If you have never tried a sausage roll before, I recommend trying this recipe. I don’t recall coming across them in the US during my various trips to their wonderful shores. Essential they are what they called: a sausage rolled up in a puff pastry coating. Every bakery selling pies in Australia (and that is most of them) has these little beauties sitting right next to them. They are a fabulous party food: just make them finger sized and you have enough to feed an army of kids for your next children’s birthday. Don’t get me wrong though, they are always a hit with the big kids too!

Pork and Fennel Sausage Rolls

Recipe adapted from Bourke St Bakery

Makes 10 sausage rolls

Ingredients

• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp brown mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 80g sliced pancetta, chopped
• 450g pork meat or mince
• 2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
• Finely grated zest of 1 small orange
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 3 sheets of ready rolled puff pastry
• Dried bread crumbs, to sprinkle

Method

1. If using pork meat, roughly chop pork into chunks then place in the bowl of a food processor and blitz until the meat is of a mince consistency, place in a large bowl.
2. Preheat oven to 200c (400f) and line a cookie tray with baking paper. Toast spices in a dry frypan over medium heat for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Pound the spices in a mortar and pestle until finely ground. Set aside. Return pan to medium heat. Cook onion and pancetta for 5 minutes or until onion softens, stirring. Add spices, then cool.
3. Add onion mixture to a large bowl with pork, crumbs, parsley, zest and 1 egg. Season and mix well, then refrigerate until needed.
4. Cut the pastry sheets in half length ways. Shape pork into 5 sausages, about 3cm (1 1/2 inch) wide and the same length of the pastry sheets. Place 1 sausage on each pastry rectangle, then roll up to enclose. Turn rolls seamside down, brush with egg and sprinkle with the dried breadcrumbs. Cut each sausage roll in half, place on the tray and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and cooked. Serve with tomato chutney or tomato sauce (ketchup).