The history of sausage rolls goes back centuries. Meat was wrapped in dough as far back as the ancient Romans and Greeks. However, “sausage rolls” per se didn’t come into existence until the 19th century in France (although other countries have claimed to design the sausage rolls first). The first published mention of the sausage roll was in 1875 in “The Times” in England.
Sausage rolls have a variety of recipes, from around the world. You see iterations of this concept in Hong Kong, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, the Commonwealth, Great Britain, Ireland, and the United States. These recipes range from simple to more complicated. Some are yeasted and some require baking powder or soda.
I have added Colatura di Alici which, in my opinion, gives lots of umami. Colature di Alici is a sardine sauce that is delicious by itself, but is very useful for stews, soups, and pasta dishes, to add that 5th taste. Adding this does not add any fish taste. I have also added a brushing of butter which also enriches this dish. These can be served whole as a more main course or sliced as a small appetizer or addition to a meal.
Puff pastry is a flaky light pastry made by alternating and butter or other solid fat such as lard. The butter is put inside the dough (or vice versa), and the combination is repeatedly folded and rolled and folded. As the pastry bakes steam is produced which expands the pastry and makes is soft, flaky and delicate. It is frequently used in filled recipes such as the one we are doing here. There are recipes for home made pufff pastry, however, it is much easier to buy this at your local grocery.
The following is my iteration of a Dutch Sausage Roll, it may not be “classic” but it is darn good :)! When I have served this, there are never any leftovers!
Saucijzenbroodjes (Dutch Sausage Rolls)
Ingredients
Ingredients: Filling
- ½ LB 90/10 ground beef
- ½ LB 90/10 ground pork
- 1 egg, large and beaten
- ¼ Cup Bread Crumps
- 2 Garlic Cloves minced fine or crushed
- 1 tsp Worchestershire Sauce
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- ½ White Onion Chopped fine
- ¼ tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
- ½ tsp Nutmeg, groung
- 1 TBS Parsley, chopped fine
- 2 tsp Honey
- ½ tsp Colature di Alici Optional, but I highly recommend this addition. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IV29N02/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Instructions: Assembly and cooking
- 2 Sheets Puff Pastry
- 2-3 TBS Melted unsalted butter
- 1 Egg Large
- 1 tsp water
- Kosher or Maldron Salt for sprinking Optional
Instructions
Instructions: Filling
- In a large bowl add the beef, pork, egg, breadcrumbs, garlic, Worchestershire sauce, salt, onion, fresh black pepper, nutmeg, parsley, honey and the Colatura di Alici. Mix this with your hands well. Use immediately, or place in the refrigerator.
- Divide the mixture into 4 equal portions. Weight this out.
- Form the 4 portions of the meat mixture into long sausage shapes.
Assembly and Cooking
- Cut the sheets of puff pastry in half.*
- Place the cut puff pastry on a flat floured surface. Brush with the melted butter. Do not use excessive butter, just enough to brush over the surface. This adds to the savoriness of this dish. You can eliminate this if you wish.
- Brush the egg wash over the edges of the puff pastry.
- Place one of the sausage rolls on one side of the puff pastry sheet.**
- Fold over the sheet onto the meat sausage shape and seal well.
- You can use a knife to cut the edges neat and square, then a fork to finally seal the roll.
- On a parchment covered cookie sheet, place the sausage rolls.
- Place the egg and water in a small bowl and whisk well. Use this for the egg wash.
- Use the egg wash and brush the tops of each roll.***
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the sausage rolls ~30-40 minutes until the sausage is fully cooked and the psatry is nicely browned. The interior should be > 150 degrees F.
- Remove from the oven and cool enough to handle, then slice into pieces (see picture), or you can leave them whole and serve them as a main course. Or serve them as half moons, see above.
- They are much better warmed, but can be served at room temperature if fresh.
