Picnic Roll

Saturday, May 05, 2012

An ingenious invention for breakfast or brunch. I have been enjoying this roll from Marga since I was in grade school. Sure we'll find a lot of recipes for sausage rolls, a much enjoyed dish in the UK. However with the addition of eggs and cheese, this becomes a complete meal. Hence the name, 'Picnic' Roll.




Searched high and low and found a basic recipe from Jamie Oliver which I added on to. The sausages I used were cooked chicken sausages with spinach and red peppers, which worked very well with the sage and nutmeg.

Made this the first time for our 4 hour drive to Miami. A double batch too! Kept us full till tea time, when we had Cuban coffee and baked plantains on South Beach. Hmm... Hm... Would I have remembered this otherwise? Ha.. Ha..



This recipe needs a bit of preparation, so I made the sausage mix and boiled the eggs the day before, then on the morning of, just needed to assemble and bake.

Today I made it into a log as well, next time around I should try individual portions. That way we don't have to fight for the corners ;)


Ingredients:
1 tbsp butter
1 red onion, peeled and finely sliced
1 tbsp dried sage (or thyme)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
Fresh nutmeg, for grating
6 good-quality pork sausages
6 thick / 12 thin cheddar slices
4 hard boiled eggs, quartered
2 sheets (250g) ready-made puff pastry
1 egg
2 tbsp milk

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the onions.
3. Cook gently for about 20 minutes until soft and golden brown.
4. Add the sage or thyme, cook for a couple of minutes more and then spread out on a plate to cool.

5. With a sharp knife, slit the skins of the sausages and pop the meat out. (i used all natural sausages, so I just blitzed them in the processor)
6. Put the sausage meat in a mixing bowl with the cooled sage and onion mix.
7. To this add the bread crumbs, then scrunch well with your clean hands to mix together.

8. On a floured work surface, roll the pastry out to even it. If using fresh, cut into 2 rectangular sheets.
9. Shape the mixture into sausage shapes with your hands and lay along the centre of each rectangle, covering with a layer of cheddar cheese and hard boiled egg on top.
10. Mix the egg and milk and brush the pastry with the mixture, then fold one side of the pastry over, wrapping the filling inside.
11. Press down with your fingers, twist, or crimp with a fork to seal the opening.
12. For single serves, cut the long rolls into the sizes you want and space them out on a baking tray. (I just baked it as a large roll)
13. Brush the top with the rest of the egg wash.
14. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until puffed, golden and cooked through.


Alternative fillings:
Indian style: Chicken curry, then sprinkle toasted cumin seeds after the egg wash.
Japanese: Teriyaki chicken cuts, with toasted sesame seeds on top.
Chinese: Charsiew pork and/or soy chicken with toasted black sesame seeds on top.
Seafood: Salmon chunks with dill and a bit of mayo to mix.
Vegetarian: Grilled eggplants/peppers, artichoke with balsamic onion marmalade.

Marga makes a tuna version of this too. However old favorites are hard to give up.


Update - May 6, 2012

Did finally make individual portions.. finally.. everyone gets the coveted corners. Yaay!




 







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