English Sausage Rolls

A sweet childhood memory of mine whilst living in England is eating flaky puff pastry, stuffed with savory sausage filling... also known as English Sausage Rolls.  I've been wanting to try and make these for a few months now, so when I saw REFRIGERATED puff pastry at the grocery store a couple of weeks ago, (I've only ever seen frozen and I'm not always patient enough to wait for it to defrost), I knew the time had come to give it a try.

After reading through a few different recipes it was quickly apparent that all I really needed for the filling was some pork sausage, some kind of bread crumbs, whatever spices I like, and a beaten egg to bind it all together.  I'm a huge fan of the combination of parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, (a blend I honestly first tried after listening to the song "Scarborough Fair"), so I decided that would be the basis of my spices.  I won't be changing that... we loved these so much.  Dee literally said that it was the best thing I'd ever made.  I'm still not sure if I should be offended or proud of that. Ha!

These are ridiculously easy and sooooooooooooo yummy.  A crowd pleaser for potlucks or a fun weekend treat.  Eat them alone or dip in your favorite condiment... like my fav- spicy brown mustard.  They are also really yummy cold out of the refrigerator!

*Note:  You can absolutely use the Pepperidge Farm frozen puff pastry for this - I can't always find the refrigerated.  If you use the frozen, you will need one sheet.  Place it on the counter for about 30 minutes so it is defrosted enough to handle without breaking, (put the other one back in a freezer bag in the freezer for next time), then use a rolling pin to seal the cracks and roll it out till it's about 13"x10".

Ingredients:

• 1 sheet puff pastry (I use the Wewalka brand, found in the refrigerated section.)
• 1 egg
• 1lb Pork Sausage (I use Jimmy Dean regular premium sausage.)
• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
• 2 Tbsp parsley
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp rosemary
• 1/2 tsp sage
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• fresh cracked black pepper

• Egg wash:  1 egg whisked together with 1 Tbsp water

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425.  Line a cookie tray with a silicone baking mat, or parchment paper.
2. Open up the puff pastry and cut it in half lengthwise on a cutting board.  
3. In a mixing bowl, whisk the egg till a little foamy.  Add the sausage, panko break crumbs, parsley, thyme, rosemary, sage, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper.  Mix together well with your hands till everything is well combined.
4. Divide the sausage mixture in two and form in to logs down the center of each half of the pastry.
5. Brush some egg wash down the sides and wrap the pastry gently around the sausage, pushing the pastry together to seal.  
6. Flip the long rolls over placing the seam on the bottom and cut each log in half and then each half again in to four or five, giving you 16-20 sausage rolls total, depending on how big you want them.  
7. Cut two small slits in the top of each roll, place the rolls on the prepared cookie tray.  
8. Brush each roll with egg wash.
9. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until they are puffed up and golden brown on top.
10. Let cool slightly and serve. They can be stored in a baggie in the refrigerator and snacked on for a few days. (They don't usually last that long.) They are good cold, or heat for 15-20 seconds in the microwave if desired.