Lighter Copycat Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole


The first time I went to Cracker Barrel it was eight years ago on a family trip to Virginia. I had heard all about this restaurant that served amazing comfort food favorites. I was told that I absolutely must try the hash brown casserole, so I did. I must say that the raves were well deserved-it was so good! 



At that time, we did not have a Cracker Barrel anywhere near us and so I decided to try and make a lighter, healthier version of this yummy Cracker Barrel menu must have. I switched out a lot of the ingredients for reduced fat options, but you could make the original using the full fat versions. If your family is not a fan of turkey sausage, you can use pork breakfast sausage instead. You can also switch out the cheese if you prefer something other than cheddar. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do! 

For this recipe, you will need the following ingredients:

Ingredients:


1 pound ground turkey sausage, drained and browned
2-20 ounce pkgs frozen hash brown potatoes, thawed
2-10.5 ounce cans reduced fat cream of chicken soup
1-16 ounce container low fat sour cream
2 1/2 cups reduced fat cheddar cheese, shredded, reserve 1/2 cup for topping
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 tsp seasoning salt (Lawry's or Johnny's)
1/2 tsp finely ground black pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4-1/2 tsp dried dill (optional)
green onions, chopped


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.




2. In a large frying pan, brown turkey sausage and onions, Remove from heat and drain off excess fat. 



3. Add hash browns, onion, soup, sour cream, cheese, salt, pepper, paprika, garlic and onion powder, and dill to frying pan.



4. Place mixture in a greased 9 x 13 baking dish.

5. Bake approximately 45-60 minutes. During last 10 minutes of baking, add remaining cheese. During the final 1-2 minutes broil until top of casserole is golden and bubbly.


6. Sprinkle with green onions and serve!