doesn’t have to mean something dripping with cheese and excess fat. And healthy doesn’t need to involve ingredients you have to Google after watching some impossibly fit TikTok influencer inhale 900g of protein.
That’s where these easy, healthy comfort food recipes come in: cozy, protein-packed meals that feel indulgent enough for winter, but smart enough to actually stick with.
These recipes, starring our healthier-for-you chicken sausages—which pack 12g of protein and 35% less fat than our leading competitor—will fill you up and make you feel like you’re taking care of yourself, without the penance. Even better? They’re so good you’ll actually want to add them to your weekly rotation. So fire up your next big binge-watch, fluff your coziest blanket, and get ready to enjoy the delicious intersection of hearty and healthy.
One-Pot Lentil Soup with Apples and Sausage
Lentils are cheap, packed with protein and fiber, and absorb the flavors of whatever you cook them with. Though they don't quite have the elevated social status of quinoa, they work hard, especially in this one-pot soup with Melty Cheddar Chicken Sausage.
Apples and savory dishes have been playing off each other for ages (think apple pie and cheddar cheese), and so it goes here, with Granny Smith apples that put an exclamation point on the sausage’s cheese pockets and cut the lentils’ earthiness. Chicken broth ties it all together.
Make it yourself: Fire up a pot of this one-pot wonder.
Warm Farro Salad with Chicken Sausage & Spinach
Let's talk about grain bowls for a second. They're the ultimate blank canvas—throw in whatever vegetables are lurking in your fridge, add some protein, drizzle with any dressing, and suddenly you've got a meal that tastes good and feels virtuous.
Here, nutty, chewy, protein-forward farro gets all dressed up in this recipe with Melty Cheddar Chicken Sausage, goat cheese, spinach, and punchy sun-dried tomatoes. It’s warm. It’s filling. And it will have you re-thinking what a salad actually is.
Make it yourself: Our recipe will keep you fed for days.
Butternut Squash Breakfast Casserole with Sausage
Breakfast for dinner is a small rebellion; a way to wrest control for yourself in an increasingly chaotic world. But you can also just eat this for breakfast. It will keep you full until lunch!
Chop the squash evenly so it all cooks at the same rate, or cheat and use frozen diced butternut squash. Dice a few links of Melty Cheddar Chicken Sausage or Classic Roasted Chicken Sausage and mix it in. The flavor studding of real cheddar in the Melty Cheddar variety will create pockets of molten cheese in the final product.
Make it yourself: Adapt Slender Kitchen's recipe using our pre-cooked sausages.
Fall Sheet Pan Sausage and Veggies
Sure, if we're being honest, most sheet-pan ingredients don't cook at the same rate, but that's a problem for people who care more about precision than convenience. We like to be set-it-and-forget-it folks over here; Ron Popeil didn’t haunt all our waking hours in the 90s for no reason.
This one's got roasted butternut squash, carrots, caramelized red onion, Brussels sprouts, chickpeas for extra fiber, Classic Roasted Chicken Sausage, and a pinch of pumpkin pie spice, if you can believe it. It actually pairs well with chicken sausage when used sparingly—you want dinner to taste like dinner, not a Yankee Candle. Leave out the sugar if you're watching carbs, or toss everything over barley or quinoa for an extra hearty dish.
Make it yourself: Our recipe tastes great all year long.
Chicken Sausage & Spiced Chickpea Quinoa Bowls
Quinoa is one of those things you eat because everyone on the internet is always yelling about how good it is for you, not because it tastes particularly awesome. The trick is loading it up with enough other stuff that it becomes a background player.
This recipe’s packed with Classic Roasted Chicken Sausage; toasted chickpeas tossed with turmeric, smoked paprika (criminally underrated), cumin, and a cayenne kick; and 10-minute pickled red onions, whose acidity cuts through the various fats and transforms the dish altogether. Throw in toasted cashews and avocado for healthy fats, along with some Italian kale.
Make it yourself: Enjoy a bowl that checks every box: protein, fiber, crunch, and flavor.
Italian Sausage Veggie Skillet
There's a bit of a ratatouille thing happening here: sweet yellow and red peppers, zucchini, and tomatoes all cook down into a sauce that you dump over the pasta. Use whole wheat pasta, or swap in lentil or chickpea pasta for extra protein and fiber. Top it with Parmesan for extra razzle dazzle. Then don't worry about dishes.
The recipe calls for fresh sausage, but if you're using The Sausage Project's Italian Herb Sausage, it's precooked—so you'll shave a few minutes off the total time.
Make it yourself: Taste of Home's version comes together fast and only dirties one pan.
Hearty Sausage Minestrone Soup
Make this classic and comforting Italian minestrone in one pot. Italian Herb Sausage infuses the broth with basil and Calabrian peppers, adding subtle heat, and white beans add heft and extra protein.
If you're cutting back on white flour, skip the pasta and add an extra can of beans instead. A squeeze of lemon at the end adds brightness.
Make it yourself: Make a big batch of this recipe and eat it all week.
Sheet Pan Veggies with Italian Herb Sausage
It doesn't get much heartier and healthier than a bowl of roasted vegetables. Potatoes add stick-to-your-ribsness, and sweet red onion, yellow squash, and zucchini all roast up nicely with minimal prep, absorbing the flavors of the Italian Herb Chicken Sausage. Finish with fresh parsley for herby contrast, a drizzle of good olive oil, and some flaky Maldon salt.
Make it yourself: This one's infinitely adaptable.
Spicy Sausage, Kale & White Bean Soup
We’re all about soup season, and this one plays winter season’s greatest hits. It’s a reliable combination of flavors and textures: creamy, starchy white beans (cannellini or great northern), floppy kale, and flavor-blasted Italian Herb Sausage. Use low-sodium chicken broth so you can control the salt level yourself, or use your own homemade stock.
If you prefer something milder, Classic Roasted Chicken works just as well. There's also lots of garlic in this recipe, which is healthy for reasons involving antioxidants and cardiovascular health that you can Google later.
Make it yourself: Our version is on the table in under 40 minutes with mostly pantry staples.
Paleo Braised Cabbage and Sausage
Cabbage has a reputation problem rivaling Taylor Swift’s circa 2017 thanks to every fad diet of the last 40 years, re: cabbage soup. But if you can get past the association with deprivation, cabbage actually rocks.
It’s cheap and keeps in the fridge forever. Braised low and slow in chicken broth, it gets tender and sweet, like Ron Popeil, who, despite his success, was reportedly quite a family man. Add some onions for extra flavor, throw in whatever chicken sausage you have on hand, and let it all cook together in a Dutch oven for 20 minutes.
Make it yourself: Allow Organically Addison's recipe to invite you into a dialogue about your cabbage prejudice.