Toad in the veg patch

Apr 11 2022

This comforting, versatile recipe is great for using up what you already have in the fridge – any combination of veg and any type of sausages will do

Ingredients

125
g carrots, peeled, halved and cut into wedges
1
red onion, cut into 8 wedges
a good glug olive oil
8
sausages
125
g long-stemmed broccoli, tough bottom stalks peeled off, trimmed and split lengthways
16
cherry tomatoes
150
ml whole milk
110
g plain flour
1
tsp English mustard powder
a pinch sea salt flakes
2
eggs, beaten
a sprig rosemary, leaves picked and roughly chopped, plus extra to serve

Step 1
Heat the oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7. First, make the batter. Tip the milk, flour, mustard powder, salt, eggs and 150ml of water into a blender (this won’t work in a food processor) and briefly whizz together until just combined. Stir in the rosemary leaves and set aside.
Step 2
Put the carrots and red onion into a large, shallow roasting tin with the olive oil and some salt and pepper. Swirl the tin around to coat. Spread everything out in a single layer, then nestle in the sausages among the veg. Roast at the top of the oven for 15 minutes.
Step 3
Turn over the vegetables and sausages, add the broccoli and roast for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and scatter over the cherry tomatoes.
Step 4
Give the batter a quick stir, then pour it over the vegetables. Return to the oven for a further 25-30 minutes or until the batter has risen and is deep golden brown.
Step 5
Serve scattered with a few sea salt flakes and some extra sprigs of rosemary. This is also good served with mustard.