posted by Lisa UK 03-27-100 12:36 PM
Cornish Pasty
Shortcrust Pastry:
225 gm. plain flour
115 gm. fat (mixture of lard and butter)
pinch of salt
The Filling:
225 gm. steak cut into small cubes
2 or 3 large potatoes
piece of turnip or swede
onion, peeled and chopped
salt and pepper
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 centre 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 make a parcel with the filling in the centre.
There should be a neat pastry parcel. If you do get any holes, then 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 the top to let the steam brush the top with a little milk, and put it on a greased baking tray.
Bake in a pre-heated oven at 200C (gas mark 6) for 30 minutes, reduce the heat to 190C (gas mark 5) and cook for another 30 minutes.
You can make the pasty as a starter, by making it smaller. Use a saucer as a template to get the size