Meet your new favorite holiday appetizer – a gorgeously golden, flaky Christmas sausage roll wreath filled with juicy sausage meat, festive cranberries, and crunchy pecans. It looks wildly impressive, takes just 10 minutes to prep, and is pretty much guaranteed to steal the show at any holiday party.
Juicy sausage, tart cranberries, crunchy pecans, and buttery, golden puff pastry – honestly, what’s not to love here!?
Sausage rolls are always a popular party snack or appetizer for the holiday season, and it’s easy to see why.
I love making this sausage roll wreath over Christmas because it’s a brilliant way to turn a simple snack into a full-on holiday centerpiece. It looks gorgeous on the table, but it’s much easier than you might think. All you need is a sheet of puff pastry, your favorite sausage meat, and a couple of festive mix-ins. Plus, it’s great for prepping ahead of time.
Serve it warm and crispy with tart cranberry sauce, sweet chili jam, a drizzle of hot honey sauce, or even spicy gochujang aioli.
Complete your festive appetizer spread with some of my other go-tos:
- Loaded Festive Bread Dipping Oil
- Christmas Charcuterie Wreath
- Caramelized Onion, Gruyere, and Bacon Phyllo Cups
- Easy Christmas Tree Cheese Ball
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Sausages. Go for good quality, free-range pork sausages or sausage meat without many added extras (because we’re adding our own!) If you’re in the US, mild or sweet Italian sausage works perfectly. You can also use vegetarian sausage meat or chicken sausages.
- Puff pastry. Ready rolled sheets keep things quick and easy – and they’re the perfect size for the wreath. All butter puff pastry will give you the best, buttery flavor.
- Dried cranberries. These little festive jewels add sweetness and texture, but swap them for another dried fruit (apricots, cherries, or raisins are great), or leave them out.
- Pecans and almonds. I love adding nuts for crunch, but leave them out if you prefer. You could also use pistachios, walnuts, or cashews, or just pecans.
- Cranberry sauce. I like making a quick homemade sauce (cook down 2 cups of fresh cranberries with ½ cup orange juice, ¼ cup maple syrup, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon until thick and juicy), but you can use your favorite store-bought version, or use another sauce or chutney. My sweet chili jam is great, as is this wonderful fig and tamarind relish.
OPTIONAL EXTRAS: I love adding a sprinkling of sesame seeds on top, and often throw in a big handful of chopped sage leaves into the sausage filling for even more festive flavor.
How to Make Your Sausage Roll Wreath
This is a step-by-step photo overview of how to make the wreath – the full recipe with detailed instructions and ingredient quantities is at the bottom of the page for you.
- Slice through the skin of your sausages, then squeeze the meat out into a mixing bowl.
- Add the cranberries, pecans, almonds, and seasoning, then mix well to combine.
- Lay a piece of parchment paper on a flat surface, then place the puff pastry sheet on top. Spread about 4 tablespoons of the cranberry sauce down the middle of the pastry.
- Arrange the sausage meat on top of the cranberry sauce, forming a long log. Brush the egg wash down one side of the pastry next to the sausage meat.
- Carefully fold the pastry over the sausage log, then roll it over the egg-washed side of the pastry to seal the roll. Keep rolling, then flip the log so the seam is on the bottom.
- Mark 11 roughly equal lines down the roll, then cut two-thirds of the way through (not cutting through the top third so that the wreath remains joined up). Form the log into a circle, using more egg wash to seal the roll in place.
- Gently turn the rolls a quarter, so that the exposed sausage meat is facing up. Brush the exposed pastry with more egg wash, then scatter over sesame seeds if you like.
- Transfer the wreath (still on the parchment paper) to an oven tray, then bake. You want the wreath to look golden brown and puffy. Serve with the cranberry sauce in the middle of the wreath for dipping.
Sausage Roll Wreath FAQs
You don’t! I love adding them for an extra festive touch, but leave them out if you like. You could also swap them for dried apricots and chopped walnuts, pistachios, or cashews.
You can use any chutney, relish, or sauce you like! A caramelized onion chutney would be lovely, and I’ve used my favorite sweet chili jam and fig and tamarind relish before. They both were great.
Yes! That’s one of the best things about the recipe. You can form the wreath and then refrigerate it (covered) 24 hours ahead of time, then just bake it when you’re ready. Brush with the egg wash right before baking. You can also freeze the uncooked wreath and bake it from frozen – up the cooking time to an hour in this case.
There are a few reasons this could have happened:
– The pastry wasn’t sealed tightly. Make sure you really seal up the seam by pressing firmly and using the egg wash.
– Your sausage log may have been too thick. Try not to pile it too high when you form your log for the best, even cooking.
– Your pastry was too warm before cooking. If your kitchen is hot or the pastry has been sitting out for a while, the butter starts to melt, and the pastry won’t hold its shape so well. If it has been out for a while, pop it into the fridge for 10 minutes to firm up before baking.
