Sausage Rolls

Sausage rolls are a wonderful little snack - perfect for picnics or just nibbling through the day. Crispy, crunchy, buttery puff pastry encases a tasty sausage meat filling.

Heat your oven to 180°C (356°F) for a fan/convection oven or airfryer, 200°C (392°F) conventional, gas 6.

If you are using pre-made sausages, cut open the skins and remove the sausage meat. If making your own (good person, well done!), mix the minced pork with the breadcrumbs and seasoning. Work it until you have a fairly smooth texture. Roll the meat into sausages about 300mm (1 foot) long. You should get at least 3 long sausages. Put them in the fridge and roll out your puff pastry on a floured suface until it is about 300mm (1 foot) wide. Straighten up the edges with a ruler. Place one sausage on the pastry about 2cm (1 inch) up from the bottom, lift up the bottom edge of the pastry and roll it over the sausage. Where the rolled-over pastry meets the main sheet, use a finger to spread a narrow strip of cold water to form a seal. Cut the pastry sheet just above this wet strip, and finish the long sausage roll by rolling it over to the cut edge. Press the cut edge down on to the main sausage roll.

Repeat for your other long sausages. Place them all side by side, and, using a steel ruler and a knife, mark off every 5cm (2 inches). Cut across all 3 long rolls with the ruler. The individual rolls will be flattened when you cut them but just give each one a squeeze to regain the cylindrical shape.

Place all the rolls on a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper, and brush the top and sides of each one with beaten egg. Make two diagonal slashes in the top of each roll, and place the whole lot in the oven for 30-35 minutes.

Sausage rolls are best eaten warm, although it won't kill you if you have them cold.