Simple Sausage

I'd like to say that I found some wonderful,  free-range sausage for this recipe, and if we do come across some in the future, this might be how we use it. But the reality is that we took the easy way out this time, implementing a simple recipe that sounded scrumptious on the radio, and eager to try it during a very busy time of the semester. And we're glad we did!

Using grape wallpaper, because this dish does not photograph well, as evidenced by the effort made on the recipe web site.

According to a recent broadcast of the radio version of America's Test Kitchen, grapes and sausage are practically a staple in Italy. Who knew? The on-air discussion was mainly about why this works so well and what the best options would be for preparing the dish, but the pairing was discussed as one that would be familiar.

And now it is. I followed the directions almost to the letter, quickly browning the sausages before adding the grapes and onions, with some water to steam the sausages until cooked through. As promised, the result was both charry on the outside and moist in the middle.

The deviations were small. First, since I used turkey sausage instead of pork, there was no fat to drain. Also, I used dried oregano instead of fresh and neglected to go out to the yard for late-season mint.

For the finish, I used a couple ounces of Rkatsiteli from -- where else? -- Westport Rivers, leaving most of a bottle for us to share.

The result was as sweet and savory as the radio folks had promised; the only thing I'll change next time is to be sure we have a good bread to serve alongside this.