Toad in the hole

Today has been really cold, rainy and blustery. I braved the weather to go the gym so feeling fairly saintly but now just want to curl up in front of the fire with some warming winter food. I haven't made toad in the hole for a long time and Andy suggested it. Sausages, gravy and yorkshire pudding - perfect for a wintery dinner. This is my way of doing it - the first time I made it I didn't have an actual recipe to hand so made it up - so it probably isn't the 'right' way to do it but it works for us.

Ingredients

Six good quality sausages
4oz strong plain flour
Pinch of salt
1 large egg
300ml/half a pint of semi skimmed milk

Grill the sausages
Put all of the other ingredients in a bowl and beat until bubbles appear. To see the bubbles pause every so often and watch to see if they rise
When the sausages are done, heat dripping in a roasting tin in the oven. Leave the sausages to cool slightly
When the dripping is piping hot, add the batter and then add the sausages
Cook for about 30-40 minutes or until the pudding has risen and is golden

Serve with any of the following:
Tatties roasted or baked
Green veggies like peas and broccoli
Mashed tatties
Green and red cabbage

Some folks put the sausages uncooked into the batter. I prefer to grill them first because it gives them a good crackling skin all round and also makes sure they are heated all the way through. If you like a lot of pudding around your sausages then the pudding can be cooked but not the sausage all the way through.

I usually use a roasting tin but tonight in Tesco I spotted a metal lasagne dish which I am going to try. It is a bit smaller than a roasting tin which should mean I will get a better 'bottom' to my pudding and high sides so the pudding can rise with some support. So keen to see how it will work out and if my theories will be proved right or not!