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Potato, swede, onion, yam, soy chicken, mushrooms, Heston's Cheese sauce, (left over,) herbs, salt and pepper.

Pasty Recipe
Here is my Pasty Recipe & method to follow. if you need Anymore help don’t hesitate to give me call.


Making the Pastry

Pasty pastry, for four eight-inch pasties

450g 1lb strong white flour (large pinch salt optional)
100g 4oz margarine (Echo or similar hard variety)
110g 4oz lard
175ml 1/3pt water

Put the flour and salt (if used) into a bowl. Cut off a quarter of the lard and rub into flour. Grate or slice the rest of the fats into the mixture and stir with a knife. Pour all the water in and stir until absorbed. Knead a little and leave at least 30 minutes in the fridge before using.
Pastry can be made the day before, wrapped in polythene and stored in the fridge overnight. Pastry freezes well, but remember to take it out the night before you need it. Do not refreeze.

Wholemeal pastry

This is preferred by some people, especially for vegetable pasties. Use vegetarian fats instead if you prefer.

225g 1/2lb wholemeal flour
225g 1/2lb strong white flour
100g 4oz Echo margarine or butter
100g 4oz lard or Cookeen (salt optional)
175ml 1/3pt water to mix

Roughly chop the fats into the flour. Rub in very lightly; pour in and stir into a ball. Knead for half a minute and rest the pastry for at least half an hour.

Pasty filling, quantity for one pasty

50g 2oz onion or shallot (some people like leek)
50-75g 2-3oz turnip (swede)
100g 4oz beef skirt or chuck steak
150g 6oz sliced potatoes
black pepper, salt
Making the pasties

Keep the sliced potatoes in a basin of cold water till needed. Trim and gristle off the meat and cut it (with some fat) into 6 mm (1/4 in) pieces.

Generously flour the board or area you are using. This allows the pastry to relax as you roll, especially if you flip the pastry up from the surface every now and then. Cut off a quarter of the prepared pastry. Roll it out, keeping the shape, into a circle 21-23 cm (8-9 in) across. The pastry should now be the right thickness. Place an upturned plate over the pastry and trim round to get a good shape.

Place most of the turnip and onion across the centre of the round. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper to taste.

Place meat along the top and well into the ends; season the meat with a little salt. Top the meat with most of the potato and the remainder of the turnip.

Sprinkle again with a little salt, and add the remaining potato. Do not season the top layer: salt directly in contact with pastry can make it taste slightly bitter.

Dampen one side of the pastry with a little water. If you dampen the pastry all round or use too much water you will find the edges slide instead of sealing, so don’t slosh it on.
Fold the damp side of the pastry to the other and press firmly but gently together, so that you have a seam down across the pastry, or by the side, whichever you find easier. From the right side if you are right-handed (or the left if you are left-handed) fold over the corner and crimp by folding the pastry seam over and over to the end. Tuck in the end well to seal. Alternatively, if you find this difficult, just curl the edge like a wave.

Make a small slit in the top with a knife and patch any other breaks or holes with a little dampened rolled-out pastry.

Brush the pasties with milk or egg wash or even just water and place them on buttered paper or a greased and floured tray, leaving 5 cm (2 in) between them.

Bake in a hot oven 220C (425F, gas 7) for 20 to 30 minutes. Check the pasties. If brown, turn them down to 160C (325F, gas 3). Bake for another 20 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave them in the oven for another 15 minutes with the door shut.

Remove from the oven and with a slice lift the pasty onto a plate. Cut in half, allowing some of the steam to escape.

If you are eating them picnic style, place the pasties onto a cooling tray and wait 15 minutes before eating. If you want to eat them an hour or so later, or are taking them on a journey, wrap them straight from the oven in paper and then a clean cloth. Pasties keep extremely hot for a long time and if well wrapped a pasty made in Helston would still be ‘hot’ when you reached Exeter. I’ve even been told by holiday-makers that their pasties were still reasonably warm when they reached London.

Variations

Many people vary their pasties by substituting pork for beef, by putting in a mixture of kidney and beef, or by placing some parsley in one corner or sprinkled over the filling. Here, however, are some popular variations from what is usually thought of as the ‘traditional’ pasty.

Vegetable pasty

Use ordinary pasty pastry, or wholemeal pastry if preferred. Roll out pastry as for a pasty, then fill with layers of onion, turnip and potato, seasoning as you go, except the top layer. Seal, and cook as you would a pasty, reducing time by about 10 minutes, Just before dishing up, dribble in a good ounce of thin cream if you like it. Alternatively, while making the pasty put in about 25g (1oz) butter. With or without cream or butter, vegetable pasty is surprisingly delicious.

Cheese pasty

Use ordinary or vegetarian pastry. Roll out a 20 cm (8 in) round of pastry and slice onto it a small or medium onion and 50g (2oz) turnip. Season with pepper to taste.

Cover with 50-75g (2-3oz) grated or sliced Cheddar, or similar cheese. Add one medium to large potato along the top and season with salt. Place a few more slices of potato along the top. Seal and crimp. Cook as for a pasty, reducing the time by about 15 minutes.


http://www.annspasties.co.uk/