Early morning fishing trips, weekend drives, or lazy Saturdays in Texas often meant a special trip to the local donut shop to pick up a dozen or so sausage rolls – pillows of slightly sweet dough wrapped around bites of salty, savory, and sometimes spicy, sausage.
Cliff Notes:
Make the yeast dough, let rise; roll out dough to 1/4″ and cut into strips the width of the sausages and long enough to wrap around the sausage 1 1/2 times; brush with egg wash; bake @ 375° for 15-20 minutes.
Make It Your Own:
– Use different kinds of smoked sausages … jalapeno & cheese, andouille, and Italian would all be delicious ….
– Instead of sausage, use ham or roast beef or pulled pork.
– If using a different filling, brush the tops with a compound butter, such as garlic butter or chili butter.
There’s no one right place to go – whether your run into Dales Donuts No. 9 on Camp Bowie in Fort Worth or one of the kolache shops along Highway 35 in West, or any of the millions of other little strip mall donut shops scattered about, you almost can’t go wrong when you have a bag full of Texas Style Sausage Rolls nearby.
Unfortunately, the rest of the country (looking at you Washington State), hasn’t discovered the magic, so, like so many of our other favorite tastes of Texas, the only way we’re able to enjoy the sausage rolls of our memories is by making them ourselves. This dough recipe is slightly modified from The Homesick Texan’s kolache recipe and perfectly captures the soft texture and sweet flavor we crave. If you make a batch on the weekend, you can store the extras (stop laughing … there might be a few leftover after the first day) in a the fridge and heat them for about 30 seconds in the microwave as you’re running out the door in the morning.
Or for a different addition to your appetizer spread, pile them high on a platter and serve them next to a dish of Jalapeno Popper Dip, for the ultimate indulgent party snack.
You really DO need to try these, but don’t settle for just following the recipe … customize them to your tastes – use a flavored sausage (I used jalapeno cheddar), add pieces of cheese, or use leftover roast or ham instead of sausage … let your imagination create your own deliciousness!
Texas Style Sausage Rolls
Texas-Style Sausage Rolls (a.k.a. Kolaches)
Ingredients
- FOR THE DOUGH:
- 1 package Active Dry Yeast (or 2-1/4 tsp)
- 1 cup warm Milk
- 1/4 cup Sugar
- 3 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 3 Eggs (2 for the dough, 1 for the egg wash)
- 1/2 cup melted Butter
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ———————
- FORMING THE ROLLS:
- 5 Smoked Sausage Links (such as Johnsonville)
- Pickled Jalapenos (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon Water
Instructions
- MAKE THE DOUGH:
- In a large bowl (or a stand mixer) combine the yeast, warm milk, sugar and one cup of flour. Cover with plastic wrap, set in a warm place, and let it rise until the mixture has doubled (about 30 minutes).
- In a small bowl, beat together 2 eggs, melted butter, and salt, then mix in to the yeast mixture.
- Add in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing between each addition, until a soft dough forms that pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
- Knead the dough in the mixer for 5 minutes or by hand for about 10 minutes on floured surface until it is smooth and stretchy.
- Place the dough into a greased bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap, set it in a warm place, and let it rise until it has doubled in size (about 1 hour).
- ———————
- FORMING THE ROLLS
- While the dough is rising, quarter the sausage links so they are approximately 3″ long, and 1/2″ wide. Drain jalapeno slices (if using) and cut into smaller pieces.
- After the dough has risen, punch it down roll it out with a rolling pin until it’s about 1/2″ thick. Cut the dough into 18-20 rectangles (a pizza cutter works well for this).
- Place a piece of sausage and a couple of pieces of jalapeno (to taste) on each piece of dough, and roll the dough around the sausage. Place the sausage roll on a greased cookie sheet so the seam is on the bottom.
- Cover the sausage rolls and let rise again for another half-hour.
- Using a fork, mix the remaining egg with 1 Tablespoon of water. Gently brush this egg wash over each sausage roll. (If desired, you can lay a jalapeno slice on the top of the rolls that have jalapenos so you can easily identify them after they are baked.)
- Bake at 375° for 15 – 20 minutes until golden brown.
- ———————
- And here’s the video: