Having a Bon Appetit magazine subscription is such a treat for me. I absolutely love getting those magazines every month and carefully flipping through the pages to read about a new trend or a new recipe. That’s where this roasted sausage recipe originated from, Bon Appetit. It looked easy enough for me to recreate and it was a little out of my comfort zone because I never cook with sausage. It’s not that I have something against it, I’ve just never had an interest in making lots of meals with sausage.
Back to the magazine, my excitement for Bon Appetit doesn’t just end there. I LOVE magazines. Period. I’ve tried the apps where you can read magazines on your tablets and I don’t love them. Like at all. There’s just something about being able to turn the pages of an actual magazine that brings so much joy in my heart.
When it comes to recipes in magazines, I love to rabbit-ear pages then at a later date revisit them and tear them out only if I’m serious about cooking the recipe. I place them in a folder to be organized later. When I do cook from the torn out pages of a magazine, I will often write notes and circle things on the page. It makes me feel a bit more accomplished when I do that.
I can’t really explain it but I know it makes me feel giddy inside.
Trying something different: roasted sausage
I’ll admit, this dish has made me more appreciative for sausages and the amount of flavor and versatility they have. Sausages can be so much more than breakfast or throwing them in with some potatoes. This dish really does a great job with bringing out all the flavors.
Fennel is an herb I’m familiar with but usually in the dry form. I rarely cook with fresh fennel but I think I’d like to start experimenting with it more. Have you ever seen fresh fennel? It’s so beautiful. Fennel fronds are absolutely gorgeous and in addition to them being great ingredients, they make lovely garnishes. One friend suggested you can even make a natural dye out of them which I’m sure would result in a rich, beautiful color.
I served these sausages with rice then used the leftover sausages to make a fried rice the next day. So good! TIP: leftover rice makes the best fried rice. Try it!
Roasted sausage with fennel & oranges
Ingredients
- 2 medium fennel bulbs, fronds (tops) reserved, bulbs halved and thinly sliced lengthwise
- 1 small red onion, halved through root end and thinly sliced lengthwise
- 3 sprigs rosemary
- 4 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided (plus more for drizzling)
- Kosher salt & freshly ground pepper
- 6 sweet Italian sausages (about 1½ lb. total)
- 1 navel orange
- 1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
- Flaky sea salt (like Maldon)
Instructions
- Place a rack in highest position in oven; heat to 425°.
- Combine fennel bulbs, onion and rosemary sprigs on a large rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with 3 tablespoons of oil, season generously with kosher salt and pepper then toss to combine. Arrange sausages on top by nestling into vegetables. Prick sausages all over with the tip of a paring knife and drizzle with 1 Tbsp. oil. Roast until sausages are browned on top and cooked though and fennel is tender and deeply browned in spots, 25–30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, chop the reserved fennel fronds; set aside.
- Cut the ends off orange and rest it upright on a cut side. Cut down around the orange to remove peel and white pith, rotating it as you go. Working over a small bowl, hold orange in your hand and cut between membranes to release segments into bowl. Squeeze membranes to extract any remaining juice into bowl; discard membranes. Add vinegar to orange segments and juice and toss to combine; season with kosher salt and pepper.
- Remove baking sheet from oven. Using your hand to block the orange segments from falling on the pan, pour juices from orange over sausage and fennel mixture. Set orange segments aside and let sausages and fennel mixture cool 5 minutes.
- Transfer sausages and fennel mixture to a platter. Crumble rosemary leaves over then scatter orange segments and fennel fronds on top. Season with flaky salt and a bit more pepper; drizzle with oil.
