Serves 4
To celebrate the season opener of "Downton Abbey," make a quintessentially British dish. This classic, browned sausages baked in a Yorkshire pudding batter, is named for its appearance: bits of sausages peeking out of the pudding are said to be toads in their holes. The late British cookbook writer Jane Grigson wrote in "Jane Grigson's British Cookery" that the original toad in the hole, made in the 18th century, contained rump steak, lamb's kidneys, and chopped onion. In this version, blend a simple pudding batter and let it rest while you brown sausages in a very hot oven in the baking dish you'll use for the pudding. Stir in a little hand-chopped steak once the sausages have begun to brown. Pour in the batter, garnish with thyme, and bake until golden. The pudding will rise up over the edges of the pan and fall when removed from the oven — like a giant popover. There is another dish called toad in the hole that consists of fried pieces of toast with their center holes removed; eggs are dropped into the center and cooked until crisp. This is a far cry from the traditional British dish, now often served with onion gravy.
1. Have on hand an 8-inch square baking dish.
2. In a blender, combine the milk, eggs, butter, mustard, salt, pepper, and flour. Blend until smooth. Set aside for 20 minutes.
3. Set the oven at 450 degrees.
4. Place the oil in the baking dish. Heat the dish in the oven for 5 minutes. Add the sausages and cook for 15 minutes. Stir in the steak and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes more or until browned. Total baking time at this point is 30 minutes.
5. Gently pour the batter on the sausages and steak pieces. Sprinkle with chopped thyme and lay the remaining 4 thyme sprigs on top.
6. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden. Serve with broiled tomatoes and a salad.
Karoline Boehm Goodnick
More information:
Downton Abbey
Season 4 premiere
On: Channel 2
At: 9 p.m., Sunday