The recipe
Peel, then slice in half, 4 medium shallots. Set a wide, shallow pan over a medium heat, add the shallots, then let them soften and colour to a pale gold.
Place 8 plump, herby chipolata sausages among the shallots and let them colour on all sides. Lift out the sausages and keep them warm.
Pour 600ml of full cream milk into the pan, add 2 bayleaves, 4 cloves, a few sprigs of thyme (lemon thyme if you can get it) and bring almost to the boil. Lower the heat and leave to simmer for 3 minutes then stir in 150g fresh breadcrumbs, salt and coarsely ground black pepper, 1 tbsp of grain mustard and 3 tbsp of chopped parsley. Stirring regularly, let the bread sauce thicken and simmer for few minutes.
Warm a little cranberry sauce in a small pan.
Serve the sausages with the bread sauce and a spoonful of cranberry sauce. Enough for 2.
The trick
Creamy, generously seasoned bread sauce and chipolata sausages are the highlight of my Christmas dinner. But the sauce stands or falls by its seasoning. Soft, sweet onions or shallots, bay leaves, cloves and plenty of salt and pepper are to my mind essential. Be lavish with them.
The watchpoint here is to keep the sauce moving in the pan, if you don’t stir almost continuously it will stick and burn.
The twist
Bacon, streaky and smoked, is a fine addition here, bringing with it even more of the essence of a Christmas feast. Add bits of bacon, cut into stamp-sized pieces, as you are browning the sausages. The more crisply you cook the bacon the better.
