Toad in the Hole

Downstairs Toad in the Hole*

3 pork sausages, cut in half
1 medium onion, quartered and sliced
1-1 1/2  tbsp olive oil
2 cups white flour
4 large eggs
1 cup milk
2-3 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp mustard powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Sautee the onion slices in olive oil until just beginning to brown. Slice each of the three pork sausages in half and stand them upright, one in each of six greased muffin cups. Sprinkle each cup with an even amount of sauteed onion and bake in the oven for about 10 - 15 minutes or until sausage is cooked through. While the sausages are baking, whisk together the flour, eggs, and milk until smooth. Add the Worcestershire sauce, mustard powder, and salt and pepper. Remove the sausage and onions from the oven and carefully pour the batter over them until each muffin cup is a bit more than 3/4 full, with the sausage standing up in the middle (the "toad" poking its head out of the hole).

Return the muffin pan to the oven and bake for 20-30 minutes (depending on your oven, the size of your muffin cups, etc.) until the muffins have puffed up mightily and browned a bit on the edges. If you poke with a toothpick, they might deflate, but you can check by poking with a toothpick if they are cooked through.

The most dramatic part is taking them out of the oven, so if you are making them for a loved one or a group, make sure they're around to see! Once they're served--brought to a table or placed on a plate, they will deflate a little bit. Serve with gravy or mustard. Enjoy!

I adapted this recipe from Emily Ansara Baines' Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook (2012). This recipe appeared in a section about sustenance for the household staff--and it truly is a hearty breakfast for worker bees. I couldn't find a recipe that made this dish look appetizing, so I decided to use this recipe, but cook the dish in individual muffin cups so it truly appeared as a toad peeking out of a hole! I also left out the garlic powder (because I don't have any!)