Sausage Rolls

So two comfort food recipes in a row may seem a bit extreme, but we've both been in need of it at the moment!

Kitty's been working herself silly harvesting on her farm and I've been at death's door for the past week so homely yumminess was definitely in order (especially in this weather)!

In saying that, this recipe is 100% healthier than any sausage roll you can buy from supermarkets (each only uses a third of a sausage) and soooooo much better value for money.

This is my Mum's recipe (creds to Jennie B), and is traditionally something she'll give us on Christmas Day around lunchtime to keep us going until the big dinner much later. It's great for her as she can make them well in advance of the rest of the Christmas preparation and then get someone to bung them in the oven when needed.

I would advise serving with a side salad (coleslaw recipe to come #watchthisspace), and/or baked beans. No further carbs are needed because of the pastry and the sausage obviously provides some decent protein (although more can be added if needed through the baked beans).

The actual technique of making these is very easy, but if you choose to make the maximum amount it may take a while. In this way, I would suggest making these when you have an hour free, and then freeze a lot of them to eat another time. To freeze, cook until they are nearly ready and then put them in the freezer, this means they can be browned and crispy (rather than soggy) when you choose reheat them in the oven. Equally, if you don't eat all of the ones you cook fully, just put them in the fridge and microwave them when needed.

As I'm at home, I used my Mum's homemade chutney, but plan on using Sainsbury's plum chutney (£1.30 for 300g) when back at uni as a decent alternative. However, any fruit-based chutney is fine (or even just plain if you've already got some in the cupboard).

A jar of yumminess

Ingredients (makes 12 or 24)

200g puff pastry

12/24 large tsp chutney

1 egg (if not a tbsp or two of milk works fine)

8 sausages

A small quantity of flour (any type apart from self-raising)

Recipe

• First off set up all your ingredients, if you're making 12 sausage rolls divide the pastry into 4 and for 24 make it into 8 (24 is best for value and for general pastryness)

In case you can't count..

• Whisk the egg in a mug and cut all the sausages into three lengthwise with scissors and set aside.
• With raw meat (and especially for this recipe), I would suggest running a large bowl of soapy washing up water before starting, so you can wash your hands after touching it and moving onto the next activity and so you can throw in the contaminated utensils straight away.
• Flour your surface and the rolling pin before rolling out the pastry, aim for a regular rectangle shape with proportions of about 35cm by 15cm (3 sausages should be able to fit easily along the longest side).
• Place the pastry landscape on your surface and line up the sausages comfortably along the side furthest from you (try not to let them touch).
• Add a decent tsp of the chutney slightly in front (but still touching) the middle of the sausage. It's important the chutney is central to minimise leakage (no-one likes a leaky sausage roll).
• Brush a line of your egg/milk along the edge closest to you and then start to roll the pastry.

An excellent layout

• Start the sausage side and carefully manipulate the pastry towards you, n.b. make sure the sausage and chutney are in the same 'roll' for optimum taste.
• Once rolled, divide pastry into three by making diagonal cuts with a knife between the sausages. If you feel like it, neaten off the ends with a similar slicing movements.
• Before placing on the oven tray add 3-4 diagonal slits on top of each individual roll and lightly brush some more of the milk/egg mixture across the top of them.
• Repeat for the rest of the pastry until you are ready to cook them (only put a maximum of 12 on each oven tray each time).

A non-bakers dozen

• Heat the oven to 200 degrees and wack in your sausage beauties, they should only take between 10 and 12 minutes to cook but it depends on your oven so keep checking them.
• Take them out when nicely browned across the tops and leave to cool for a bit before eating them as the chutney will be VERY hot.
• Serve warm and yumminess awaits you!

Jennie B herself

Complimentary tune: Sam Smith - Lay Me Down little bit in love with this song and this man's voice.

Tip of the day: The Great British Bake Off has started! An excellent way to keep you going through a long hard week is to watch this on a Wednesday! #Normanforthewin

---C

Easy Vegetable Risotto

I love cooking with vegetables, in fact it's pretty much all I do at uni. It's cheap, healthy, easy, hygienic and there's so much variety and so many things you can do! That's not to say I'm a vegetarian, I just find it saves me money. Occasionally for a treat, I'll get myself some British bacon, Scottish salmon (I'm careful where any meat comes from) or some free-range chicken.

Rave about vegetables over, let's get down to risotto. This is something I make if I have lots of veg to use up, or just if I fancy an easy meal, plus it's just yummy. The easy thing about risottos (this sort anyway) is that they're so approximate, so this might seem a bit vague, but do what you like with it!

Ingredients (serves 1)

• 1/2 an onion
• 1 small sweet potato or 1/2 a large one
• 2 or 3 mushrooms
• 1/2 a pepper (I prefer red)
• 3 cherry tomatoes or 1 normal one cut into quarters
• 1/2 a stock cube, chicken or vegetable, your choice
• 1 courgette, 1 carrot, 1 stick of celery, 1 beetroot, a handful of peas, a floret of broccoli - whatever you have! 
• A knob of butter or a dash of olive oil
• A couple of handfuls of risotto rice - remember that it expands!
• Seasoning, including any herbs you have - basil, parsley and mixed herbs work well

Recipe

• First step is to cut up all your vegetables and prepare your stock so that it's all ready to put in in stages while the risotto is cooking. Make about half a pint of stock with your half stock cube and boiling water.
• Melt the butter or heat the olive oil in a (preferably non-stick) saucepan over a medium-high heat, and add the onion, pepper, risotto rice, sweet potato and any other hard vegetables you have - so, carrot, parsnip, uncooked beetroot, celeriac etc. Fry them for a couple of minutes - stirring continuously so it doesn't burn.
• Add a portion of the stock - enough to cover the rice with a centimetre or so on top (not necessarily the vegetables). It will spit and hiss a bit, so mind out! Once you've added the first lot of stock, you want to keep an eye on the time. You'll probably need to cook the rice for about 20 minutes, but test it along the way.
• Keep stirring and when the liquid is all absorbed add more. 
• After about 10 minutes, add the mushrooms, tomatoes, beetroot (if it's packeted cooked beetroot), celery and any softer vegetables - such as broccoli and courgette.
• Continue to add the stock in stages, and keep stirring! If it looks like it's burning - turn the heat down.
• You can add a splash of white wine (if you happen to have some lying around...)
• After a further 5 minutes, add peas and spinach if you want to. At this point season with salt, pepper and herbs. 
• Test it about now to see how it's doing. It shouldn't be smushy, but should be tender and need biting. 'Al dente' is the correct way. Make sure it's not underdone though! Also adjust seasoning if it needs it.
• Now you're done! It's ready to eat straight away - enjoy!

If you have pesto lying around - I so often do - and it needs eating up (you should use it within 3 weeks of opening), whack a spoonful of that in. If you're feeling really adventurous add some tomato purée, or both!

I also sometimes add cheese too to give some more protein to the meal. I often snack on nuts, so I have quite a lot of protein during the day anyway. 

This meal is nutritious and cheap. It's definitely worth a go!

Complimentary tune of the day: Milky Chance - Stolen Dance

Tip of the day: Make your own lunches. What I do is buy sandwich rolls from the supermarket - wholegrain ones are so cheap - and split them up and freeze them. Bung one in the microwave and you can have a sandwich done in 3 minutes - a lifesaver if you're always rushing like me! If you have more time, a couscous or quinoa salad is a healthier option. 

---K