INGREDIENTS

Ruff puff pastry
1 kg plain (all-purpose) flour
20 g salt
300 g unsalted butter
400 g cold water
500 g unsalted butter, extra, chilled and chopped

Pastry topping
1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon of milk
150 g almond meal, for topping
50 g flaked almonds, for topping
10 g chermoula, for topping

Filling
600 g chicken mince
60 g almond meal
75 g parmesan cheese, grated
150 g onions, finely chopped
10 g chermoula spice
20 g salt
6 g pepper
90 g macadamia oil
90 g couscous
60 g mushrooms, diced
60 g raisins
2 g cinnamon
3 g ginger, grated

Put all of the filling ingredients into a bowl and mix together until combined, but don’t overmix.

TO MAKE

Ruff puff pastry
Put the flour, salt and 300 g butter into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook. Start to mix on low speed and slowly add the cold water. Mix until a dough forms, then add the extra chilled chopped butter.

Knead with the dough hook for one minute. Remove from the bowl and form into a block about 5 cm high. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to chill. Remove the dough from the fridge, unwrap and place on a clean work surface that is at least 1 m long, with the long edge closest to you. Take a rolling pin and hit the dough evenly along its length until it is about 2 cm thick all over: this will extend the rectangle to approximately 25 x 35 cm.

Roll out the dough using a rolling pin until the dough is 1 cm thick all over, ensuring you retain the long rectangular shape by tapping in any wandering edges. It will be about 1 m long now. Note: when rolling the dough, always roll along the length of the dough.

Fold over the right-hand third of the dough towards the left side so the edge lands at the two-thirds mark. Take the time now to even up any wandering edges so you always retain a neat rectangle, with all edges lined up. Fold the left-hand third of the dough back over the right and even up the edges again. Roll the dough out again to 1 cm thick and fold into thirds as before: this completes a double turn. Put the dough in the refrigerator to chill for one hour. Repeat these two steps, rolling and folding twice for another double turn. Put the dough in the refrigerator to chill again for one hour. Repeat rolling and folding once more (a single turn) and put the dough in the refrigerator again for one hour. The dough is now ready to be used. At this point you can wrap the dough in plastic wrap and freeze it for later use.

Sausage rolls
Remove the ruff puff pastry from the fridge. Roll out the pastry on a floured work surface, into a large rectangle 2–3 mm thick.

Preheat the oven to 175°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper and set aside.

Put the filling in a disposable piping bag and cut off the tip, 4 cm in diameter. Pipe the filling lengthways onto the ruff puff pastry along the top edge.

Brush the pastry with egg wash just beside the piped mixture. Roll the top of the pastry towards you over the piped mixture so the very top of the pastry sheet joins with the eggwashed area of the pastry. Press down to seal.

Using a large knife, cut along the edge of the sausage roll. Repeat the process until all the pastry is used. Cut the logs into 12 cm sausage rolls. Brush the sausage rolls with egg wash.

Combine the almond meal, flaked almonds and chermoula for the topping and dip each sausage roll upside down into the topping mixture. Place the sausage rolls topping side up on the prepared baking tray. Bake for 30–40 minutes until golden brown.

Makes ten.

Recipe and images from The Zumbo Files by Adriano Zumbo. Published by Murdoch Books.