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Italian sausage casserole with cheesy garlic bread and gremolata

Name: Italian sausage casserole with cheesy garlic bread and gremolata
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Ingredients: olive oil 2 tbsp; diced pancetta 150g; pork sausages 16; onions 2, thinly sliced; red and yellow peppers 3 of each, cut into large slices; garlic 4 cloves, thinly sliced; sweet smoked paprika 2 tbsp; mild chilli powder 2 tsp; tomato purée 2 tbsp; chopped tomatoes 2 x 400g tins; parmesan finely grated to serve, plus the rind for cooking; butter beans 400g tin, drained and rinsed; cannellini beans 400g tin, drained and rinsed; borlotti beans 400g tin, drained and rinsed; tiger loaf or bloomer 1 large; butter 125g, softened; garlic 4 cloves, crushed; flat-leaf parsley a small bunch, finely chopped; grated mozzarella 100g; grated cheddar 100g; flat-leaf parsley a large bunch, finely chopped; garlic 1 clove, crushed; lemon 1, zested and juiced; extra-virgin olive oil 2 tbsp

1 hour 30 minutes
serves 8
Easy

Got guests coming over? Make this satisfying sausage stew ahead, then chuck the cheesy garlic bread in the oven when everyone arrives

By Adam Bush

November 20, 2019 at 3:16 pm

Try this Italian sausage casserole, then check out our vegetarian casserole.

Ingredients

olive oil 2 tbsp
diced pancetta 150g
pork sausages 16
onions 2, thinly sliced
red and yellow peppers 3 of each, cut into large slices
garlic 4 cloves, thinly sliced
sweet smoked paprika 2 tbsp
mild chilli powder 2 tsp
tomato purée 2 tbsp
chopped tomatoes 2 x 400g tins
parmesan finely grated to serve, plus the rind for cooking
butter beans 400g tin, drained and rinsed
cannellini beans 400g tin, drained and rinsed
borlotti beans 400g tin, drained and rinsed

CHEESY GARLIC BREAD

tiger loaf or bloomer 1 large
butter 125g, softened
garlic 4 cloves, crushed
flat-leaf parsley a small bunch, finely chopped
grated mozzarella 100g
grated cheddar 100g

GREMOLATA

flat-leaf parsley a large bunch, finely chopped
garlic 1 clove, crushed
lemon 1, zested and juiced
extra-virgin olive oil 2 tbsp

Method

Step 1

Heat the olive oil in a large casserole over a medium heat. Tip in the pancetta and cook for a few minutes until the fat has rendered and it’s starting to crisp. Scoop out onto a plate. Add the sausages, in batches, and fry in the pancetta fat until really brown all over. Remove to a plate. Once cool enough to handle, cut each sausage into 3-4 pieces.
Step 2

In the same casserole, cook the onions and peppers with a pinch of salt for 5-10 minutes or until softened and the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the spices and tomato purée, and cook for a further minute. Tip in the chopped tomatoes and parmesan rind, fill the tin up with water and pour this in, too. Return the pancetta and sausages, and add the beans, then simmer gently for 45 minutes (this can be made up to 3 days ahead, and then reheated).
Step 3

For the cheesy garlic bread, heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Use a sharp knife to cut slits every 4cm lengthways along the loaf, ¾ of the way down. Turn and carefully repeat widthways, to create squares. Mix together the butter, garlic, parsley and a little seasoning. Use clean hands to work the butter in between all the slits, then sprinkle liberally with the mozzarella and cheddar, pushing some down into the gaps. Wrap up in foil and put into the oven for 10 minutes, then remove the foil and put back in to crisp up for a further 10 minutes.
Step 4

For the gremolata, mix together all of the ingredients in a bowl and season lightly. To serve, let people help themselves to the casserole, tear off some bread, spoon on some gremolata and parmesan.