Mushroom & harissa rolls

The humble sausage roll. Heavily seasoned ground up unidentifiable meat (that I could never quite trust), encased in pastry. These little snacks vary substantially in quality and I would usually eat them tentatively, often regretting my decision soon after. With these moreish treats I no longer have to pretend to ignore what I’m eating. This is a riff on a lamb version that Mob posted a while back.

Ingredients

2 tbsps neutral oil, I use rapeseed

1 red onion, finely sliced

420g mushrooms, I used 300g chestnut & shiitake 120g

A small handful of walnuts

A small handful of panko breadcrumbs

1 1/2 tbsps Harissa paste

Small bunch of flat leaf parsley, chopped

1/2 tsp cinnamon

120g vegan feta or another soft cheese, crumbled

Salt to taste

1 sheet of ready rolled puff pastry

Sesame seeds for sprinkling

To glaze:1/2 tsp soy sauce and a splash of plant milk, mixed.

Instructions

Fry the sliced red onion in 1 tbsp of rapeseed oil on a medium heat for eight minutes or until caramelised.

Transfer to a large bowl.

Meanwhile, pulse 420g of mixed mushrooms in a food processor for a few seconds, you still want a bit of texture so don’t pulse for too long. If you don’t have a food processor, chop very finely instead.

Add the remaining 1 tbsp rapeseed oil to the pan and when hot, add the chopped mushrooms and fry until the water they release evaporates (roughly 5-10 minutes).

While the mushrooms are cooking, blitz or finely chop the handful of walnuts and add to the bowl of onions.

Add the handful of breadcrumbs, handful of chopped flat leaf parsley, 2 tbsps harissa paste, and 1/2 tsp cinnamon to the bowl and and mix it all together.

Next add 3 tbsp aquafaba and mix again. Finally add 120g of crumbled feta cheese, mixing it in carefully to avoid breaking the cheese up further. Add salt to taste then leave the mixture to cool completely. Once cooled, place in the fridge for half an hour.

Preheat the oven to 200ºc/390ºf/180fan

Unroll the sheet of puff pastry. Lay the cold filling mixture off centre in a strip along the long edge of the pastry. Lifting the edge nearest the mixture, roll the pastry over the mixture tightly, then keep rolling to create a log.

Slice the roll into even pieces. It makes about 8.

Spread the pieces out evenly onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper.

In a small bowl, mix together 1/2 tsp soy sauce and a splash of plant milk. Using a brush, glaze the outer edge of the pastry rolls with this mixture and sprinkle the tops with sesame seeds. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove the rolls from the oven and leave to rest for five minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.

Try not to eat them all at once.