I’m sorry, I just have no idea what the origins of a name like Toad In The Hole could be. I googled a few possibilites, but the most interested or reputable information I found was a reference to it in Mrs. Beeton’s as a “homely but savoury dish”. But I was a bit worried about some of the meat she called for. So, historically, Toad In The Hole was a basic dish for leftovers: throw in surplus meat (ground up and made into sausages), root veggies, pour in the Yorkshire pudding and Bob’s your uncle. (Actually, Bob really is my uncle.) Today, a pub menu featuring Toad In The Hole will most likely be some scrumptious Cumberland pork sausages and Yorkshire Pud’. Personally, I try to avoid pork whenever I can, so I used chicken sausages here instead. Just as good, if not better. Plus the potatoes and onions add an extra texture to it, making it a One Pot Wonder.
You’ll absolutely love this dish that works just as well for breakfast as it does for dinner. The bread-like consistency of the Yorshire Pudding, the yummy sausages, and the comforting potatoes…Bring the ketchup to the table for an extra treat, or better yet, cook up some Onion Gravy.
Toad & Tattie Bake
Serves 4 plus my 3-year-old nephew
Ingredients:
4 Ready-Cooked Chicken & Apple Sausages (I got mine from Henry’s – careful to check the ingredients for any hints of lactose, please!)
1 medium onion
2 large potatoes
splash of olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 sprigs rosemary
2 large eggs
300ml/1 1/3 cups lactose free milk
2 heaping tablespoons of Colman’s Mustard Powder
Directions:
1) Peel and slice the onion and potatoes fairly thinly. Toss them in the olive oil and roast them in a baking tin at 220 C/400 F for about 30 minutes, or until just cooked.
2) Meanwhile, make the Yorkshire Pudding mix: Sift the flour into a bowl and beat it with the eggs and about a third of the milk. Gradually mix in the rest of the lactose-free milk, and finally, beat in the mustard powder.
3) Remove the roasted onions/potatoes from the oven. Toss the veggies around to ensure even cooking and add the ready-cooked sausages (pictured here sliced, but for presentation, you can use them whole), the garlic and the rosemary. Roast for 10 minutes until the sausages are thoroughly heated.
4) Remove the rosemary, and pour in the batter. Bake for 30-35 minutes until risen and crispy.
Ready to dig in, but distracted by the bus outside, that's my nephew looking out of the window, and a side salad to serve the Toad & Tattie Bake with.
