Pork Sausage Plait with Caramelized Onion (serves four)

Ingredients

Basic bread dough

250g strong bread flour

5g salt

10g caster sugar

1 teaspoon mustard powder

50g mature English Cheddar cheese, grated

15g fresh yeast

160ml warm water

Black-gowned peppercorns to season

Sausage meat

500g pack of sausagemeat or eight butchers sausages, skinned

1 large red onion, sliced

1tbs brown sugar

1tbs oil

Method

1. Place the flour, salt, sugar, mustard powder and grated cheese into a large mixing bowl.

2. Dissolve the yeast into the warm water and combine with the dry ingredients to form a rough, sticky dough.

3. Knead well on a lightly floured worktop for 10 minutes until smooth and silky.

4. Return your dough back to the mixing bowl and cover with a tea towel allowing to prove and rise well for one hour. At this stage you can prepare the caramelized onions.

5. Once risen well, roll out the dough with a little dusting flour to a large rectangle 26cm x 30cm, the thickness of a pound coin. If the corners are round simply give them a little tug to square them off.

6. Roll out the prepared sausagemeat with a little flour to just short of the length of the rolled out dough, leaving a gap of 5cm at the top and bottom. Tuck the ends under the plait for a professional finish.

7. Cut the sides of the rectangle diagonally about 10 times, egg-wash and start to plait the dough tightly till all the sausagemeat is encased.

8. Place the sausage plait onto a well-buttered baking tray, egg-wash and sprinkle freshly-ground black pepper on top.

9. Bake in a preheated oven 190C/gas mark 6 for 30 to 35 minutes until golden brown.

10. Best eaten hot from the oven or serve cold with a picnic.

Caramelised onions

1. Peel and cut the onion into small pieces.

2. Place the prepared onion into a large pan with the oil and very slowly cook them on a low heat stirring with a wooden spoon.

3. After five minutes add the brown sugar and keep stirring steadily till you have a dark, deep, caramelized colour.

4. Allow to cool slightly before combining well with the sausagemeat in the pan with a wooden spoon.