Place half of the sauerkraut in an ungreased 3-qt. slow cooker. Top with sausage, apples, brown sugar, caraway seeds if desired and pepper. Top with remaining sauerkraut. Pour apple juice over all. Cover and cook on low until apples are tender, 4-5 hours.
Dress up sauerkraut with apple and fennel and serve it with Polish sausage or bratwurst. Top with your favorite mustard or relish. In a large skillet, saute onion in butter for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. In a large bowl, toss apples with lemon juice. Add the apples, sauerkraut, apple juice, caraway and fennel to the onion.
Drain, rinse and squeeze dry (but not bone dry) the sauerkraut. Add it to the bottom of a casserole dish large enough to hold the sausage in one layer. Sprinkle the sauerkraut with salt and pepper and 1 tbsp of So Nourished brown sugar substitute. Top with the sausage and prick the each sausage with a fork in 4-5 places.
Sausage with Apple Sauerkraut. Dress up sauerkraut with apple and fennel and serve it with Polish sausage or bratwurst. Top with your favorite mustard or relish.