WHAT YOU NEED

Preheat the oven to 140°C (275°F) and begin dicing your apples into 2cm (¾ in) cubes (peel on). Place them on a baking tray and bake for 30 minutes. You’re looking to dehydrate them rather than bake them, so don’t leave them in until they are mushy.

While the apples are baking, peel and cut the onion and carrot into 1cm (½ in) dice, then cut the celery to the same size but keep separate.

Put a large frying pan over medium heat while you peel and finely chop the garlic. When the pan is hot, pour in the olive oil, quickly followed by the onions. Gently sweat the onions off until they become translucent, not caramelised, then add the garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes. Now add the carrots and celery and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Try to avoid any of the mix sticking to the pan or starting to brown. We are trying to soften the ingredients and cook off the excess moisture rather than fry it. Once the carrot and celery have softened but still holding their shape, remove the mixture from the pan and set aside to cool.

Test your apples. When they are about half of their original size but not falling apart they should be perfect. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool down before you assemble the mix.

Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F) and line two baking trays with baking paper. Once all of the cooked ingredients have reached room temperature, combine them in a large bowl with the pork mince, chopped sage, salt, pepper, breadcrumbs and milk. The easiest way to do this is by hand. Fold the ingredients together for about 1 minute. You want to make sure all of the ingredients are evenly distributed, but don’t overwork the mix. if your mixture turns into a paste here, the texture of the final product will be less enjoyable.

in a small bowl, mix the eggs together. This will be used to help the pastry stick together and will also be brushed on top to give the final product a nice colour and shine.

On a floured surface, cut the pastry into 12cm (4¾ in) strips, and arrange them lengthways along the bench. Form the sausage mix into logs, 3cm (1¼ in) in diameter, along the top edge of the pastry and brush the egg along the bottom edge. Roll the pastry towards you to form the roll. You are aiming for 3cm (1¼ in) of pastry overlap, so you may need to adjust the amount of mixture if you have too big an overlap or not enough. Once all of the logs are complete, brush the top of the rolls with the egg, cut into your preferred length and transfer to the prepared baking trays.

Bake the rolls for 25–30 minutes, turning halfway through.

The pastry will be flaky and golden and the sausage mix will be bursting with juicy flavour. The perfect combination.