Sausage Rolls

So I feel a bit bad claiming this to be a ‘dairy-free’ or ‘soya free’ suggestion as it doesn’t actually include any substitute ingredients. However, it’s a really easy and tasty lunch/snack that adults and little Piglets will enjoy alike. It’s also the kind of thing that could well have butter in if you were buying it when eating out. Also – it’s the kind of cooking that involves taking other people’s pre-made ingredients and turning them into something of your own. (It’s only a level of authenticity above buying a take-away, re-heating it in a pan and serving it as if you made it from scratch).

Despite me playing it down, people repeatedly say how much they like them when I’m foolish enough to share them. So here is what I do to make them – pay attention now. Or in the words of one of the legends of British home-made cuisine: “Let’s be having you!”:

To make about 40 mini sausage rolls (sounds like a lot but they’ll go quickly):

• Take two packs of pre-rolled puff pastry out of the fridge and allow to warm for 15-20 minutes before attempting to unroll. JusRol and many own-brand pre-rolled pastries are made without butter but do check
• Pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees centigrade
• Boil a kettle, pour out a pack of oven bake stuffing into a big bowl (honestly), add a decent knob of dairy-free butter (I use Vitalite) and stir in the boiling water (about 160ml usually). Leave this to thicken for 10-15 mins
• (Optional, but it helps) Put a couple of (preferably slightly stale/dry) slices of bread in a food processor and wizz up to breadcrumbs
• Stir the stuffing mix, breadcrumbs and about 450g of pork mincemeat together in the big bowl. I use my fingers at this point as it’s hard to mix with a spoon. (This is probably the point where you go and actually get a big bowl because you didn’t believe me the first time and it’s now overflowing onto the kitchen surface)
• Unroll the pastry and cut in half length-ways (so you have two narrow strips of pastry, not two nearly square ones)
• Spread some wholegrain mustard down the middle of the pastry and spoon the pork mix down the middle third (you want enough pastry on either side that you can roll it up but as much filling as you can get away with)
• Brush the pastry on one side of the filling with an egg wash and roll up carefully so that the egg helps the two overlapping bits of pastry stick to each other
• Repeat with the remaining pieces of pastry
• Cut the long sausage rolls into 3-4cm thick chunks and arrange on a baking tray (or silicone sheet on a baking tray if you want to make the washing up easier)
• Wash each mini sausage roll with a light brush of egg wash
• Pop them into the oven for around 25 minutes or until they’re golden and crispy
• Leave to cool and pop any you won’t eat in the next 48 hours in the freezer

Excellent with piccalilli and rocket if you want to appear refined or smothered in ketchup and eaten in your pants if not (eaten wearing just your pants, not eaten out of your pants; that’s just weird!).

Just as an added note; you may find that my recipe leaves you with excess puff pastry and it’s not really worth saving for anything else… My suggestion: spread some dairy-free chocolate spread onto whatever’s left… There are many dairy-free chocolate spreads around. Pip and Nut have started doing some really nice ones but Nature’s Store Hazelnut and Cocoa Spread is my favourite. I was over the moon when I found this stuff (Nutella was probably one of the hardest things to say goodbye to when I cut milk out completely).

Roll up the chocolate spread covered pastry into a sausage and cut into thin 1cm spirals. Lie these on their side a fair distance apart (they expand) and oven for 10 minutes for a tasty sweet snack.

Enjoy!