Sbriciolata di patate e salsiccia (potato and sausage crumble)

Delicious, savoury Italian potato crumble tart with a tasty melting filling and a tasty crusty top.

Unbalanced

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Peel and cube the potatoes, and put them to cook in a pot of boiling water until tender enough for mash. Keek an eye on them and don’t over cook them, as they will absorb too much water.

Step 2

While the potatoes cook, heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onions ( with salt and black pepper to taste) at medium low heat until soft (about 5 minutes). Add the sausage bits and fennel seeds and fry until sausage is fully cooked (about 5 minutes). Once cooked, drain the fat and put the cooked mix to the side .

Step 3

While the sausage cooks, preheat oven to 200C and line the base of a metal tart or cake pan with parchment paper

Step 4

When potatoes are ready, drain them well and mash them (don’t add any liquid). Put the mashed potatoes in a bowl and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Add the egg and half the Parmesan cheese and mix well with a fork.

Step 5

Add the corn starch to the bowl and mix with the mash with a fork as much as possible, then go in with your hands. You should end up with a slightly sticky potato based dough, similar to the one used for gnocchi, but slightly drier.

Step 6

Slightly wet your hands and on the lined tart pan (or cake pan) make a base with part of the potato dough, about 5mm in thickness. Then add the sausage mix on top, leaving about 1cm around the edge with no filling. Add the mozzarella on top of the sausage.

Step 7

Slightly wet your hands and pick little bits of the remaining dough to cover the exterior ring that has no filing, then continue inwards until all the filling is covered. Sprinkle the top with the remaining Parmesan and the breadcrumbs, put the little cubes of butter on top to help crisp the crust (you can spray oil instead, if you don’t want to use butter).

Step 8

Grind some black pepper on top, and bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 200C, then under the grill at full whack until golden (for about 3 minutes).

Step 9

Take out of the oven and let it rest for 4-5 minutes before unmolding. Peel off the parchment paper, slice and serve. Enjoy!