I have to dedicate this page to a dear friend, Meatha Vincent. She lived in Sault Ste. Marie as long as I knew her. She was a sweet and caring woman. You never left her house hungry. If you did, it was your own fault. She is gone now, but she was a good friend to my family. She made the first pastie I ever ate.
The pasty came from England, where the miners took them in their lunches. They would put the pasties in their shovels and heat them over a lantern to have a hot lunch.These meat, potatoes, carrots, onion, rutabaga or turnip pastries, were easily eaten with the hands.
The tradition was brought to the Upper Peninsula by immigrants who worked in the copper and iron mines. The mines don't exist anymore, but the pasty lives on.
Accompaniments to the pasty vary, some preferring pasties topped with beef gravy. Others prefer catsup, pickle relish or chutney, or eaten plain while still warm and flaky.
Below you will
find some recipes for pasties. Some I've tried and
some I haven't yet. But I will.
CRUST:
7 C. flour
1 1/2 C. shortening
1 t. salt
Enough water to hold together
FILLING:
2 lbs. hamburger
2 C. carrots (fine)
4 C. potatoes (diced)
1 1/2 C. onions (chopped)
Season to taste
To make crust, cut shortening
into flour and salt; until it looks like meal. Add
enough water, just until it holds together. Roll out
as for pie crust and cut into 9" circles (I use a
pan lid for a cutter). Mix all filling ingredients.
Put about 1 1/2 cup of the mixture on half of the
circle. Fold in half and make sure edges are secure. Place on
ungreased cookie sheet.
TEMP : 375
TIME : 40 - 45 mins.
MAKES : 8 - 9 Pasties
Dough:
3 1/2 C. all-purpose flour,divided
1 t. salt
1 C. (2 sticks) butter, cut into pieces
3/4 C. ice water
1 egg mixed with 1 T. water
Filling:
1 lbs. coarse ground round steak
1/2 lbs. coarse ground pork
1 1/2 C. chopped onion
1 C. rutabaga (or turnip), diced, 1/4 in.
1 C. potato, diced, 1/4 in.
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1/4 C. fresh chopped parsley or 2 T. dried
To prepare the dough:
In large bowl, place 3 cups of flour. Stir in salt. Cut the butter into the flour using a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the ice water a little at a time until dough forms. If dough is to sticky, add enough remaining flour so that it's no longer sticky. Make into a ball and wrap in plastic. Place in refrigerator to chill. 15 - 20 mins.
To prepare filling:
In large bowl, combine all the filling ingredients.
Mix gently until thoroughly combined.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a
baking sheet. Set aside.
Remove dough from refrigerator. Divide the dough into
six pieces and roll out each piece into an 8 1/2"
circle, about 1/8" thick. Place about 1 cup of the
filling on half of the circle. Spread the mixture to
within 1/2" of the edge. Brush the edge with water
and fold top half over filling. Seal and crimp the
edges. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat
with remaining dough and filling.
Make a small slit, about 1/2" long, on the top of the pasties. Brush with the egg and water mixture. Place in oven. If desired, place 1/2 t. of butter through the slit of the pasty after 30 mins. of baking, to keep the filling moist.
MAKES: 6 pasties
TEMP: 400
TIME: 50 - 60 mins.
FILLING:
1/2 C. each turnips, potatoes, carrots (cubed)
1 medium onion (diced)
2 T. minced parsley, fresh or dried
1 lb. boneless beef (cubed)
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 T. butter
CRUST:
1-1/3 C. flour, sifted with 1/2 t. salt
1/2 C. shortening
1/3 C. cold water
To make crust, cut shortening into the flour mixture; until the size of small peas. Add approximately 1/3 cup cold water. Mix with a pastry blender until dough is well blended. Divide into two equal parts. Roll into 9" circles.
Mix filling ingredients together. Equally divide mixture onto one half of rolled crust. Top with half of the butter. Fold other half of crust over filling. Seal, folding and crimping into rope edge. Slit each pasty about 1/2 inch in several places. Place on cookie sheet several inches apart and bake.
TEMP: 375
TIME: 1 hour
MAKES: 2
CRUST:
3 C. flour
1/4 C. scrapped suet
3/4 C. shortening or lard
COLD water
FILLING:
1 1/2 LB. diced sirloin
4 medium potatoes
2 medium onions
1/4 C. rutabaga
salt & pepper, to taste
CRUST:
Cut suet and Shortening into flour. Add enough cold water to hold together. Roll out on floured surface. Cut into 8 or 9 inch circles.
FILLING:
Mix all ingredients together and place about a cup of the mixture on half of the circle. Fold over other half and crimp edges. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees for the last 15 minutes.
(Makes 4 pasties)
NOTE: You can substitute cooked chicken or turkey for the beef. When I do chicken or turkey I put potatoes, carrots, frozen peas and onions. Do everything else the same, as the recipe calls for. Baking temp. and time.
This recipe is just for fun. It isn't for a pasty, it's for Hors d'oeuvres. A good friend, Gregory Roeder, sent it to me. She says it's her favorite. Hope you will enjoy it!
1 lb. hamburger
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
1 lb. Velveeta cheese
Long skinny French bread sliced.
Fry hamburger and sausage together and drain off fat.
Add cheese to meat mixture and melt. Spread on sliced
bread. Bake in oven at 400 to 450 degrees; till bread
gets brown. Can be made ahead of time. Then put in
oven before serving.
Linda Franks
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