Toad in the Hole

Huge Bratwurst Package- 14 links!

Toad in the Hole is a traditional British dish. I first had it when I was on a trip to Bath, England. The basics of the  dish are sausages that are baked into Yorkshire Pudding. Amazing! Tonight, I changed it up a little. I had a HUGE box of bratwurst to use that Brad's parents had given us (seriously, what are we going to do with 14 bratwurst?) Therefore, made Toad in the Hole with a German twist- I added a chunky onion sauce and used bratwurst in the pudding! Technically, this could be made low fat by using a different type of sausage. This recipe is a combination of information provided by The Illustrated Quick Cook, Jamie Oliver, and Nigella Lawson. For more information on Toad in the Hole, read the wikipedia site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toad_in_the_hole

Yorkshire Pudding Batter

Sausages and Pudding: To make, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Sift 1 cup of flour into a bowl. Make a well in the center. Then, crack three eggs into the center of the well and add in a 1/4 cup of milk. Stir with a wooden spoon. Slowly whisk 1 cup of milk into the batter. Season with crushed sage leaves, salt, and pepper. Leave the batter in the fridge to stand for half an hour.

Brats into the oven with batter!

Next, place eight bratwurst into the bottom of a roasting pan so that they are not touching. Drizzle some olive oil over the bratwurst and roll them around so they are covered. Cook the bratwurst in the 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, or until they are browned.Removed the dish from the oven when finished, pour the pudding batter over the sausages, and return  it to the oven to back for another 15-20 minutes. Batter should have risen and look golden and puffy!

Toads are out of the oven!

Onion Gravy: Now, I am definitely not a connoisseur of making gravy. In fact, I stink whether it's gravy, soup, chili... anything with a liquid consistency. I'm a genius who is still learning. I used a recipe from another cooking blog and tried my best. It came out fabulous! However, instead of having the consistency of gravy, mine was more like... soupy stewed onions. It still tasted good though! 
http://www.kayotic.nl/blog/toad-in-a-hole-with-onion-gravy

Ingredients used for onion gravy

Overall, Toad in the Hole is like British Pub comfort food. It can be prepared so that it is savory and what Brad would call, "Fat Nasty." It can also be prepared with healthier ingredients (replace the bratwurst for a chicken sausage) and can be left without the onion gravy. The possibilities are endless! 

The finished product- I need a nicer presentation plate.