Roasted Sausages and Grapes

I am usually wary of book titles that declare the contents to be the “best” whatever: gardens in the world, love poems, children’s books, Caribbean resort vacation.  Best seems to me to be a bombastic and unsubstantiated claim, especially when there are still gardens to be cultivated, love poems and children’s books to be written, and vacations to be experienced.  I’m glad, though, that the title didn’t put me off of this delicious cookbook, The 150 Best American Recipes.

This compilation of interesting, delicious dishes is surprisingly simple, often with recipes calling for only a handful of ingredients.  The deceptively basic recipe for roasted sausages and grapes was the first I tried from this book and one that’s become a standby for having friends over.  It has all the advantages of a classic winter comfort food dish with a dash of unexpected flair, and you don’t have to be an ace in the kitchen to succeed.  Here’s the recipe:

Roasted Sausages and Grapes

from 150 Best American Recipes by Fran McCullough and Molly Stevens

1 ½ lbs. hot Italian sausages

1 ½ lbs. sweet Italian sausages

3 T unsalted butter

6-7 c seedless red or green grapes (2 ½ lbs), stemmed

¼ c balsamic vinegar

Your favorite mashed potatoes for serving  (I’ve served it with creamy polenta with lots of parmesan cheese, and that was delicious, too)

serves 6 to 8

Preheat oven to 500°.

In a large saucepan, cover the sausages with water and parboil for 8 minutes to rid them of excess fat.

Melt the butter in a large flameproof roasting pan.  Add the grapes and toss to coat.

Using tongs, transfer the sausages to the roasting pan and push them down into the grapes so they don’t brown too quickly.  Roast, turning the sausages once, for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the grapes are soft and the sausages are browned.  with a slotted spoon, transfer the sausages and grapes to a heated serving platter.

Place the roasting pan on the stove top over medium-high heat.  Add the vinegar, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.  Reduce the vinegar and juices until they are thick and syrupy.  Pour the sauce over the sausages and grapes and serve immediately accompanied by the mashed potatoes.