sausage rolls

There is nothing better than something hot in pastry to take the edge of winter chills. I made these over Christmas and we had them as a snack after our Christmas walk. They freeze really well and do taste better than shop bought - even though I cheat and use ready made puff pastry.

block of frozen puff pastry
sausage meat
handful of herbs e.g. sage, parsley, thyme
onion, finely chopped
pepper
some milk
an oven warmed to a mod/high heat - on my currently rubbish cooker it took gas mark 7 to get anywhere

Defrost the puff pastry as per the packet instructions

Chop up your selection of herbs - you can chop them up really finely if you like - I personally like mine a wee bit bigger

Empty your sausagemeat into a bowl - season with the pepper, mix, then add in your herbs and onion and mix again


Rest the sausage meat for about ten minutes

Roll out the pastry into a large rectangle - I make mine so that the length would make 3-4 rolls and the width two sets of rolls - this way you will get 6-8 each time and making the pastry not too big to handle but not so small you aren't making the best use of your time.


Remove your sausagemeat from the bowl and split into balls - 2-3 balls - and then roll a ball into a sausage shape that is the same length as your pastry. Lay on the pastry, take the outside edge of the length side, and fold over the meat. Make sure you leave a bit of overlap with the bottom layer of pastry to press together. Take your pastry brush, dip in teh milk, and run along the length edge and then score the bottom pastry layer to separate it from the rest of the pastry.

Press home the two length edges - I tuck them under then flip the roll and give it a wee press.

Cut your roll into 3 or 4 depending on how big you want your sausage rolls - then take a pair of scissors and snip along the tops to make sure there is an escape for any steam that builds up. I usually have 2-3 snips a roll.


Place on a warm baking tray and pop in the oven for 15-20 minutes - I find your eye is a better judge than timings on when they are ready. They should be golden and sizzling.