A Few Days Ahead

If you plan to serve sausage-stuffed puff pastry within three or four days, you have two options for preparing the pastries ahead of time. You can either prepare the filling and pastry separately, then assemble and bake the day you plan to serve, or you can assemble the pastries completely ahead of time. Either way, cook the sausage filling and drain it well to keep the puff pastry from becoming soggy. If you plan to assemble and bake later, portion out individual servings of filling onto a cookie sheet covered in parchment to cool. Thaw the puff pastry and cut it to size, then store the pastry and filling separately in the refrigerator to assemble and bake the day you plan to serve.

Make and Freeze

You can make sausage stuffed puff pastries up to four months in advance, so you can simply pull them out and bake whenever you need a quick meal. To freeze them successfully, cook the filling, drain it and let it cool to room temperature before assembling the pastries. Freeze them on a metal cookie sheet covered in parchment for several hours, or until they are firm, before storing them in a plastic freezer bag or an airtight freezer container.

Baking Pastries

If you want to serve sausage stuffed puff pastries hot, thaw the frozen pastries in the refrigerator overnight. Remove the pastries from the refrigerator and bake them just before you plan to serve. However, you can also serve them at room temperature. In this case, you can bake the pastries three or four days before serving, and store them on a tray lined with paper towels in the refrigerator. The paper towels will absorb any moisture that accumulates. Let them sit on the counter to come to room temperature before serving.

Food Safety

Foodborne pathogens can cause food poisoning, even in food that has been cooked. Do not leave cooked sausage out of the refrigerator for more than two hours, including the time it takes to come to room temperature. If you originally intended to bake and serve your puff pastries within a few days but find that your plans have changed, simply move them to the freezer to store until you are ready for them.