Recipe: Chorizo, basil, tomato with garlic infused ciabatta

Ingredients

1 onion                                                                             ½ tsp crushed garlic

½ tsp ground chilli                                                          Butter to fry

500g Chorizo sausage                                                   1 tin of plum tomatoes

Fresh basil                                                                       1 clove of garlic
                              

2 tbsp Mrs Balls Chutney

Salt & pepper (to taste)                                               

1 Ciabatta roll

Method

·         Top tip: This meal is all about the sausage. There’s nothing better then a long, thick, succulent sausage. So it’s important, when at the butchers, to feel the sausage – rub it up and down – to make sure it’s firm and fresh. No one likes a short, wrinkled sausage so having the right sized one is crucial to your mouth enjoyment.

1.      Chop onions finely and sweat them in butter. Everything is better with butter, especially    when sweating.

2.       Add garlic and chilli. For those who enjoy a little more spice and a stronger tingle on the tongue, add more.        

3.       Hold the sauage firmly and cut into 2cm slices. Add to the delishisness in the pot and stir until the Cherizo is golden brown.  The sausage will excrete oil, bringing about a juicyness to the pan. Once all the ingredients are well lubricated, add the Mrs Balls chutney. Nothing tastes better then balls.

4.       Divulge the tin of plum tomatoes into a bowl. Check that they are firm and plump. With your fingers gently massage and squeeze the tomatoes into a chunky oozy paste. Add to the pot and stir.

5.       Lightly simmer. Start on a low heat, slowly increasing the heat bit by bit for 10 minutes until the mixture erupts, paying constant loving attention.

6.       Once 'erupted', bring to a soothing simmer and add salt and pepper to taste. Every good dish needs a bit of seasoning.

7.       Tenderly pluck the basil leaves and tear into medium sized pieces. No one needs a big bush, so a few pluckings of basil is sufficient. Caressingly stir.

8.       On a bread board, cut the ciabiatta into 3cm slices. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and leave until ready. You have to preheat the oven, before you stick in the slices. Once toasted, make sure the slices have a hard edge. Hard is better than a soft so make sure you get to hard. Take a garlic clove and rub it onto the ciabatta slices. Rub over the whole surface and rub well, penetrating as far into the holes as possible.

9.       Serve Cherizo in a bowl, with the ciabiatta slices alongside.

10.   Serve. (Best to be eaten with hands. Scoop Cherizo with the ciabatta and feed your partner. It may get messy but we all like a little bit of messyiness around the mouth.)

Enjoy.