cornish pasty

Typical Cornish Pasty Recipe

Shortcut Pastry: 225 gm. plain flour 115 gm. fat (mixture of lard and butter) A pinch of salt The Filling: 225 gm. steak cut into small cubes 2 or 3 large potatoes 1 piece of turnip or swede 1 onion, peeled and chopped Salt and pepper The Method: Sift the flour with the salt, rub in the fat, and mix to a pliable consistency with some water. Leave to rest for half an hour. Roll out half the pastry into a round about 5 mm. thick (quarter of an inch). Peel and slice the potatoes thinly onto the center of round to form a base for the rest of the filling. Slice the turnip thinly over the potato, then spread the beef on top. Add a little onion, season with salt and pepper. Dampen the edge of the circle of pastry with water to help seal it. Bring together the edges to make a parcel with the filling in the center. There should be a neat pastry parcel. If you do get any holes, patch them with a little extra pastry. You can make the pastry neater by crimping the edges. Fold over the edge to make it slightly thicker, then squeeze tightly every 2 cms. to make a neat pattern along the edge. Put the pastry on a piece of buttered paper, make a small slit on top to let the steam brush the top with a little milk, and put it on a greased baking tray. Bake it in a pre-heated oven at 200C (gas mark 6) for 30 minutes, reduce the heat to 190C (gas mark 5) and cook another 30 minutes. You can make the pastry as a starter, by making it smaller. Use a saucer as a template to get the size.