Sweet Tomato and Sausage Bake

Circle B Kitchen

Recipe excerpted from Jamie Oliver

Ingredients

• 4 1/4 pounds lovely ripe tomatoes, mixed colors if you can find them
• 2 sprigs each fresh thyme, rosemary and bay
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 12 good-quality coarse Italian sausages
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Balsamic vinegar
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Get yourself an appropriately sized roasting pan, large enough to take the tomatoes in 1 snug-fitting layer. Put in all your tomatoes, the herb sprigs, oregano, garlic and sausages. Drizzle well with extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Toss together, then make sure the sausages are on top and pop the pan into the oven for half an hour. After this time, give it a shake and turn the sausages over. Put back into the oven for 15 to 30 minutes, depending on how golden and sticky you like your sausages.

Once cooked, you'll have an intense, tomatoey sauce. If it's a little too thin, lift out the sausages and place the pan on the stove to cook it down to the consistency you like - I tend to make mine quite thick - then put the sausages back in. Check the seasoning and serve either with a good-quality loaf of bread warmed through in a low oven for 10 minutes (great for mopping up the sauce!).