Trim off the off centimeter or so of the radicchio to expose the leaves, then working very gingerly starting from the center, nudge the leaves apart so they begin to spread apart. Continue until the leaves have opened up quite a bit into the semblance of the petals of a burgundy-colored rose. (Don't rush the operation or you may rip the delicate leaves.)

Squeeze the sausage meat of its casings and, as you go, slip bits here and there among the leaves, pushing the meat down well into the radicchio so it stays in place. Continue until all of the leaves have at least a bit of sausage and the sausage has been used up. Lay the radicchio on a cookie sheet or baking pan. You should wind up with something like this:

Rosa di radicchio (prep)

Drizzle the radicchio 'rose' with olive oil and season well. Place it in a moderate oven (180C/350F) for about 30-40 minutes, until the sausage is cooked through and has caramelized, and the tips of the radicchio leaves have crisped and nicely browned as well. (If you have a convection function, use it.)

Serve on a platter, if you like garnished with some raw radicchio leaves for color. If you like, you can deglaze the pan with red wine and drizzle the resulting sughetto over the radicchio.