Earlier this summer, I decided to challenge our very own recipe maven, DIR editor Brandi Koskie. It seemed she could take any decadent food of the moment or classic dish and make it healthy without sacrificing its original deliciousness. Anyone who can produce a healthy tailgate menu void of gut-busters is special, so I asked her to do the same thing with state fair food, and she delivered. First with an ooey-gooey bacon, egg, and cheese stuffed donut under 200 calories, and now this:

Meet the Blue Cornbread Donut Stuffed with Andouille Sausage and Peppers. All the novelty and tastiness of the trending donut sandwich, but with a mere 186 calories per serving. Ours is five times healthier. The Dunkin’ Donuts ham, egg, and donut-for-buns sandwich has nearly twice the calories with 360. Starbucks offers a sausage sandwich too—albeit with traditional buns—but it still clocks in at 500 calories.

And then there’s the “Luther Burger,” more coloquially known as the Krispy Kreme Burger, that you’ve seen peddled at state fairs and on Paula Deen’s discontinued show. It’s a cheeseburger with two glazed donuts for buns and normally contains anywhere from 800 to 1,500 calories thanks to the burger and fried eggs. Our donut sammie has no glaze, but its got the sweetness. Let’s talk about the blue cornbread.

The blue cornbread is vegan and full of free-radical killing antioxidants. And with just a touch of agave nectar and vanilla extract, it’s as sweet and delectable as a good donut. If baking intimidates you, sigh no more; these puppies are a breeze to throw together.

The star of the show is definitely the Applegate turkey/chicken Cajun sausage. The Applegate sausage is organic, natural, leaner and less caloric than red meat, and even does the dishes after dinner. Applegate calls their nitrate-free sausages “the cleaner weiner,” so how can you not love that?

Like most of Brandi’s recipes, the Blue Cornbread Donut is simple, fast, and approachable. Just whip up the batter in a mixing bowl, chop your sausage, peppers, and onions, then fill a donut pan one-third full with batter, sprinkle the ingredients, top with more batter, and bake! No grease or oil to be found in these future brunch staples.

The Blue Cornbread Donut is perfect for a unique addition at brunch, an impressive appetizer for parties and tailgating, or served as a main dish. The ingredients are good for your body and the environment. It’s a taste of the decadent sandwich/donut fare our country has come to love, but you won’t put your health in jeopardy.

Blue Cornbread Donut Stuffed with Andouille Sausage and Peppers
Serves 6