Sausage and Bacon Toad in the Hole

We've been craving it for more than a few weeks now . . . but it's not really a summer meal. Those few cold days we had late last week though gave us the perfect excuse to indulge ourselves.

Todd was one very happy camper. He is a meat and potatoes man, through and through, and all of this lighter summer food we've been eating for a couple of months now . . . salads and such . . . just doesn't cut the mustard with him for very long. He's been really longing for a tasty meal that he could really sink his choppers into!



It had been ages since I had made it, and I thought it was long overdue. I could have made the cadillac of Toad in the Hole recipes . . . it's the one that I usually make, but then . . . I found an interestingly different version in one of my many cookery books.



I found this Sausage and Bacon version in a little cookery book I own entitled, *Easy British Cooking* , put out by Ryland, Peters and Small. It's a lovely little compendium of simple, feel good, and comforting favourites.



There's everything in this cookery book from warming soups and satisfying main dishes to sweetly indulgent and scrummy puddings! I actually have several volumes in their Easy series and each one is chock full of lovely recipes. I highly recommend them! They're not that expensive and they are worth every penny spent. You can actually pick this one up on here for less than seven pounds, which is a real bargain.



I have a collection of some over 200 cookery books. Some of them quite expensive . . . but the truth is that these little economical books are cookbooks you will find yourself turning to again and again, and I'm not being paid to say that!!

Anyways back to toad in the hole . . .



This is a delicious version . . . with fat and herby pork sausages, wrapped in scrummy bacon, nestled amongst onions and then baked in a tasty batter pudding! (Note Todd patting his tummy in anticipation in the above photo!) It goes without saying that you want to use a good pork sausage, preferably a butcher's one without a lot of fillers and of course dry cure smoked bacon will give you the nicest flavour without a lot of water.

Need I say more?



*Sausage and Bacon Toad in the Hole*
Serves 4 to 6
Printable Recipe

Toad in the hole . . . cept better, coz there's bacon! Plan ahead as you need to have the milk and eggs at room temperature and the batter needs to sit for half an hour before using.

175g of flour (1 heaping cup)
2 large free range eggs, room temperature
150ml each of milk and water (3/4 cup each), room temperature
800g of good quality pork sausages (I get mine from our local butcher)
(That's about a pound and a half)
8 rashers of streaky bacon (I use dry cured, smoked and rindless)
2 red onions, peeled and cut into wedges *
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and make a well in the centre. Whisk the eggs, water and milk together and pour into the well. Stir with a wooden spoon until you have a smooth batter. Let rest for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 220*C/ 425*F/ gas mark 7. Grease a large roasting tin or 4 to 6 individual pie dishes and place them into the oven.

Wrap the bacon around the sausages. Place in the hot roasting tin or pie dishes and place the wedges of onion around them. Pour the batter over top and then place back into the oven to bake for 30 minutes, WITHOUT opening the door. At the end of that time the batter should be well risen and browned and the sausages and bacon should be cooked.

Serve with mash and onion gravy!

*Note - I used regular onions when I cooked this, as they were all that I had. They worked out fine . . . they just weren't as pretty as the red ones!