It’s Bramley apple season and Bord Bia is encouraging people to enjoy this distinctive locally-grown apple in a range of tasty winter-warming meals. Often referred to in Ireland as a “cooking apple”, the Bramley apple’s distinct tart taste and unique fluffy texture makes it the ideal ingredient for many sweet and savoury dishes.
In Ireland Bramley apples are grown in orchards located mostly in the North-East of the country, which produce circa. circa. 8,500 tonnes of Bramley apples each year.
Bramley apples are the ideal starting ingredient for a range of desserts such as tarts, cakes and apple sauce compote. Apple sauce can also be batch-cooked and used in meals right throughout the week including breakfast toppings or as a sauce at dinner time.
Why not impress your loved ones over the Christmas season with this delicious Bramley apple based recipe.
Brunch, snacks, canapés and lunch boxes are covered for the festive season with these gourmet, tangy sausage rolls.
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients:
- 1 large Bramley apple
- 400g sausage meat
- 1 leek, trimmed and finely chopped
- 50g mature Cheddar cheese, grated
- 1 teasp. chopped fresh thyme
- 1 tablesp. wholegrain mustard
- 1 egg
- 500g packet puff pastry, thawed if frozen
- A little plain flour, for dusting
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F), Gas mark 7.
- Trim and dice the leek, core and finely grate the apple and put in a bowl with the sausage meat, leek, Cheddar, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and add the mustard, then mix well. Crack the egg into a small bowl and beat with a pinch of salt.
- Cut the pastry in half and roll out one piece to make a long oblong shape that is 33 x 23cm on a lightly floured surface.
- Form half of the filling into a long log shape and put on the pastry approximately 5mm from the edge. Brush the edges with the beaten egg, then fold the pastry over to enclose the filling and press down the edges to seal, crimping them with your fingers or pressing down with a fork. Repeat with the rest of the ingredients.
- Cut the long sausage rolls into 5cm pieces, trimming down the ends. Brush with the beaten egg and score the tops with a sharp knife, then arrange on non-stick baking parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes until cooked through and lightly golden, swapping the baking sheets halfway through. Arrange on a platter and serve hot or cold.
For more delicious seasonal Bramley apple recipes, visit bordbia.ie and www.bordbia.ie
