Am I ever excited about this recipe! You can’t get much easier than this…tossing the uncooked ingredients together in the roasting pan and popping it into the oven to create its own delicious sauce and mouthwatering aroma. You can put it together ahead of time and bake later, or bake and reheat….foolproof is not too strong a word for this one. Jimmy’s friend Ali Eastman (and now my friend as well) lives in Brooklyn, NY and told me she would love to entertain at home but doesn’t have much experience in the kitchen…Ali, this is your recipe! (Check out our roast chicken recipe too, another confidence builder!) The Superbowl starts in an hour, and this is ready to go in my refrigerator.
This is from a fabulous cookbook called Perfect One-Dish Dinners by Pam Anderson (not the Bay Watch Pam). She was an editor for Cooks Illustrated and author of numerous award winning books.
2 1/2 lbs. sweet Italian sausage links
3 pints cherry tomatoes
1 medium-large onion, cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks
4 large garlic cloves, sliced
3 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
2 tsp. dried thyme
3 bay leaves
salt and freshly ground pepper
3 cans (about 15 ounces each) white beans, undrained
Adjust oven rack to the lowest position and heat oven to 425 degrees.
Mix sausages (cut in half if large), tomatoes, onion, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, thyme, bay leaves and a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper in a large heavy roasting pan. Set pan in the oven and roast until sausages are brown and tomatoes have reduced to a thick sauce, about 45 minutes. (Longer if refrigerated) Remove from the oven, add in the beans ( I do pour off some of the liquid) and give everything a good stir. Continue to roast until casserole has heated through, about 10 minutes longer. Fish out the bay leaves and serve. Serves 8.
Note – You can turn down the oven to 300 and let it sit quite awhile . Even more delicious a day or two later! Turkey sausages work fine, but will be leaner and not as juicy as pork. In a pinch I used grape tomatoes instead of cherry, and hardly noticed. UPDATE: 2/14 – I think canned beans are evolving..the last couple times I have cooked with them (different varieties and brands) they aren’t fully cooked and soft, but al dente. I made this for dinner tonight and added the beans at the beginning along with the other ingredients instead of for the last ten minutes. Not only simpler, but the beans absorbed the other flavors and were much more delicious!
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
Can’t wait to try this! What are those shredded leaves along side in the photo? Chiffonade of basil?
Yes! More appropriate would have been the thyme used in the recipe, but I didn’t have any. Basil sounded like a good fit with this Italian style dish.
Valentine’s Greetings to the most heartfelt cooks, Hilary and Brittany! I’m so glad you posted this. After hearing rave reviews from the family, I want to make it for friends next Sunday evening – however, one friend is vegan. What do you thinki about doing a second dish without the sausage for her? How would that taste?
One of the reviewers of this book on Amazon.com said she divided the ingredients into two casseroles, one with faux sausages for the vegetarian guests, and both were delicious. Not exactly sure what a “faux’ sausage is….
“Faux” sausage is a meatless sausage. When I was vegan, I used to eat soy sausage, which was not too bad. You can get it at any health food store, or Sprouts or Trader Joe’s usually has it.
As one of the lucky guests to D’s Sunday night dinner, I would like to attest that this cassoulet is fantastic!! Thank you, dearest Diana, for a wonderful evening AND thank you, sweet Hilary, for sharing this tasty, tasty dish!
A keeper! So so easy, just as promised! I used fresh thyme from our garden and the “sauce” was wonderful. I also think the results benefitted from using mild Italian turkey sausage from Seaside in Encinitas. By the way, don’t submerge the sausages for the initial stage, or they won’t become appetizingly browned. Good for a crowd because it makes quite a lot. As for vegans, it could, work but I think a grain or nuts need to be added somewhere in the meal for complete protein.
For a vegetarian version, try using a couple of portabella mushrooms, stems removed — just wash, dry, sprinkle with salt & pepper & drizzle with olive oil & place gill side up atop the tomatoes + all the other ingredients called for, except the sausages, of course, in a separate, small roasting pan or gratin dish. Our guests loved this alternative – we’ve found that most long term vegetarians aren’t looking for meat-like substitutes & don’t even like the taste of meat.
That is just a perfect solution, and sounds like it could be just as delicious as the sausages! Can’t wait to try this- thank you!