David's Pasties

Method

I have two Pasty recipes on this website, but this is my preferred recipe.

Many of us enjoy a pasty, and most believe the king of pasties are the ones created in ‘Cornwall.’  The Cornish Pasty has a set number of ingredients, the pastry must be short and the crimped (sealed) in a particular way. Oh Yes, it should also be made in Cornwall!

I love a Cornish Pasty and many variations of pasty. However, many supermarket pastries tend to be gloppy, tasteless and contain not much filling. My homemade pasties steer away from tradition in more ways than I wish to mention. However, they are flavoursome, easy and cheap to make.

They are NOT Cornish Pasties. These are my Pastries.

 

Method - Filling

Peel and coop the carrot – pieces should be approximately the size of a pea.
Baby/salad potatoes, leave the skins on, cutting to small pieces, pea size.

Add the potatoes, carrots and peas to a pan, cover with cold water. Place the pan on an over ring bring to the boil and simmer for 20min until the veg is soft but not falling apart.

Peel and finely chop the onion. Add this to the mince and fry gently until cooked.

Drain the veg and add to the mince and onions.

Separately add the knorr stock cube, bisto browning to a jug. Add 200ml boil water and stir until the gravy is thick and smooth.

Add the gravy to the mince and veg and stir together. Season well with black and white pepper plus salt. The combination of peppers works well in this recipe. I tend to over season as the mixture will be in a pastry casing, but do this to your taste.

Allow to the mixture (filling) to cool then place into a fridge to cool further for an hour.

Method - Pastry

I use a combination of butter and lard for this recipe. You can replace the lard with butter, but the combo gives a better flavour to the finished pasty in my opinion.

Cube the butter and lard and add this to a bowl along with the flour and salt. Mix the ingredients together using your fingertips until the combination resembles breadcrumbs.  Add a beaten egg and a small amount of cold water and form a ball of pastry. Add more water if the mixture doesn’t pull together but do not add too much. Place the Pasty into cling film and chill in the fridge for 30-60 min.

Making the Pastries

Roll out the cooled pastry to a pound coin thickness, and then using a small teacup saucer, cut five rings to make the individual pasties. You may need to cut two and reform the pastry and roll out again to cute the further rings.

In the centre of each of the rings add a fifth of the mixture. Depending on the size of your saucer, you may find you have a small amount of filling leftover, but it is enough to make five good size pasties.

Wet the edge of the pastry slightly with water; this helps it stick. Pull the sides together and firmly press together. Crimp the seal to prevent the pasty opening during cooking.

Repeat for all five and then place on a baking parchment on a baking tray.

Using the remaining egg to egg wash the pasties and cook at 180c for 20-25min.

I always found these are best eaten after they are allowed to cool. These will keep in a fridge for a few days and can be eaten hot or cold.