Sausage and pear sheet pan dinner is a parent’s dream when it comes to busy weeknights. Simply toss sweet pears, hearty potatoes, and colorful carrots with olive oil and seasoning and top with sausage links. Bake for 30 minutes, and you’ve got dinner ready for your entire family. Don’t forget to add honey for a subtly sweet caramelization on your veggies… it’s the best part.

As moms, we know the weeknight drill: pick up kids, fight traffic on the way home, make a nutritious dinner, help with homework, and get everyone to bed on time. 

Well, we can help with one of those to-dos on your list today — dinner time.

A sheet pan dinner is one of our favorite ways to load up dinner time with produce without spending hours in the kitchen. 

Baked sausage and pear sheet pan dinner is sponsored by USA Pears. 

In this recipe, we combined pears and pork sausage with red onion, carrots, and potatoes for a dish that’s slightly sweet for the littles and hearty enough for your husband and teens. 

That means everyone is happy and you don’t have to work too hard. 

Let’s put your sheet pan dinner in the oven!

Ingredients

Sausage and pear sheet pan dinner is made with easy-to-find, affordable ingredients. All you need are pears, a few veggies, herbs, and sausage, and you’re all set to make this easy weeknight meal that’s balanced, nutritious, and tasty. 

Here’s what you’ll need:

Pears

You’ll need two pears for this recipe. We love to make every recipe as colorful as possible, so we used one red and one green Anjou from USA Pears. The pop of red and green with the carrots and fresh herbs makes this sheet pan dinner appeal to the eyes, even to the kids. Pears add a naturally sweet addition to this savory fall dinner recipe. You just can’t beat a hearty, sweet, and savory dinner combo. 

Veggies

Sheet pan dinners are an easy way to incorporate a variety of veggies. You’ll need fingerling potatoes, baby carrots, and one large red onion. The fingerling potatoes and baby carrots are small enough that you don’t need to cut them. They cook evenly within the thirty-minute bake time. 

The onion will need to be cut into wedges, which only take a few minutes. It’s more like a rough chop. However, if you and your family prefer smaller pieces, feel free to cut your onions smaller. If you can’t find fingerling potatoes in the produce section, cut regular potatoes into one-inch pieces so they still cook within thirty minutes. 

Herbs

Sage and rosemary perfectly complement your savory veggies, sweet pears, and hearty sausages. Sage has peppery, lemony, and minty flavors that hold up well against heavy ingredients like potatoes and sausage. Rosemary works well with sage because it has a similar woody flavor. Rosemary is an herb that doesn’t lose its flavor as it cooks, so it’s ideal for stews and sheet pan meals.

If you’re lucky, rosemary may be growing in your backyard. But if it’s not, you can find fresh herbs in the produce section, near the salad, in your local grocery store.

Honey 

You might be wondering why honey is in this ingredient list, but it elevates this dish, promise. Honey helps bring out the natural flavors in this sheet pan dinner recipe, and it adds extra flavor to savory dishes. It even tenderizes the sausage as it bakes and helps the potatoes, carrots, and onions caramelize. You only need two tablespoons to drizzle over the top to allow the spices and seasoning to stick to the produce and meat. 

Sausage

Every sheet pan has to have a protein to make it a completely balanced meal. Sausages are the quickest, no-prep option because you simply add them right onto the sheet pan. No cutting, trimming, or dicing. Just slap those babies in with the veggies and pears, and it’s ready to go in the oven. Sausage often has spices or herbs inside the casing, adding extra flavor to your sheet pan dinner. 

Feel free to use your favorite kind of sausage links — kielbasa, Italian, or even breakfast sausages.

Now that you have everything you need, let’s start cooking!

How to Make Sausage and Pear Sheet Pan Dinner

Core and cut your pears into thin slices. Place your pear on a cutting board in front of you and lay it on its side. Use a knife to cut the pear just to the right of the core, from the stem to the opposite end. Repeat on all sides so you have four pieces of pears. 

Lay each pear slice with the cut side down and use your knife to cut thin strips. Add the pear pieces to your large mixing bowl. 

Slice the red onion into small wedges. The easiest way to do this is to cut the root and opposite end off and remove the outer layer. Then, cut the onion in half from cut end to cut end. Cut each half into thirds, from end to end, and then cut crosswise in half. Add your onion wedges to the large mixing bowl.

Add the fingerling potatoes, baby carrots, sage, and rosemary to the large mixing bowl. (The potatoes and carrots go right in — no chopping necessary.) 

Use a tablespoon to drizzle the honey and olive oil over the veggies in the large mixing bowl and season generously with salt and pepper. 

Use two large spoons, or your hands, to toss the ingredients until they are coated with spices and herbs. Scoop from the bottom of the bowl and flip the spoons up toward the top and into the middle so everything gets seasoned.

Transfer the produce mixture to the sheet pan and use a spoon to spread out the ingredients so that they cook evenly. 

Place the sausage links evenly throughout the sheet pan, wiggling them into the pear and veggie mixture. 

Bake for thirty minutes, or until the potatoes are crispy and golden and the sausages are cooked through. Now you are ready to serve and enjoy!

How to Select Anjou Pears

Anjou pears don’t change much in color, so you have to go by touch when selecting your pears. Keep in mind pears ripen from the inside first. Check the neck because it’s the skinniest part of the pear and is closest to the core. If you wait for the bottom of the pear to ripen, the inside becomes overripe. Use your fingers to gently press on the neck of the pear. When you feel a slight give, it’s ripe enough for your sheet pan dinner. 

How to Store Your Sheet Pan Dinner

Store your sausage and pear sheet pan dinner in an airtight container for up to four days. After the fourth day, the sausage has a higher chance of developing bacteria and could possibly lead to food poisoning. 

If you eat all of the sausages and only have veggies left over, they can be stored for up to seven days. Add your leftover veggies to other recipes or serve as a quick side.

Why We Love USA Pears

It’s no secret that we love produce. And we love helping you and your family add high-quality fruit and veggies to your family’s meals. USA Pears is just as passionate about educating parents about where and how they grow their pears — so you feel confident about the ingredients you put in the recipes you make for your family. With a variety of sweet and juicy pears that are grown in an optimal climate right in the US, you have your pick of perfect pears all year long.

Easy Sheet Pan Dinner Recipes

• Pineapple Teriyaki Chicken — serve with rice for an Asian-inspired dinner

• Baked Feta with Greek Veggies — gluten-free and nutrient-dense

• Pork Sweet Potato and Apple — juicy, sweet, crunchy, and quick

• Smoky Lime Chicken Fajitas — serve with pico and tortillas for a filling weeknight meal