Savory, Mouthwatering Sweet Tomatoes & Italian Sausage
Incredible over Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes, polenta or a Lemony Arugula Salad.
Say a little prayer that you end up with leftovers! Chop them up and toss them with your favorite pasta and top with a good Parmigiano Reggiano for another epic dinner. The leftovers also freeze well and can be used for a quick weeknight dinner.
We have made this dish so many times and have experimented with different pans. A stainless steel roasting pan and a paella pan, which offers a rustic way to serve this mouth-watering combination of flavors family style. We have pictured the process using both pans. A metal pan works best here and is necessary since the dish begins on the stovetop, which is an essential step in building layers of flavor.
Drizzle oil in the roasting pan and fry the pancetta or bacon, herb sprigs, and oregano until slightly crispy.
Turn off the burners. Push the pancetta and herbs to the side and add the sausages to the pan.
Add the tomatoes and garlic, nestling them in between the sausages. Using tongs, arrange the herbs and pancetta or bacon, atop the sausages and tomatoes, drizzle well with extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and season with salt and pepper. Toss together and pop the pan into the oven for half an hour.
Remove from the oven and turn the sausages over. Put back into the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on how golden and sticky you like your sausages. Once cooked, you’ll have an intense, tomatoey sauce.
If the sauce is a little too thin, lift out the sausages and set aside, place the pan on the stove and reduce the sauce until it is the consistency you like – we like ours quite thick.
Remove from the oven and using tongs remove and discard the herbs.
Check the seasoning and, if serving family-style in a paella pan, return the sausage to the pan and garnish with fresh thyme leaves. If plating, using a bowl spoon in some sauce, top with 2–3 sausages and garnish with fresh thyme leaves. Fantastic served with Creamy Cheesy Polenta or Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes.
If you prefer, you may use larger vine ripened tomatoes (cut the core/plug out before adding to the pan). After about 20 minutes in the oven you should be able to easily pull the skins right off.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Category: Main Course
Method: Bake, Roast
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 4 1/4 pounds lovely ripe cherry tomatoes, mixed colors if you can find them
- A small bunch of fresh thyme (plus more for garnish) and rosemary
- 2–3 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
- 12 very good-quality coarse Italian pork sausages, sweet or spicy
- 4oz. of pancetta or bacon, coarsely chopped
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Balsamic vinegar
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Choose a roasting pan, large enough to accomodate the tomatoes and sausage in 1 snug fitting layer.
- Place the roasting pan over 1-2 (gas) burners straight on the stove top.
- Drizzle oil in the roasting pan and fry the pancetta or bacon, herb sprigs and oregano until slightly crispy.
- Turn off the burners. Push the pancetta and herbs to the side and add the sausages to the pan.
- Add the tomatoes and garlic, nestling them in between the sausages.
- Using tongs arrange the herbs and pancetta or bacon, atop the sausages and tomatoes, drizzle well with extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Toss together and pop the pan into the oven for half an hour.
- Remove from the oven and turn the sausages over. Put back into the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on how golden and sticky you like your sausages. Once cooked, you’ll have an intense, tomatoey sauce.
- If the sauce is a little too thin, lift out the sausages and set aside, place the pan on the stove and reduce the sauce until it is the consistency you like – we like ours quite thick.
- Remove from the oven and using tongs remove and discard the herbs.
- Check the seasoning and if serving family style in a paella pan simply return the sausage to the pan and garnish with fresh thyme leaves. If plating, using a bowl spoon in some sauce, top with 2-3 sausages and garnish with fresh thyme leaves.
Notes
Say a little prayer that you end up with leftovers! Chop them up and toss them with your favorite pasta and top with a good Parmigiano Reggiano for another epic dinner. The leftovers also freeze well and can be used for a quick weeknight dinner.
Adapted From | Jamie Oliver
Nutrition
Serving Size: 6Keywords: sausage, bake, tomatoes
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