Traditional Cornish Pasties

We've had some Russian mushrooms sitting in our freezer that we've been wanting to use for a few weeks, but we just didn't know what to put them in. Finally we thought of the idea of pasties. I've been wanting to make some kind of hand pie for awhile, especially pasties because they're Michigan food!

This recipe, originally from Jamie Oliver and edited by the author of framgirlfare.com, doesn't include mushrooms, but we just dumped a cup into the mix. They tasted good in the pasties, even if they were a little slimy. Because of the extra mushrooms, we had extra filling, so we whipped up a quarter of a recipe of dough and made an extra pasty. The dough was a little too sticky, leading us to the monster pasty...

The pasties were delicious, even though I could only eat a half. I would definitely make this recipe again! They need some more salt and potatoes, though. The pasties were suprisingly easy to shape; I felt quite good about my pasty making skills–it must be my Michigan blood. My Dad has even dubbed himself the 'pasty master'.

Traditional Cornish Pasties

Ingredients:

For the pasty:

3¾ cups organic all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (8 ounces/2 sticks) very cold organic butter, diced (or 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup good quality lard)

3/4 cup ice water (you may not need it all)

For the pastry egg wash:

1 large free-range egg and 2 Tablespoons milk, beaten

For the filling:

12 ounces raw beef skirt steak or chuck steak, preferably naturally raised and grass-fed, cut into 1/3-inch dice

2 cups 1/3-inch diced yellow or white onion (about 7½ ounces)

2 cups peeled, 1/3-inch diced red or Yukon Gold potatoes (about 11 ounces)

2 cups 1/3-inch diced carrots (about 8 ounces)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary

Directions:

Make the pastry before you chop up the filling ingredients. Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the 'S' blade and briefly pulse them together. Add the butter and pulse at 1-second intervals until the largest pieces of butter are the size of chickpeas. Remove the lid, pour 1/2 cup of the ice water evenly over the flour mixture, replace the lid, and pulse a few times. Add just enough more ice water so that the dough holds together when you press it between your fingers. Do not overmix.

Pour the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap, gently pat it together using the edges of the plastic wrap to help you, then flatten it into a large flat disc or rectangle. Wrap it tightly in the plastic and refrigerate it while you make the filling. (You can make the dough several hours ahead of time, or the day before, if desired. Refrigerate until ready to use.)

Heat the oven to 400°F. Combine the chopped beef, onion, potatoes, and carrots in a large bowl. Add the salt, pepper, olive oil, thyme, and rosemary and mix well. Set aside.

Cut the pastry into 6 equal pieces and shape each one into a flat disc. On a lightly floured surface, gently roll each piece of pastry into a 9-inch round. If the dough starts to stick to the work surface or your rolling pin, sprinkle it with a small amount of flour.

Place about 1 cup of filling on each round, either in the middle if you want to bring both sides of the pastry up and together, or on one side so you can pull the other side of the pastry over to make a semi-circle. Use your hand to compact the filling a little, then brush the edges of the pastry with the egg wash, and seal them together. If you're making semi-circles, you can decoratively crimp the edge of the pasties with a fork or your fingers.

Place the pasties on a heavy duty baking sheet lined with unbleached parchment paper, brush them all over with the egg wash, and bake until golden brown, about 40 to 45 minutes. Rotate the pans halfway through baking.

Serve pasties hot, with mustard on the side. They will keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator and will also freeze well. Reheat in the oven or microwave.

Recipe from: http://www.farmgirlfare.com/2012/11/recipe-traditional-english-cornish.html