Wild Mushroom, Cranberry and Hazelnut Vegetarian Sausage Plait
A delicious vegetarian centrepiece that everyone will enjoy. It’s easy to make this vegan-friendly too, just use a dairy-free puff pastry and brush with vegan mayo rather than egg. If you want to make this meaty, swap the veggie sausages for a good quality pork sausage.
A delicious vegetarian centre-piece that can easily be made vegan with a few tweaks. On Boxing Day, it's delicious when served with our Winter Panzanella salad!
Step 1Put the mushrooms in a small heatproof bowl, cover with boiling water and set aside to soften for 15min, then drain and roughly chop.
Step 2In a large bowl mix together the sausage meat (discarding skins, if necessary), dried cranberries, thyme, hazelnuts, chopped mushrooms and plenty of seasoning. Set aside.
Step 3On a lightly floured surface, roll out pastry to a neat rectangle about 26 x 36cm and transfer to a large sheet of baking parchment. Brush pastry all over with beaten egg. Shape sausage meat into a neat log, about 8cm wide, lengthways down the middle of the pastry. With a sharp knife, cut 2cm-wide slits in the pastry, running from 1cm away from the sausage meat to the edges of the pastry, slanting the slits towards you.
Step 4Starting at the end furthest from you, fold pastry strips, alternating sides, over the sausage meat to give a plait effect. Trim short ends to neaten so pastry is flush with the sausage meat at both ends. Brush pastry all over with beaten egg, then sprinkle mixed seeds on top. Transfer to a large baking tray (still on baking parchment) and chill for 30min.
Step 5Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan) mark 6. Cook plait in oven for 35-40min until pastry is deep golden. Serve warm or at room temperature.
GET AHEAD:
Prepare to end of step 4 up to a day ahead; complete recipe to serve.
Per serving:
Calories: 475
Protein: 15g
Total fat: 24g
Saturates: 8g
Carbs: 45g
Total sugars: 12g
Fibre: 8g
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