When I found myself with 250g of leftover pork mince and a pack of puff pastry in my fridge, I was not lost for ideas on what to cook. Gregg’s sausage rolls were a staple morning snack when I lived up north in Nottingham and I was also fairly partial to a sausage, bean and cheese melt until I noticed their effect on my thighs. Even now I don’t think there is much better than a crumbly, flaky savoury pastry. Preferably in a paper bag with grease marks.
But as I am now an adult who worries about things like cholesterol I try and stay away from sausage rolls and Pret’s divine cheese and bacon croissants. They taste out of this world but if you’re anything like me the guilt is not worth it.
Which is why I convince myself that home made, it’s surely better for you? And that lovely convenient puff pastry you buy in a nice roll, it’s not as bad as you think. And if you throw some fruit into your pastry concoction, well that’s one of your five a day. You’re practically a saint.
And lo, my easy peasy apple sausage rolls were born. Easy to make, good for you (maybe) and almost tastes as good as a sausage, bean and cheese melt.
- 250g pork mince
- 1 pinch dried thyme (or 2 pinches freshly chopped)
- 1 apple (I used cox's), peeled, cored and grated
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 pack jus-rol puff pastry
- Salt and pepper
- Pre-heat the oven as per the pastry directions.
- Start by combining the pork mince, thyme, grated apple and egg in a bowl.
- Mix well - use your hands if you need to .
- Unroll the pastry and cut into thirds.
- Split the pork mixture into thirds and mould into sausages on the pastry thirds. Fold over and press together with a fork.
- Move on to an oiled tray and put in the oven for the time as dictated by the pastry directions, or until golden.
I make them a la Gizzi from This Morning. She adds ketchup or chutney. Yum!
Mmm will definitely be looking out for that recipe! Pret do (or used to, just looked at their menu and it’s not there any more) a ‘posh sausage roll’ that included ketchup inside. It was absolutely gorgeous!
Because there’s apple I can eat these for breakfast right?
Of course! This logic also applies to fruit pie and any cake with jam in.