There is absolutely nothing elegant about a sausage roll. However, it is pure comfort picnic food, has stood the test of time and needs make no apologies for the fact that it is exactly what it says in the title – sausage, rolled. But it is a beloved and essential part of our family picnics, particularly those spent on a blowy beach or windy hillside. And there have been many of those over the years. We have changed and grown up, this recipe hasn’t and I hope you will agree that it is perfection the way it is. Make them small, medium or large and enjoy either on their own or with a good dollop of a fruity chutney. They freeze brilliantly either before or after cooking and I guarantee that you will be making these again. Just make sure you use an excellent quality free range sausagemeat and a pure butter puff pastry. These sausage rolls will be only as good as your ingredients. The gold jus-rol packet is the best,
Makes six – ten depending on how large you cut them
450g free range pork sausagemeat
1 egg (free range)
1 tablespoon tomato puree
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
Good handful of fresh white breadcrumbs (quantity can be quite approximate)
Salt & pepper
Sesame seeds (optional
1 pack of jus roll all butter puff pastry
Pre-heat oven to 180c
Take the sausagemeat and put into a bowl. Beat the egg and pour in most of it, leaving a tablespoon to brush over the finished rolls later. Add the breadcrumbs, tomato puree and worcestershire sauce and a good grinding of seasalt and black pepper. Squish it all together until well mixed. Your hands are the best tool for this.
Cut your pastry in half. You will only need half for this quantity. Keep the rest as you will be making more very soon. Roll out (do not turn the pastry over and use minimum of flour) into a long strip about 4 inches wide and 18 inches long. The pastry should be thin. Put the sausagemeat mix down the centre. You will think there is too much sausagemeat to pastry but this is important. Put as high a roll of sausage as you dare. Roll the pastry over using the side of your hand to help it all the way over to meet and seal with a little water. Use a fork to squish the edges together.
Brush the whole roll with beaten egg and then cut into however many sausage rolls you want. Put two diagonal slits in the top of each one and if you like sprinkle each with some sesame seeds.
Put onto a baking sheet and into the oven for fifteen minutes for small rolls up to thirty minutes if they are very long. Check after fifteen minutes and see how golden they are going. Once they are dark golden and piping hot in the centre remove from the oven and use a palette knife to put them onto a wire rack to cool.
Store in an airtight tin, not a plastic container.
Eat on a windy British beach in the driving rain huddled under a rock.
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