Juicy pork, balanced with fennel and sweet caramelised apple, wrapped in golden baked buttery puff pastry – trust me, this recipe is guaranteed to take your sausage roll game to the next level.

These little pastry puffs of pleasure are surprisingly easy to assemble and will fill the kitchen with divine aromas. They are suitable for all ages, and are delightful in a picnic or packed lunches, and as a decadent homemade after school snack. They also work marvellously in any party situation, paired with a nice glass of white wine or as a half-time snack with a cold beer when the footy resumes.
Did you know? Wrapping meat in pastry as a delicacy dates back to the Ancient Greeks and Romans. The modern sausage roll, however, is thought to have originated in the kitchens of the nobility in the early days of 19th Century France. They made their way over the channel during the Napoleonic Wars and soon grew in popularity in London, where they were transformed into a cheap street food. They became known, much to the dismay of the French, as a quintessentially British snack. The first mention of them in a newspaper was in The Times back in 1863, and soon spread to the British held colonies and Australians have been enjoying this hearty snack ever since.
Chef Dylan’s tips: 1. Ask your local butcher to keep some sausage mince aside for you if you don’t want to cut the skins off sausages.
2. You can add Calvados, an apple liqueur, instead of apple cider vinegar to be really posh. 3. Take 1 sheet of pastry out of the freezer at a time to help with rolling. You want each sheet soft so it won’t crack, but not at room temperature. Keep the blue film on the back of the pastry to stop it sticking to the bench. 4. You can make the logs then wrap in cling film and freeze them then simply defrost, cut, egg wash, sprinkle and bake when needed. Head to YouTube for a quick tutorial on how to roll them up.
Memory Lane, Tamborine Mountain – December 2022
“So good to see you, bro!” says Kirk wholeheartedly, as he releases me from his bear-like hug. “Wouldn’t miss it for the world” I reply. “Uncle Dylan!” shouts Jude, wearing a smile that could melt the heart of Stalin; with his twig-like arms spread wide, his long legs bound towards me. I kneel down and catch the inbound cuddle. “Can I come work at the factory tomorrow?” he pleads, whispering in my ear. “Not tomorrow, mate” I whisper back, cupping his ear with my hand. “I have to do the markets on the weekends, remember, but you can come on Wednesday after school though.” “Yaaay!” he says gleefully with arms raised, waving wildly like a gibbon, as he runs back to play with the rest of his cousins.
As I stand, Kirk passes me an ice cold beer from the fridge and heads towards the oven. I crack the can and quickly sip the cappuccino-like foam that’s released. “Is that the smell of sausage rolls?” I ask. “Sure is! Pork and fennel” he replies proudly, as he whips a tea towel from his shoulder and opens the oven door, sending a sudden puff of steam upwards and giving him a facial on the way past. He reaches in and spins round to reveal a tray of perfectly cooked morsels of delight, before delicately placing them on the kitchen counter. “You never cease to amaze me bro, they look delicious!” I say, as my mouth starts salivating. “You know how seriously we take our food in this family” he says, eyes sparkling with sincerity “We sure do” says Rosy, as her long fingers cheekily pinch one from the tray before everyone gathers round to get in on the action.
Prep 20 mins, Cook 45 mins, Serves 10
Ingredients
·      80g salted butter
·      3 Granny Smith apples, peeled cored
and diced into 1cm chunks
·      1 tsp cinnamon
·      2 tbs brown sugar
·      2 tbs apple cider vinegar
·      2 tbs fennel seeds, toasted
·      1/4 cup bread crumbs
·      1kg good quality pork sausage,
skins removed
·      1 tbs Dijon mustard
·      2 cloves garlic, crushed
·      1 egg beaten, to brush rolls
·      2 tbs Gaucho*
·      5 sheets of good quality frozen puff pastry
·      Captain Kidd spiced rum BBQ sauce* for dipping.
* Chef Dylan’s Gourmet range
Method
1.      Heat a medium frypan on medium then add butter to melt.
2.      Add apple chunks and cook for 3 mins, stirring.
3.      Add sugar, cinnamon and mix into apple. Turn frypan down to low and cook, stirring until apple is soft and caramelised. After about ~5-6 mins add apple cider vinegar and stir through.
4.      Place into a bowl and chill in the fridge until cold.
5.      Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
6.      In a large bowl pour in the apple mix, sausage mince, Dijon, breadcrumbs, toasted fennel seeds and garlic. Mix thoroughly with your hands to evenly combine.
7.      Divide the mix into 10 roughly even portions by forming into a large log and dividing.
8.      Place one puff pastry sheet on your bench and cut it in half, so you have two rectangles. Take a single portion of the sausage filling and while leaving a 1cm margin, place the filling along one long edge of the puff pastry rectangle, evenly. Brush both long edges with some egg wash, and carefully fold over the pastry sheet with the sausage filling, until the ends overlap by about 1cm. Gently close the two ends together to create a seal. Place the seam side down, and cut this roll into 4 equal parts. Place the
4 sausage rolls on the baking tray,
slightly apart.
9.      Repeat with the remaining puff pastry sheets to make 20 sausage rolls in total.
10.  Using a small sharp knife, make two slits on the top of each sausage roll. Brush the tops generously with egg wash and sprinkle on my Gaucho seasoning evenly.
11.  Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, and then increase the heat to 190°C and bake for approximately 25-30 minutes or until they are golden brown.
12.  Remove from the oven, allow them to cool for a bit, and serve while warm with my Captain Kidd spiced rum BBQ sauce.