Wild and Game Archives - HodgePodgeDays

I was sent some Wild and Game sausages to use in a recipe, so I made these sausage bites. All images and opinions are my own.

Christmas is a season for entertaining. Having friends round for drinks and nibbles is something we do a lot. Whilst bowls of crisps and nuts are always a hit, serving a couple of homemade canapés makes me feel slightly more of a domestic goddess than I really am. This week I tested out these Puff Pastry Sausage Bites which I’ll be serving to guests on Christmas Eve. They were quickly gobbled up and given the seal of approval from the boys, so I’m sure your guests will like them too.

Canapé Recipe: Puff Pastry Sausage Bites

You could make them with whatever your favourite sausage is, I used some Grouse and Wild Boar sausages from Wild and Game. Wild and Game are a non-profit organisation with the main aim of introducing the British public to game meat. They have a range of game-based pies, pasties, sausage rolls and sausages and want to show that game meat isn’t just for special occasions. Game is a healthy choice and is generally low-fat and low-cholesterol.

My Puff Pastry Sausage Bites are so easy to make, especially if you cheat like me and buy ready-made puff pastry. They’re a crispy canapé, full of gamey flavour which is complimented by a dab of redcurrant jelly. They’re festive without being too in your face about it.

Puff Pastry Sausage Bites

Makes 24 Sausage Bites.

Ingredients:

1 sheet of ready-made puff pastry
A pack of Grouse and Wild Boar Sausages (or your favourite sausages)
Redcurrant jelly, I used just over a tablespoon
1 beaten egg

How to make your sausage bites:

Pre-heat your oven to 200° and put a sheet of baking parchment on a baking tray. Unroll your sheet of puff pastry and using a sharp knife divide it up into 24 squares.

Canapé Recipe: Puff Pastry Sausage Bites

I used a shot glass to press a circle into the middle of each of the squares, you just need the indent rather than cutting through. This should stop the whole pastry square from rising in the oven.

Carefully transfer each square onto your baking sheet. You might need to bake them in batches so don’t cram them in. Using a teaspoon, put a small dollop of redcurrant jelly in each of the circles. You don’t need much, maybe 1/4 of a spoon.

Canapé Recipe: Puff Pastry Sausage Bites

Now is the slightly messy bit. Take a sausage and squeeze the filling out of it put a piece of the sausage-meat on top of each circle. Each sausage should be enough for 6 sausage bites. You should use just 4 sausages for this recipe, if you’ve got a packet of 6 sausages you could make yourself a sausage butty with the last two sausages for your lunch.

Once each square has some redcurrant jelly and sausage-meat in it, brush around the edges of the pastry with the beaten egg and put in the oven. Bake for 15-18 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to cool slightly before serving.

Canapé Recipe: Puff Pastry Sausage Bites

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Pâté is something we eat quite a lot of at home. We often knock up a quick weekend lunch of crusty bread, pâté and a few salady bits. It’s a satisfying lunch and beyond easy to throw together. Over the weekend the boys have been munching on some Wild and Game pâtés, but with a little leftover, I made a simple supper of Pâté stuffed Mushrooms.

Simple Recipe: Pâté stuffed Mushrooms

We had two tubs of Wild and Game pâté in our fridge; Grouse, Brandy and Herb pâté and Pheasant, Pistachio and Port pâté. All that was needed to enjoy these delicious game pâtés was some crusty bread. The pâtés are just £3.50 for a 120g tub. Game is considered to be a bit of a luxury, so it was nice to bring a bit of luxury to the table for such a reasonable price.

Simple Recipe: Pâté stuffed Mushrooms

The pâtés were beautifully made. They were mostly smooth with little soft pieces of meat and nuts, the texture was spot on for us. They were really well flavoured and not too gamey, which can be off-putting. These Wild and Game pâtés would make an excellent addition to the Boxing Day table.

Simple Recipe: Pâté stuffed Mushrooms

The boys enjoyed their weekend lunch of these two pâtés with crusty bread, but there was too much for two and I didn’t want it to go to waste. I’ve made these pâté stuffed mushrooms before, it’s a great way to use up leftover pâté and it makes for a delicious supper, easy lunch or an impressive dinner party starter.

pâté stuffed mushrooms

Ingredients:
4 large flat mushrooms
Pâté – approx one dessert spoon per mushroom
A drizzle of Olive oil
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
Splash of booze. I usually try to match what’s in the pâté, so add brandy if the pâté has brandy in it.
2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon of fresh parsley

How to make your pâté stuffed mushrooms:
Pre-heat your oven to 220°. Take your mushrooms and dust any dirt off them. Carefully cut out the stem and finely chop it. Put a small drizzle of oil on a baking tray and arrange your mushrooms on the tray.

Finely chop an onion, add another drizzle of olive oil to a frying pan and gently soften the onions and the mushroom stems. When the onion is soft, add your crushed garlic cloves and cook through for a couple of minutes. Turn the heat up in your pan and add a splash of booze. I usually try to match what I slosh in with what’s in the pâté. So if your pâté has brandy in it, I’d add a splash of brandy. Cook the alcohol out for a couple of minutes and then take off the heat.

Dollop in your pâté and mix everything together. I used the delicious Pheasant, Pistachio and Port pâté. Spoon equal amounts on the top of each mushroom and sprinkle the breadcrumbs over. Put in your pre-heated oven and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Simple Recipe: Pâté stuffed Mushrooms

Remove from the oven, sprinkle your fresh parsley over and serve. Two mushrooms make for a good lunch, or if you’re serving it as a dinner party starter, one if probably sufficient. It’s a really great way to use up any leftover pâté and is a simple dinner party dish you can put together beforehand.

Pâté stuffed Mushrooms

I was sent some Wild and Game Pâté to sample and I decided to use it in this recipe. All images and opinions are my own. I have not been compensated for this post.