turkey, cranberry & sage sausage rolls

Over the weekend we had the pleasure of bringing a little christmas cheer into our home.

We listened to carols.

Put up our tree.

Strung beautiful, twinkling, white christmas lights.

And adorned the place with a collection of our favourite christmas decorations and ornaments.

Miss G. loved it.

Its was so special to watch her excitedly string decorations around the christmas tree for the very first time.

She did, however, manage to smash a few.

Nothing too important.

Just the ‘baby’s first christmas 2012’ bauble.

***insert sarcasm here***

Grrrrr!

My eye is still twitching.

Anywho, amongst the shards of broken christmas decorations, I made the executive decision to perch the tree, far out of reach of small clumsy hands, on top of the dining room table until Christmas day.

I love spending December revelling in all things festive, especially the food and I love to cook, bake, make, roll, baste, boil and caramelise my way through the silly season so with Grace tucked up into bed, I poured a glass of wine, pulled out my notepad and started planning my christmas cooking.

This year though I am putting a baby led weaning spin on all of my beloved christmas recipes and I’m so excited to share with you a collection of classic christmas recipes that are suitable for the entire family.

I have tweaked and reworked all of the recipes to not only be a joy to prepare, but simple to make, absolutely finger licking delicious and most importantly perfect baby led weaning meals, snacks and festive goodies!

First recipe off the rank are these gorgeous turkey, cranberry and sage sausage rolls.

Moist turkey mince spiked with cranberry, sage, spring onions, dijon mustard and garlic surrounded in a layer of gorgeously puffed golden pastry, these little babies are scrumptious.

I made a few shortcuts to the original recipe (like replacing onions with spring onions, thus eliminating the need to fry) so that they can be whipped up and in the oven in less than 10 minutes.

Once cooled, these little puffed golden parcels of turkey deliciousness make the perfect festive baby led weaning party snack.  They are the perfect shape for little hands to grip easily and the soft texture makes them easy to devour.  Miss G. enjoyed hers today, alongside a little fruit for lunch.

To create this lovely batch of festive turkey, cranberry and sage sausage rolls simply…

Place the turkey mince, spring onion, sage, garlic, dijon mustard and cranberry sauce into a large bowl and mix to combine.

Grab two ready rolled sheets of puff pastry and cut in half.

Divide the mince mixture into four, place onto each rectangle of pastry and shape into a sausage.  Brush the edge with a little beaten egg and roll to close.

Cut each roll into four and place onto an oven tray lined with baking paper.

Use a pair of kitchen scissors to cut three slits into the top of each sausage roll.  Brush with a little egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Pop into a preheated 200 degree celsius oven to bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden.

NOTE: Depending on the type of cranberry sauce you use (the amount of sugar in each sauce differs slightly), you might find the sausage rolls will bleed a little of the sauce and caramelise.  So just keep your eye out and ensure the sauce (if it does leak) doesn’t burn.

Serve as is or with a good dollop of salt reduced tomato sauce.  Enjoy x

turkey, cranberry & sage sausage rolls

adapted from Donna Hay Magazine, Issue 72

INGREDIENTS

5OO grams turkey mince (you can use chicken mince instead, if you prefer)

2 spring onions, finely chopped

2 tablespoons sage, finely chopped

1 heaped teaspoon garlic, minced

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

1/4 cup cranberry sauce

2 sheets puff pastry, thawed

1 egg, lightly beaten

sesame seeds, for sprinkling

METHOD

Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius (350 F).  Place the turkey mince, spring onions, sage, garlic, dijon mustard and cranberry sauce into a large bowl and mix to combine.  Cut the pastry sheets in half.  Divide the turkey mince mixture into four equal portions, roll into sausage shapes and place on each piece of pastry.  Brush the edge of the pastry with a little egg and roll to enclose.  Cut each roll into four and place on an oven tray lined with baking paper.  Use scissors to cut slits in the tops of the rolls, brush with egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden.  Serve as is or with a good dollop of salt reduced tomato relish or sauce.  Enjoy x

You might also like…

 tomato ricotta tart

 mediterranean vegetable tarts

 chicken sesame cakes w’ lime coriander noodles