Like this recipe? Try these fun, festive appetizer ideas next
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! You can leave a recipe rating and a comment below. And remember to tag @DishedByKate on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok if you’ve made one of my recipes. Seeing your recreations really makes my day 😊.
Print
Easy Christmas Sausage Roll Wreath with Cranberries
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
Description
Meet your new favorite holiday appetizer – a gorgeously golden, flaky Christmas sausage roll wreath filled with juicy sausage meat, festive cranberries, and crunchy pecans. It looks wildly impressive, takes just 10 minutes to prep, and is pretty much guaranteed to steal the show at any holiday party.
Ingredients
- 1 lb (or 400g) sausages (use your favourite, good quality, free-range sausages or sausage meat – pork, chicken, or veggie all work)
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup pecans
- 1/4 cup flaked almonds
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Black pepper
- 1 sheet puff pastry (UK/AU/NZ: Use 1 ready-rolled sheet, approx. 35cm x 23cm or 14″ x 9″. US: Use 1 frozen puff-pastry sheet, thawed and gently rolled out into a larger rectangle – see notes)
- 1 cup cranberry sauce
- 1 egg, whisked
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds (optional)
Instructions
- Make the sausage mix. Heat your oven to 350°F (180°C fan). Roughly chop the dried cranberries, pecans, and almonds, then add them to a large mixing bowl. Slice through the sausage casings and squeeze the meat into the bowl. Add ½ teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper, then mix well until everything is combined.
- Prepare your puff pastry. Lay out a large piece of parchment paper on a flat surface, then place your sheet of puff pastry on it. UK/AU/NZ: Use your puff pastry sheet as it is. US: Roll your thawed puff pastry sheet out into a rectangle, roughly 14 x 9 inches.
- Assemble the sausage roll. Spoon 4 tablespoons of the cranberry sauce in a straight line down the middle of the puff pastry, about 2 inches wide (lengthways). Pile the sausage meat mix onto the cranberry sauce line, and shape it into a long log. Try to keep this as equal as you can in terms of height and width.
- Roll up the sausage roll. Brush the whisked egg down one side of the pastry, next to the sausage log (this will help it seal). Fold the un-egg-washed side over the sausage log, then keep rolling the log over the egg-washed side to seal the pastry. Keep rolling, then turn over so the seam of the pastry is at the bottom of one very long sausage roll.
- Form the wreath. Mark 11 roughly equal lines down the sausage roll, then cut each mark two-thirds of the way through the roll (leaving the top ⅓ uncut at the top of the rolls, so the wreath stays together). Carefully bring the two exposed ends together to form a circle. Brush the pastry with a little more eggwash to help it stick. Gently twist each cut section over a quarter, so the exposed sausage meat is facing up. Brush the exposed pastry with the remaining egg wash, then sprinkle the top of the rolls with the sesame seeds if you’re using them.
- Bake and serve. Transfer the wreath (still on the parchment paper) to a baking sheet, then place it in the oven and bake for about 50 minutes, or until the pastry is super golden, puffed up, and the sausage meat looks firm and golden. Serve warm, with the rest of the cranberry sauce in the middle of the wreath, for dipping.
Notes
PREP AHEAD: Form the wreath and then refrigerate it, covered, a day ahead of time, then just bake it when you’re ready. You can also freeze the uncooked wreath and bake it from frozen – up the cooking time to 1 hour in this case.
SUBSTITUTIONS: Swap the dried cranberries for dried apricots, cherries, raisins, or figs, and the pecans and almonds for pistachios, walnuts, or cashews, or leave them out altogether. I like to throw in a handful of chopped sage leaves sometimes, for more festive flavor. Instead of cranberry sauce, you can use any chutney, relish, or sauce you like! A caramelized onion relish would be lovely, and I’ve used my favorite sweet chili jam and fig and tamarind relish before.
ALTERNATIVE DIPS: While cranberry sauce is classic, the wreath is great served with sweet chili jam, egg-free garlic aioli, spicy gochujang aioli, a drizzle of hot honey sauce, or even creamy tzatziki sauce for something fresh.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 50
- Category: snacks
- Method: oven
- Cuisine: british
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 roll
- Calories: 306
- Sugar: 2.2g
- Sodium: 419mg
- Fat: 22.8g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Carbohydrates: 15.6g
- Fiber: 1.2g
- Protein: 9.6g
- Cholesterol: 42mg
Oven temp ???
Hi Melanie, it’s in the first line of the instructions 🙂 360F/180C x
Can you make ahead and reheat
You can! Cover it with aluminium foil so the pastry doesn’t get too dark at 400F/200C until hot – about 10/15 mins. You can take the foil off for the last few minutes so the pastry can crisp up again x