Ummm.....this post is really about real food....really {Sausage Rolls}

...but it involves puff pastry so I am ok to post it.

So, this is one of those things that you hate to admit like loving the spice girls or being afraid of the dark in a real but illogical way. (...if you are really afraid that something is going to grab or eat your foot while it is dangling off the bed..... why are you in the room?!)

But I digress.

I hate to admit it but I love sausage rolls. 

It's kind of gross and I know it, but I can't help it.

I may not have told you but in my youth I actually worked at a French Pastry Bakery (...that happened to be owned by Scottish people) and not in a cool, "I used to make pastries and desserts and now I have skills" kind of way. More of the, "I used to sell and eat desserts and now I have love handles" kind of way. 

Actually, I didn't eat the desserts. I ate the sausage rolls. Back to my point.

Sausage Rolls.

We are just going to breeze on by the fact that I have no idea what is in my sausage and focus on that delicious flaky golden puffy goodness surrounding delectably sweet maple sausage.

Gahhhhh....... 

Makes me drool a little bit.

Think this is a treat you have to save for that special occasion and purchase fresh in the morning from the bakery at least 15 minutes away? 

No sireee!

You too can have delicious flaky goodness at home!

And it is a thousand times easier than I ever thought it could be.

Sometimes I forget about the modern miracle known as the freezer and the fact that I can purchase certain ingredients for my creations made possible by the concept of "semi-homemade".

Thanks Sandra.

Some things MUST be made from scratch but for this application, frozen is perfectly fine!

I am practical and it makes life great!

{But please don't buy frozen french macarons. don't.}

You sure could make this all gourmet and from scratch by-the-by! 

More power to ya, honey, if you are gourmetizing a sausage roll!

Let us continue.

There really isn't much to it at all.

DISCLAIMER: Ugly picture immediately below. 

If you are pregnant or vegetarian/vegan, avert your eyes now and scroll down about 10 clicks of the down arrow.

Unroll your frozen pastry and cut along folds to make 6 of these long strips.

Make 6 sausage loaves and place in the middle of your pastry. 

{I actually used 2 sausage links as shown below but would not use links next time if possible because a non-link sausage loaf would fill the pastry space much better I think. Maple only came in links at my store so I just tried the links (cuz there no way you gonna make me give up my maple. nuh, uh.). It turned out completely delicious but it just looked kind of funny inside and was a little difficult to eat. It worked but was just not optimal. If you do go the link route, use 3 links to fill the space because there is a lot of poofy pastry!}

 Use egg wash to seal the edges as you fold the top and bottom together and pinch, then fold the sides together and pinch. Like so.

Brush egg wash over the whole roll.

Pop in oven at 400 degrees for 15 minutes and out pops a beautiful golden poofy poof. 

Like so.

 

Really?! 

That's it!?

Yes, my friend. I mean, No, my friend.

WAIT FOR IT TO COOL DOWN!

Or else the sausagey magma will burn your face right off and you will be cursing my name.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

Now enjoy.

Just look at how gorgeous and perfect that golden crust is! Egg wash magic!

Anyway, I am blaming my love of sausage rolls on the Scottish blood in me.

{Shout out to all the Birrells, O'Carrolls and Campbells!}

Hey! Want to know something SUPER cool?! These sausage rolls will freeze well (unbaked)! This makes a great make-ahead meal!

Sausage Rolls

Yields: 6 sausage rolls (1 serving each)

Ingredients:

Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Frozen- 2 sheets (located by the frozen pie stuff)

Maple Sausage (or your favorite flavor)

1 egg, beaten

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Unfold puff pastry and cut along folds to make 6 pieces. Allow your puff pastry to thaw enough to be foldable and not breakable. Form your sausage into 6 mini loaves and place 1in the middle of each pastry strip. 

{I actually used 2 sausage links but would not use links next time if possible because a non-link sausage loaf would fill the pastry space better. Maple only came in links at my store so I just tried links and it turned out completely delicious but it just looked kind of funny inside and was a little difficult to eat. It worked but was just not optimal. If you do go the link route, use 3 links to fill the space because there is a lot of poofy pastry!}

Fold the top and bottom edge over the links and seal with some egg wash (i just used my finger to spread it on). Squeeze the ends together real good. Now seal with egg and pinch the sides together. Brush egg on top of the whole sausage roll. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes. Watch your pastry after about 10 minutes to make sure it doesn't burn. It will be done when it looks puffy and golden. Yes, the sausage is cooked inside (maybe it wouldn't be if you put A TON of sausage in). I wasn't sure if the sausage would be done at the same time as the puff pastry but it was perfect! Remove from sheet with a spatula.

PLEASE allow to cool or else the  juicy sausage will burn your face off. I warned you.

That's it! Now go share it.