Make a batter by beating together 2 large eggs and 300ml of full fat milk. Beat in a little salt and 125g of plain flour. Don’t worry about any small lumps. Pull the leaves from 5 sprigs of thyme and stir them into the batter then leave it to rest for 20 minutes. Set the oven at 220C/gas mark 8. Evenly brown 350g of cocktail chipolatas in a little oil or bacon fat. When they are done, add 2 tbsp of marmalade and 100g of fresh or frozen cranberries to the pan and toss the sausages in it to coat them evenly. Pour the fat, together with 3 tbsp of groundnut oil or dripping into a 22cm round metal dish or similar baking tin, add the marmalade-coated sausages and place in the oven to get hot. When the oil and sausages are really hot, add the batter and return to the oven immediately. Bake for 12-15 minutes until the batter is golden and puffed around the edges. Serve immediately. Enough for 2.
The trick
Like its sister recipe the Yorkshire pudding, this one needs really hot fat if it is to achieve any sort of lightness. Let the oil and sausages get as hot as you dare, the oil may shimmer, even smoke a little, before you add the batter in one swoosh. If a thin layer of batter firms up immediately on contact with the hot fat, then the pudding should rise well.
The twist
Pieces of pancetta or smoked bacon are good here, as is black pudding, either instead of or in addition to the sausages. If cranberries are unavailable, try small cubes of sharp apple instead.
