When I was a kid my mom would always make something she called “Sausage and Cornbread Pie” which was nothing more than cornbread with sausage mixed in, spread in a pie plate and baked. We would eat it for breakfast (I loved mine with either honey or maple syrup) and even now, the flavor combination of sweet cornbread and salty-spicy breakfast sausage reminds me of my mom.
Recently I was asked to come up with a recipe on behalf of Hillshire brands and the Mom It Forward Blogger Network and of course my mind went straight to that Sausage-Cornbread Pie. I did want to update it a little, and with the addition of spinach and parmesan it becomes a great brunch option. The perfect balance of starch, vegetable and protein. A complete little meal in one bite. I even stuck them in the kids’ lunches to eat cold, since the protein rich sausage and cheese keeps them full.
1 Box Cornbread Mix (Prepared)
6-8 oz Frozen Chopped Spinach (thawed drained) according to taste
1/2 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 lb Jimmy Dean Pork Sausage (cooked and drained)
Preheat oven according to directions on Cornbread Mix (in my case it was 400 degrees)
Grease Muffin Pan (I used non-stick cooking spray)
Thaw and drain spinach (I use a wire sieve and the back side of a spatula to squeeze the moisture out of the spinach. You want it to be as dry as possible):
Grease Muffin Pan (I used non-stick cooking spray)
Thaw and drain spinach (I use a wire sieve and the back side of a spatula to squeeze the moisture out of the spinach. You want it to be as dry as possible):
Cook and drain Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage (and grate cheese if you aren’t using pre-grated.) Now you are ready to assemble your muffins: 
Combine wet ingredients for Muffin Mix (in my case it was 1/3 cup oil, 2/3 cup milk and 1 egg) and a mix in spinach (this will make it easier to distribute it evenly in the muffin mix):
Add you grated parmesan:
Finally, mix in dry cornbread mix and scoop into a greased muffin tin:
Bake until a toothpick comes out clean (it will be close to the time on the muffin directions, maybe slightly longer because the spinach tends to hold in moisture). Mine took about 25 minutes.
When they are done they are deliciously moist, and the perfect combination of savory and sweet.
If you don’t like sweet cornbread, you could make them purely savory by using a less sweet cornbread mix.
And I have good news for you if you are considering this recipe, or any other recipe that uses any of the Hillshire Brand products (Jimmy Dean, BallPark, Hillshire Farms, or StateFair). Your local Safeway store is running some great coupon specials via their J4U (Just 4 You) App and you can download them too.I’ve had the App for a while, since I’m never organized enough to remember my paper coupons. When I was picking out my Jimmy Dean Breakfast Sausage, I just pulled up the coupon on my phone, clicked once to add it to my card, and saved 55 cents automatically when I checked out.. Easy Peasy!
Some other examples of the great savings going right now include:- Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausage -$.55/1
- Products: Hillshire Farm Rope and Link Sausage, American Craft Links
- Hillshire Farm Cocktails (Lil Smokies) - $.55/1
- Jimmy Dean Refrigerated Sausage -$.55/1
- Roll Sausage, Fully Cooked Crumbles, Links and Patties
- Jimmy Dean Frozen -$1/1
- Frozen Breakfast (Delights or Red Box)
- State Fair Corn Dogs - $1/1
- Ball Park Hot Dogs -$.55/1
- Ball Park Hot Dogs or Park’s Finest from Ball Park
And if you need a little inspiration on what to make with any of those products, here are a couple of other recipe ideas from other Mom It Forward Bloggers to help get you started:
