Italian Sausage Roasted Together with Grapes

sausage with grapes

If you haven’t tried the combination of Italian sausage with roasted with grapes yet, I’m quite certain that the minute you do this combo it will win you over. The grapes break down in the roasting process, releasing their sweet juice and mingles together with the sausage flavors of spice, fennel, bit of olive oil and thyme.

When grapes are roasted they take on a whole different taste and texture, sweet goodness in every little bite.

sausage and grapes

I like to keep my sausage formed into a ring, it’s held in place by sticking one skewer in on one side until it pokes out on the other side, making sure to go all the way through each layer, this will keep it together as it cooks. I think a ring of sausage, or rope as it’s sometimes called adds to a pretty presentation, but you can certainly make this using links of sausage as well.

Which brings me to another point, make sure you only buy good quality Italian sausage, I get mine from an Italian market that I know and frequent often, it’s spiced perfectly with fennel seed being a very dominant flavor, my favorite. For this recipe you can use either spicy or mild sausage, which ever is your preference.

 

My grapes of choice are the red seedless kind ( you definitely want seedless) but you can also do a combination of both red and green, just carefully pick them off the stems, rinse and dry completely then you’re good to go!broccoli rabe

I love to serve this meal with sautéed broccoli rabe, the bitterness of the rabe with the sweetness of the grapes and the spice of the sausage is a win, win. For something a little more substantial, on a cold winters night a side of creamy polenta or mashed potatoes would be heavenly!

Incredibly easy to make, no chopping required, it’s a one pan wonder with a pretty presentation and the most important thing is, it tastes amazing.

Give it a try!

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5.0 from 2 reviews
Italian Sausage with Grapes
 
Author:
Ingredients
  • 1 lb. Italian sausage, sweet or hot, good quality with fennel spice kept in a ring or rope style
  • red seedless grapes, 2 to 3 cups, stems removed, rinsed, dried and left whole
  • sprigs of thyme
  • olive oil
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Skewer your rope of sausage together using 1 skewer through one end and out the other so it stays held together while cooking.
  3. Heat a 10 or 12 inch oven proof skillet, medium high, drizzled with a tiny bit of olive oil on the bottom of the pan.
  4. Add sausage ring and don't move it until it forms a nice deep golden color, then flip it over carefully and continue cooking for 1 minute.
  5. Remove from heat and sprinkle grapes around, be careful not to crowd them in because as they cook they release their juice and if you have too many it becomes too liquidy and all will not caramelize like it should. I would say a good rule of thumb is to leave some space between the placing of your grapes.
  6. Drizzle with olive oil and scatter some fresh thyme leaves around.
  7. Place the whole pan into the oven, uncovered to finish cooking the sausage, ( keep checking for doneness, it depends on thickness) during the process your grapes will wrinkle and begin to release their juices.

 

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Winter Salad with Roasted Grapes and Farro

roasted grape salad with farro Here’s a hearty winter salad that doesn’t include any pale wimpy tomatoes, it’s filled with delicious and nutty tasting farro, butternut squash, fresh spinach, honey goat cheese, pecans for crunch and my new favorite ingredient, roasted grapes!

roasted grapes Yes you heard me, roasted grapes, have you tried them yet? I have to admit this was the first time for me and I can’t believe what took me so long. My friend Stacey makes them all the time and has always said just how wonderful they are.

roasted grapes Just like when you roast vegetables the flavor gets much more enhanced, same here with the grapes, they take on a different taste and the flavor is elevated. The skin gets softer in the process and the insides are just bursting with sweet juice.

ingredients for roasted grape salad For this recipe I just roasted a whole container of seedless red grapes, a whole medium butternut squash and a whole package of farro, you’re going to have leftovers, but that’s a good thing. I like to freeze my leftover cooked farro for easy access to use in other recipes.

roasted grape salad with farro A simple, bright lemon and olive oil dressing brings all the flavors together nicely.

roasted grape chicken salad Another use for those leftover luscious roasted gems, toss them into a chicken salad like I did. I added spicy arugula, gorgonzola and toasted almonds drizzled with some of that lemon and olive oil dressing. Delish!

roasted grape crostini with ricotta Stacey suggested I try my roasted grapes on a crostini smeared with a little ricotta, and boy was she right. A drizzle of honey, crunchy toasted walnuts and fresh thyme took it over the edge!

roasted grape crostini with ricotta Go get a container of grapes right now and start roasting!

Winter Salad with Roasted Grapes and Farro
 
Ingredients
  • 1 container of seedless red grapes, rinsed and dried completely
  • 1 small or medium butternut squash, peeled, cut and diced small
  • 1 cup of cooked farro, or just make the whole package like I did and freeze leftovers. Cook according to package directions, then cool.
  • a good handful of fresh spinach
  • ½ log of honey goat cheese or regular, crumbled
  • a good handful of whole pecans or any nuts of your choice
  • fresh lemon juice
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 finely grated garlic clove
  • salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 425, for the grapes spread them on a baking sheet drizzled with olive oil and a little sea salt. I wanted my grapes to retain their shape so I only roasted them for about 15 minutes, occasionally shaking the pan just until I saw them start to slightly burst. If you want them to completely burst with the juice oozing out I would place them on parchment and cook them longer. Set aside to cool.
  2. Roast the diced butternut squash, on a separate baking sheet, same temp until golden. Let cool.
  3. Cook farro according to package and cool down.
  4. Assemble your salad on a platter with all the with all the ingredients including the spinach and crumbled goat cheese and nuts.
  5. Spoon the lemon and olive oil dressing all around.
  6. LEMON DRESSING
  7. 1 part fresh squeezed lemon juice to 2 parts olive oil
  8. add 1 grated garlic clove, salt and pepper and whisk

 

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