Braided Italian Sausage Rolls
Servings 6 rolls
Ingredients
Caramelized onions
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion peeled, thinly sliced
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh thyme
Remaining ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 12 ounces bulk Italian sausage
- ¾ cup grated fontina cheese
- egg wash (1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water)
- 1 tablespoon raw sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Caramelize onions. Heat oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add sliced onion and saute until softened, about 7-8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, season the onions with salt, and continue to cook until caramelized, about 30 minutes. Add balsamic vinegar, stirring to combine. Remove from heat and cool.
- In the same pan, heat another tablespoon of oil. Add the mushrooms and saute until softened, about 3-4 minutes. Season with salt and thyme and continue to saute until all the moisture has evaporated, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and cool.
- Lightly dust a clean work counter with flour. Roll out the puff pastry into a 10x12-inch rectangle. Cut the rectangle into 6 rectangles, about 5x4 inches. Place 1 ½ tablespoons of mushrooms in the center of each, followed by 1 tablespoon of caramelized onions and 2 tablespoons of fontina.
- Shape 2 ounces of sausage into a small log that will fit on top of the fillings. Place on top of the fontina cheese.
- Use a sharp knife to cut the pastry on both sides of the filling into ½ inch strips on a diagonal. Gently pull on the top and bottom of the pastry to fold over the sausage filling.
- Take one strip and gently pull it across the filling towards the center. Take a strip from the other side and pull it towards the center to cross over the first strip. Repeat to create a crisscross pattern.
- Brush the sausage rolls with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
You can cook the caramelized onions and mushrooms the day before.
