Sausage rolls for the Halloween table, cooked right through

When friends come round on Halloween, the table fills up with sweets very quickly. I like to put something savoury next to them, something the children can hold in one hand while they compare buckets. Homemade sausage rolls are my answer. They are quick, they disappear fast, and with a strip of pastry wrapped round the middle and two dots of ketchup, they become little mummies with almost no extra work.

I use a ready-rolled sheet of puff pastry, about 320 g, and 400 g of good pork sausagemeat. If I can only find sausages, I slit the skins and squeeze the meat out. I mix the sausagemeat with a small grated onion, a teaspoon of dried sage or thyme and a few grinds of black pepper. That is all it needs.

Raw pork needs care, and I am strict about it in my kitchen. I use a separate board for the meat, I wash my hands with soap and warm water after handling it, and I do not let the raw mixture near anything that will not be cooked. The children can help with the pastry, but not with the raw meat, and nobody licks fingers.

I heat the oven to 200°C, or 180°C for a fan oven, and line a baking tray with parchment. I unroll the pastry and cut it in half lengthways, so I have two long strips. Down the middle of each strip I lay a sausage of the meat mixture, about as thick as two fingers. I brush one long edge of the pastry with beaten egg, fold the pastry over the meat and press the edges together firmly with a fork.

For ordinary sausage rolls I cut each long roll into six pieces. For mummies I keep back a little pastry, cut it into thin strips and wrap them loosely round each piece, leaving a gap for the eyes. I put the rolls on the tray with space between them, brush them with more beaten egg and make two small cuts in the top of each, so steam can escape.

They bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the pastry is puffed and deep golden. The pastry often looks ready before the meat is, so I always check the filling. I break open the thickest roll: the meat should be steaming hot all the way through, with no pink left, and the juices should run clear. If I have a food thermometer, I check that the middle has reached 70°C and stays there for two minutes. If it is not there yet, the rolls go back for a few more minutes.

Then I let them cool on the tray for ten minutes, because the filling stays very hot for a while, and I add two dots of ketchup for eyes on the mummies just before serving.

For a party, I think about how long food sits out. Sausage rolls should not stay at room temperature for more than about two hours. Whatever is left after that goes into the fridge, covered, and gets eaten within two days, cold, or reheated until steaming hot all the way through. They also freeze well, either baked or unbaked; unbaked rolls go straight into the oven from frozen, with a few extra minutes and the same check in the middle.

A note for parents of other children: puff pastry contains wheat and usually butter, and the glaze is egg, so I tell people what is in them.

Sausage rolls. Makes 12. About 45 minutes. You need a 320 g sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry, 400 g pork sausagemeat, 1 small grated onion, 1 tsp dried sage or thyme, black pepper and 1 beaten egg. Mix the meat with the onion, herbs and pepper. Cut the pastry in half lengthways, lay the meat down the middle, fold, seal with egg and cut into pieces. Glaze and bake at 200°C (180°C fan) for 25–30 minutes, until the filling is steaming hot with no pink.

What savoury food goes on your Halloween table?