"Granma's Favorite" Sweet Potato, Apple & Breakfast Sausage Bake
This is probably the one dish that, even just the smell of it baking, brings me back to the most wonderful childhood memories of my mother and grandmother baking this in my childhood home. It's so warm and comforting, and sharing it with the world will make her little legacy of this dish live on.
GLUTEN FREE BREAKFAST RECIPESGLUTEN FREE DINNER RECIPE
Lauren Vasnelis
9/30/2026
Grandma’s Favorite
Sweet Potato, Apple, and Breakfast Sausage Bake
Some recipes I make because I have an idea I want to try. This one is different. Grandma’s Favorite is one of those recipes that immediately takes me back to being a kid in the kitchen with my family.
This was one of my grandmother’s absolute favorite things to eat all winter long. Whenever she came to visit, we made it. And we didn’t make a normal-sized batch. I remember everyone sitting in the kitchen slicing what felt like an endless amount of apples and sweet potatoes while we cooked enough sausage to make this enormous pot of food.
When I decided I wanted to make it again and share it here, I actually had to call my mom and ask her how we used to make it.
And, like a lot of old family recipes, there wasn’t exactly a perfectly measured recipe waiting for me. The brown sugar was always added to taste. Some of the liquid from the canned yams went into the pot until it looked right. Everything was layered together and baked until it was soft, sweet, savory, and delicious.
So that’s exactly how I’m sharing it.
Grandma’s Favorite combines breakfast sausage, apples, canned yams, and brown sugar into an incredibly simple sweet-and-savory cold-weather dinner. It only takes a few ingredients, but for me, it comes with a whole lot of memories.
Servings: About 6
Prep Time: About 15 minutes
Bake Time: 45–60 minutes
Total Time: About 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes
Oven Temperature: 400°F
Equipment
Large oven-safe pot or Dutch oven
Ingredient Breakdown
Al Fresco Chicken Breakfast Sausage
I use Al Fresco Country Style Chicken Breakfast Sausage links. They’re chicken sausage, certified gluten-free, and delicious in this recipe.
This particular sausage is already fully cooked, so you don’t technically need to cook it before assembling the dish. I personally like my sausage a little overcooked and firmer, so I give mine a quick head start in the oven while I’m preparing everything else.
The savory chicken breakfast sausage works really well against the sweet apples, yams, and brown sugar but any breakfast sausage will do great in this dish.
Apples
Your favorite apple will do great in this dish but I like to just pick Gala Apple. They're inexpensive and not too sweet (you're going to add plenty of sweetness later). You can peel the apples or leave the skins on. Either works, so this really comes down to your preference. They soften as the dish bakes and absorb some of the brown sugar and sweet liquid from the canned yams.
Bruce’s Yams
For this particular recipe, I recommend sticking with the canned yams rather than substituting fresh sweet potatoes. Could you make a similar dish using fresh sweet potatoes? Absolutely. But that’s not how my grandmother made it, and this recipe is called Grandma’s Favorite for a reason.
Most importantly, do not drain and discard the liquid from the can. Remove the yams and reserve that liquid because you’ll use some of it before the dish goes into the oven.
Brown Sugar
The brown sugar is probably the least precise ingredient in this entire recipe because we never measured it.
For an actual recipe you can follow, I’d estimate that I use approximately ½ cup total, divided between the layers. You can use a little more or less depending on how sweet you want the finished dish.
Be generous, but remember, this is still dinner!
Ingredients
About 18 Al Fresco Country Style Chicken Breakfast Sausage links
5–6 apples, sliced
1 (40-ounce) can Bruce’s Yams, Sweet Potatoes in Syrup
Do not drain; reserve the liquid
About ½ cup brown sugar, divided, or to taste
About half of the reserved yam liquid, as needed
Instructions
Preheat the Oven
Preheat your oven to 400°F.
Optional: Pre-Cook the Sausage
The Al Fresco Country Style Chicken Breakfast Sausage I use is already fully cooked, so you don’t need to cook it before assembling the dish.
I personally like my sausage a little overcooked and on the firmer side, so while I’m prepping everything else, I put mine in the oven at 400°F for about 7 minutes.
If you prefer softer sausage, skip this step completely.
Prepare the Apples and Yams
Slice 5–6 apples into wedges. You can peel them first or leave the skins on.
Open the can of yams and remove the sweet potatoes, but do not drain or discard the liquid. Set the reserved yam liquid aside because you’re going to use some of it before baking.
Build the First Layer
Add approximately half of the yams to the bottom of your oven-safe pot or Dutch oven, slicing or breaking them into smaller pieces as you add them.
Top with approximately half of the sliced apples, followed by half of the breakfast sausage.
Sprinkle approximately ¼ cup brown sugar over everything.
Add the Second Layer
Add the remaining yams, followed by the remaining apples and breakfast sausage.
Sprinkle additional brown sugar over the top. I use approximately ½ cup total between both layers, but don’t worry about being overly precise here. Adjust the sweetness to your preference.
Add the Reserved Yam Liquid
Pour approximately half of the reserved yam liquid over everything.
You don’t need to use all of the liquid from the can. You just want enough to add moisture and help create that sweet sauce at the bottom of the pot as everything cooks without completely drowning the ingredients.
Bake
Place the pot uncovered in the oven and bake at 400°F for 45 minutes to 1 hour.
I generally bake mine for about 45 minutes, but you can leave it in longer if you prefer your apples and yams especially soft.
