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Pasties

Pasties are individual-size savory pastries filled with meat and vegetables, which have long been a convenient dish in the United States. It was originally introduced in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula by Cornish miners from Cornwall, England, who settled the Great Lakes region in the 1800s. The miners came to the U.P. to mine copper after tin mining took a downturn in England; therefore, they brought with them mining experience that some of the other groups of miners lacked. As a result, many practices of the Cornish miners were copied by other groups, including the pasty as the standard lunch. The pasty quickly became popular in the mining community due to it being small, portable, and filling. Once copper mining ceased the pastry lived on thanks to being adopted by the Finish who remained in the area.  

Recipe Servings: 6

Prep Time
40 minutes
+ 2 hours 10 minutes resting
Cook Time
1 hour 20 minutes
Total Time
4 hours 10 minutes
Vegetarian
Vegan
Gluten Free
Dairy Free
Kosher
Halal

Ingredients

Crust:
  • 4½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup shortening
  • 1¼ cups water, ice cold
  • 1 tsp salt
Filling:
  • 1 cup beef broth
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 lb ground pork
  • 4 carrots, peeled and diced
  • 2 onions, peeled and diced
  • 4 potatoes, peeled and diced
  • ½ rutabaga, peeled and diced
  • 1 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1½ tsp salt

Directions

    For Crust:
  1. Combine flour and salt in a glass bowl.
  2. Cut flour and shortening together with a pastry blender until it has a mealy texture.
  3. Gradually add water, taking care not to over-mix the dough—stop adding water as soon as it begins to hold together.
  4. Form dough into an even round, cover with plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator for at least half an hour.
  5. For Filling:
  6. Preheat oven to 425°F.
  7. Butter a baking sheet and set aside.
  8. In a large nonreactive bowl, combine all filling ingredients. Mix until thoroughly combined.
  9. Divide pastry dough into 6 equal portions and roll each portion into a 6 x 8-inch rectangle.
  10. Place filling in rectangles in equal portions. Bring the shorter edges up over filling and crimp to seal.
  11. Crimp ends and transfer to prepared sheet. With a sharp knife, make one or two slits in the top of each pasty to allow steam to escape.
  12. Bake for 20 minutes.
  13. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake an additional 45–60 minutes, until crust is browned.
  14. Let cool for at least 60 minutes before serving.

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