Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole {Paleo, No Added Sugar}

Name: Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole {Paleo, No Added Sugar}
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups cashews (no need to soak); 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons); 1/2 cup water; 1/4 cup olive oil or avocado oil; 2 tsp garlic powder; 1 tsp sea salt; 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast; 1 medium yellow onion (chopped); 1 medium red bell pepper (diced); 8 oz mushrooms (roughly chopped); 3 cloves garlic (minced); 1 package (8oz) Jones Dairy Farm No Sugar Hickory Smoked Bacon; 1 1/2 lbs grass fed ground beef; Sea salt and black pepper; 1/2 tsp paprika; 1/2 tsp onion powder; Sugar-free ketchup (homemade or store bought); Sliced dill pickles; Anything else you’d like on your cheeseburger! Jalapeños; avocado (sliced red onion, etc.)

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Whole 30 Egg Free No Added Sugar

This recipe was sponsored by Jones Dairy Farm and all opinions are my own as usual.

This bacon cheeseburger casserole tastes so much like the real deal that no one would guess there’s actually no cheese in it at all! A creamy, dairy-free cheese sauce is layered with savory ground beef, veggies, and topped with crispy bacon for the ultimate comfort food casserole!

I’ve spent WAY too much time over the past 36+ years pondering my answer to THE most important question. You know – the “last meal” question. What, if you could have anything at all, would you choose for your last meal?

Well, I’ve known the answer for a while and I’m not even going to hint, I’ll just spell it out – BACON CHEESEBURGER. I mean the real deal, with all the fixin’s (strange word, but it works here.)

I’m talking juicy beef piled high with sautéed onions and mushrooms and about twice as much bacon as you’re currently picturing right now. Plus ketchup (yup, I love it), dill pickles (no sweet ones!), a bun (AH!) and – oh yes – lots of cheddar cheese.

All of this with a side of crispy sweet potato fries covered in even more cheese. Because yes – I actually do like sweet potato fries better than regular fries – who would’ve thought?

But, the dreaming has to stop because hopefully I won’t be having any sort of “last meal” anytime soon. And in reality, if I actually went for that meal at any old time, I’d most likely pay for it for days. So, I have other plans. Specifically, this bacon cheeseburger casserole. And by cheeseburger, I mean “cheese” burger.

A few things you need to know about this casserole. First, I served it to my family without saying anything about what it actually was. This was a test, of course. The response from the kids: “WHY did you make something with cheese?!

My response – “it’s not cheese.” Their response “????!!!” But seriously, they couldn’t imagine that there was actually no cheese at all in this cheesy cheeseburger casserole. The secret – I used a cashew-based cheese sauce that’s SUPER easy to throw together in a blender (no soaking the cashews!)

Adam guessed “correctly” that he was eating a bacon cheeseburger casserole. He had 100% no clue that it was actually a “cheese” burger casserole, and when I broke the news to him it didn’t seem to matter – it tasted like cheese, so it was cheese.

Second, I used my favorite paleo, No Sugar Hickory Smoked Bacon in this casserole from Jones Dairy Farm. They make crispy, delicious uncured, sugar-free bacon that’s perfect for so many Whole30 and paleo recipes, along with sugar-free pork sausage (used in my sausage leek & spinach quiche) plus fully-cooked chicken, pork and turkey sausage to throw into quick meals.

Since Jones Dairy Farm has an awesome line of No Antibiotics Ever, Paleo Certified products containing NO sugar or preservatives, they’re perfect for clean eating recipes and quick meals.

In addition to bacon, they also make several sugar-free sausage varieties, Canadian Bacon, and more – definitely check out their website to browse their amazing products and click on the product locator to find out where you can purchase their products near you!

Third, the toppings. Here’s where you can really go with what you’re craving at the moment. In the spirit of tradition, I went with paleo friendly ketchup and sliced dill pickles, but you can do anything you want. Avocado, ranch, hot sauce, paleo BBQ sauce – whatever you feel like.

You can keep it low carb and skip the fries or go wild and bake up a batch of sweet potato fries, butternut squash fries, or traditional baked French fries. Just search “fries” on my blog and you’ll come up with quite a few ideas 🙂

I hope you’re ready for the healthy answer to those bacon cheeseburger cravings! Grab your bacon and a big skillet because it’s time to make this cheeseburger casserole – let’s go!