About halfway through cooking, carefully remove the pot from the oven and give everything a good stir. This redistributes the brown sugar and reserved yam liquid and coats the apples, yams, and sausage in all those juices.
Return the pot to the oven and finish baking.
Serve and Enjoy
Once the apples and yams are tender and everything is hot and caramelized, remove the pot from the oven.
Serve warm and enjoy.
Lauren’s Tips 💛
Save the Yam Liquid
This is probably the most important tip in the recipe. Do not drain the canned yams over the sink. Remove the yams and save that liquid.
I generally use about half of the reserved yam liquid in the finished dish. It adds moisture and sweetness and helps create the sauce that coats everything while it bakes.
Pre-Cooking the Sausage Is a Texture Choice
The Al Fresco sausage is already fully cooked. I pre-cook mine for about 7 minutes because I genuinely like my sausage a little overdone and firmer.
If that’s not your thing, don’t do it. The sausage will spend plenty of time in the oven with everything else.
Don’t Overthink the Brown Sugar
This recipe wasn’t passed down with an exact brown sugar measurement. I’m estimating about ½ cup total based on how I make it now.
This is one of those recipes where you can measure with your heart a little bit.
Give It a Stir Halfway Through
Don’t just put the pot in the oven and forget about it. That halfway stir gets the brown sugar and reserved yam liquid distributed throughout the entire dish and helps everything cook in those sweet juices.
Stick With the Canned Yams for Grandma’s Version
Fresh sweet potatoes could certainly work in a sausage-and-apple bake, but they aren’t what I use here. The canned yams and their liquid are part of the flavor and texture I remember from this dish. If you choose to use fresh sweet potatoes, I would slice and bake them for about 20 minutes before adding them to the pot.
Notes
This recipe makes approximately 6 servings.
The ½ cup brown sugar is an estimate. Use more or less depending on your preferred sweetness.
Do not drain the canned yams and discard the liquid. Reserve it until you assemble the dish.
I generally use approximately half of the reserved yam liquid. Start there rather than pouring in all of it.
You can peel the apples or leave the skins on.
Bake the dish uncovered.
I usually bake mine for approximately 45 minutes, although you can go up to an hour for softer apples and yams.
Stir the entire dish approximately halfway through cooking.
The Al Fresco breakfast sausage I use is already fully cooked, so the initial 7-minute pre-cook is optional and based entirely on texture preference.
If you’re using a different sausage, check whether it is raw or fully cooked and prepare it accordingly.
If you need the recipe to be gluten-free, always check the current labels of the sausage and other packaged ingredients you’re using.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called Grandma’s Favorite?
Because it really was my grandmother’s favorite.
She loved this throughout the winter, and whenever she came to visit, we’d make an enormous batch. Some of my strongest memories of this recipe aren’t even of eating it. They’re of sitting around the kitchen with my family preparing what felt like a mountain of apples and sweet potatoes.
When I decided to make it again for the blog, I actually had to call my mom to get the recipe.
Do I have to use canned yams?
No, but I strongly recommend them if you’re trying to make this particular recipe.
Fresh sweet potatoes would change both the cooking process and the finished texture, and you’d also lose the sweet liquid from the can that we use while baking. The canned yams are part of the recipe I grew up eating.
Should I drain the yams?
Don’t discard the liquid.
Remove the yams from the can and set the liquid aside. You’ll pour approximately half of that reserved yam liquid over the assembled dish before baking.
Do I have to use all of the yam liquid?
No. I generally use about half.
You’re looking for enough liquid to keep everything moist and create a sweet sauce as it bakes, not enough to turn the dish into soup.
Do I have to pre-cook the breakfast sausage?
Not if you’re using the fully cooked Al Fresco sausage I use.
I only give mine an additional 7 minutes in the oven because I prefer a firmer, slightly overcooked sausage. You can skip that completely.
Can I use another breakfast sausage?
Yes. The flavor will obviously vary depending on what you choose. If you use a raw sausage instead of a fully cooked product, make sure you cook it appropriately and to a safe internal temperature.
Do I need to peel the apples?
No. I don’t consider peeling them necessary. If you prefer apples without the skin, though, go ahead.
What kind of apples work best?
I’d use an apple that holds its shape reasonably well when baked. Since there’s already quite a bit of sweetness coming from the brown sugar and canned yams, an apple with a little tartness can also provide a nice balance.
How much brown sugar should I use?
Start with approximately ½ cup total, divided between the two layers.
There isn’t a magic number here because my family never measured it. If you know you prefer things less sweet, use less. If you want Grandma’s Favorite extra sweet and caramelized, add a little more.
Why does it need to be stirred halfway through?
The reserved yam liquid and melted brown sugar naturally collect toward the bottom of the pot. Stirring halfway through redistributes everything and helps coat the sausage, apples, and yams.
Is Grandma’s Favorite a breakfast recipe?
Not in my house!
Yes, it contains breakfast sausage, and you could absolutely serve it for breakfast or brunch. But growing up, this was a cold-weather dinner. That’s still how I think of it today.
Can I make this ahead?
Yes. You can prepare the ingredients ahead of time, but I’d wait to add the reserved yam liquid until you’re ready to bake. Once baked, leftovers can be refrigerated and reheated until hot.
Can I double the recipe?
Absolutely, and apparently that’s the way my family preferred to make it when I was a kid.
Just make sure you’re using a large enough oven-safe pot. A larger and deeper batch may need additional cooking time.
