Pasties (Recipe)

Ingredients

Filling:

1 pound ground beef, cook and drained

1 pound potatoes, peeled and shredded (2 1/2 cups)

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1/2 cup shredded carrot or 1/4 cup shredded rutabaga

1/2 cup snipped parsley or 1/4 cup dried parsley

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Pastry:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup margarine or shortening

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice

Water

Steps

1. To make the filling: In a large bowl, mix together the cooked ground beef, potatoes, onion, shredded carrot or carrot and rutabaga, parsley, the 3/4 teaspoon salt and the pepper; set aside.

2. To make the pastry: In another large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and the 1/8 teaspoon salt.  Using a pastry blender, cut in the margarine or shortening until the pieces are the size of small peas.

3. In a 1-cup glass measure, stir together the egg and vinegar or lemon juice; add enough water to equal 1/2 cup liquid.  Stir the egg mixture into the flour mixture just until it is moistened.

4. Preheat the oven to 450°.  Form the dough into a ball and divide in half.  On a lightly floured surface, roll half of the dough to slightly less than a 1/8-inch thickness.  Using a 6-inch cardboard circle as a pattern, cut the dough into six 6-inch circles.

5. Place about 3/4 cup of the filling on 3 of the circles.  Top with the remaining circles.  Crimp the edges of the dough or seal with the tines of a fork.  Place the filled dough circles on ungreased baking sheets.  Repeat with the remaining dough and filling, re-rolling the scraps as necessary.

6. Bake in the 450° oven for 15 minutes.  Reduce the oven temperature to 350° and bake about 15 minutes more or until the pastry is golden.

Tips:

Pasties can be served with gravy, catsup, spaghetti sauce or pizza sauce.

Shred the potato in a bowl of cold water to prevent the cut surface from darkening.  If desired, cover and refrigerate until ready to mix together the filling.  Then before using, rinse the shredded potatoes and drain well, squeezing out excess water.