Italian sausage with red grape and Parmesan Pangrattato

INGREDIENTS

• 5-6 thin Italian sausages, cut into 1.5cm (just over 1/2″) pieces
• 1 cup baby red seedless grapes
• 1 large brown onion, peeled
• 1/2 bottle dry white wine
• Fresh thyme
• 1/2 cup white breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• Sea salt flakes & freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil

METHOD

1. Pre-heat oven to 180˚C (350˚F)
2. Cut onion into quarters length-ways, then slice each quarter again in half length-ways (basically you end up splitting the onion into 1/8′s lengthways).
3. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, deep saucepan over medium heat. Add the sausage pieces and fry for 5-10 minutes until lightly golden brown.
4. Remove sausage from the pan. Add the onion to the frying pan and cook for 5 minutes until soft, then add the sausages back in along with a good glug of white wine and the leaves from a few sprigs of fresh thyme. Continue to cook the sausage and onion over medium-high heat adding another splash of white wine as you go. Keep tossing everything in the pan until caramelised and golden. Divide contents equally between 4 tapas bowls and add the grapes. Season with salt and black pepper.
5. Return pan to heat and add a final glug of white wine to deglaze and loosen up any good bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Simmer for a minute or so then drizzle liquid over the sausage in the cooking dishes. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes.
6. While sausage is roasting, to make the Pangrattato; using the same frying pan add the breadcrumbs a few more thyme leaves and fry gently, stirring often, over low-medium heat until golden brown. Remove pan from heat, add 3/4 the Parmesan and mix.
7. Remove sausage from oven and sprinkle tops with Pangrattato and then the remaining grated parmesan. Grill under a hot oven until golden brown. Serve warm.