Kokova Magazine

Celebrate St Piran's Day 5th March with a homemade pasty.

This superb recipe from The Crantock Bakery will help you make the perfect pasty... although you will have to make it in Cornwall if you want it to be truly Cornish.

St Piran's Day (Cornish: Gool Peran) is the national day of Cornwall, held on 5 March every year. The day is named after one of the patron saints of Cornwall, Saint Piran, who is also the patron saint of tin miners. www.wikipedia.org

The Crantock Bakery Traditional Cornish Pasty

Makes four medium pasties
Preparation time: 30 mins (plus chilling the pastry)
Cooking time: 35-40 mins

Ingredients

For the pastry

• 600g plain flour
• 150g chilled butter or margarine, cubed
• 150g chilled lard, cubed
• Good pinch of salt
• Good pinch of sugar

For the filling

• 225g beef skirt or chuck steak
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 100g swede, peeled and sliced into small pieces
• 100g potatoes, peeled and sliced into small pieces
• Knob of Cornish butter
• Freshly ground black pepper and salt to season

Procedure

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Make the pastry first, then while it is resting in the fridge, prepare the filling.

To make the pastry

• Season the flour and sift into a large bowl.
• Add the lard, butter and margarine and using your fingers work into the flour until it forms the consistency of fine breadcrumbs.
• Sprinkle with cold water, a tablespoonful at a time, and mix until a stiff dough is formed.
• Gently knead the dough on a floured work surface, then wrap in clingfilm and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.

To make the filling

• Peel and finely slice the potatoes, onion and swede.
• Slice the beef into small, thin pieces.

To assemble your pasty

• Cut the pastry into four pieces and roll out each piece on a lightly floured surface.
• Each piece should be circular, 20 to 25 cm in diameter, and between 3 and 4 mm thick.
• Place a plate on the pastry and cut around for a neat circle, keeping the trimmings for your initials.
• Layer equal amounts of the vegetables in the centre of each pastry circle, and then put the meat on top.
• Season with salt and pepper and top with a knob of butter.
• Brush the edges of the pastry with water, fold one side over to make a half-moon or D shape, and crimp together between the forefinger and thumb of one hand and forefinger of the other to create a seal along the side of the pasty.
• Add your initials cut from the trimmings.
• Place on a baking tray, brush with a milk or a beaten egg glaze, and bake for 35-40 minutes until the pastry is golden and the filling cooked through.

Courtesy of www.crantocks.com - Cornwall's Best..."carefully crafted food".