These cinnamon lamb sausage rolls are a twist on the classic and famous sausage rolls! Flaky and crispy dough is filled with a fragrant delicious lamb spiced mixture that will make your taste buds dance with pleasure!
Like many of the Maltese habits and culture, a lot of food originate from our previous rulers, especially from the UK. Sausage rolls nowadays are a common food for us in Malta, in fact you can literally find one on every corner at your local pastizzerija. Commonly made with pork these sausage rolls are also a staple to every gathering! This year I challenged myself to spice things up a little and apart from changing the meat, I opted to play a bit with the spices. Lately, I have been discovering and focusing what each spices pairs with best. Cinnamon has been a great discovery! Before I have always only used this spice on its own in sweet dishes, now it’s a different story.
Cinnamon is a very versatile spice and pairs well with a lot of other ingredients. With its sweet woody flavour it’s often used in desserts, however I want to help you to use this spice in more savoury dishes! I have been using cinnamon a lot in my meat tomato sauce based recipes. Now, I have discovered that in Morocco they like to use this spice with lamb. Thus, I had to try! I wasn’t disappointed. Lamb has a quite unique robust taste which with the sweet cinnamon taste becomes a richer meat.
Cinnamon Lamb Sausage Rolls Ingredients
The main ingredients of these sausage rolls fillings are lamb and cinnamon. Together these two will create a rich well bodied aroma. For an added touch of sweetness, I recommend to cook a red onion beforehand and add it to the raw meat. I like to add a handful of chopped mint and a squeeze of fresh lemon for some freshness. As a binding agent I add both an egg and breadcrumbs. This will make sure that the filling doesn’t dry up but stays all nice and juicy.
How to make the flaky dough for these pies?
For these hand pies, I opted to go with a flaky pie dough as I adore how crumbly this type of dough gets, and personally I just love picking up the fallen crumbs from the plate. Besides, this dough is so easy to make that it was a no brainer.
To get a successful flaky dough, the secret is to keep everything really cold and to work as fast as you can. We don’t want the butter to melt while we’re forming and shaping the dough. If this happens, we will loose all the flakiness of the dough. Therefore, while making this dough make sure to use your hands as least as possible and to work on a cold surface, such as your kitchen countertop. Another important tip: Please leave the dough rest for at least an hour before working with it! This definitely makes a huge difference on the outcome of your baked goods.
FAQs
Can I prepare these sausage rolls in advance?
Most definitely, you can prepare these rolls beforehand! If you prepare them and cook them, you can store them in the fridge or freeze them. If uncooked, you can store them in the freezer. You can also prepare the dough a day before and store it in the fridge. For a bit of freshness, I like to add a handful of chopped mint and a squeeze of lemon. As a binding agent, I like to use both an egg and breadcrumbs here, so that the filling doesn’t dry up and stays all nice and juicy.
How to store these hand pies?
Uncooked sausage rolls can be stored in the freezer. Whilst, cooked rolls can be stored in the fridge or in the freezer. In the fridge they are best kept in an airtight container for not more than 3 days. Whereas, sausage rolls stored in the freezer can be stored for about 2 months.
Cinnamon Lamb Sausage Rolls
Ingredients
For the puff pastry
- 350 g plain flour
- 230 g cold butter cubed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 75 ml water cold
For the lamb filling
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion finely chopped
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 500 g lamb mince
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- a small handful of chopped mint leaves
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
- 50 g breadcrumbs
- Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- sesame and nigella seeds
For the egg wash
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
Puff pastry
- In a large bowl mix together the flour and salt.
- Add the cubed cold butter and work it into the flour. You can either use a pastry cutter or work with your hands. If you’re using your hands, you have to work fast so as not to melt the butter. Rub in all the butter in the flour until you have a coarse mixture with small pebbles of butter. This process can also be done in a food processor.
- Slowly start adding a tablespoon at a time of cold water, while forming a smooth dough. Your dough might require less or more water.
- Once the dough is ready, wrap into some cling film and store in the fridge for at least an hour or two.
Lamb filling
- In a skillet fry the onion together with the garlic for a few minutes until fragrant. Let cool completely.
- In a bowl, combine all the ingredients. Set aside in the fridge until ready to use.
Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 200°C or 390°F. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Divide the dough into two pieces; work with one piece at a time. On a floured surface, open the dough to a large rectangle about 5mm thickness. Cut lengthwise down the middle.
- Divide the filling into 4. Place the filling down the middle of the cut rectangle shaped dough. Brush the edges with the egg wash. Fold and roll the dough to form a long sausage roll, pinch and close the seam tightly. Place the large roll with the seam facing down, and cut the sausage rolls about 5/6 cm each.
- Place the sausage rolls on the lined baking tray, brush with the egg wash and on top sprinkle a mix of sesame and nigella seeds.
- Bake for about 20 minutes, until they have a nice golden brown colour and the filling is cooked. If making larger sausage rolls, they will take longer to cook. Cool slightly before serving.
If you have any questions, feedback or comments on this recipe, please leave a comment below. Please also rate this recipe by double clicking on the stars below. If you did make this recipe, tag @apronandwhisk and hashtag #apronandwhisk, as I’m curious to see what you create!
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