Michigan Pasty (Meat Hand Pie)

Name: Michigan Pasty (Meat Hand Pie)
Prep time: P0Y0M0DT0H30M0.000S
Cook time: P0Y0M0DT1H15M0.000S
Total time: P0Y0M0DT2H45M0.000S
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: american
Ingredients: 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling dough; 1 cup shortening or lard; Kosher salt; 1 cup ice cold water; 8 ounces ground beef; 4 ounces rutabaga, cut into 1/4-inch dice; 1 medium carrot, cut into 1/4-inch dice; 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped; 1 small russet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice; 1/4 cup picked fresh parsley leaves, chopped; Freshly ground black pepper; 1 egg, whisked; Ketchup, for serving

Recipe courtesy of Santos Loo

Watch how to make this recipe.

Michigan Pasty (Meat Hand Pie)

11 Reviews

When Cornish miners migrated to Michigan's Upper Peninsula in the 1800's, they brought with them their beloved national dish: the pasty. The Finnish miners that followed adopted these meat pies as their own (easily transportable for long subterranean days!), and the pasty became such a large part of the regional culture that there's an annual pasty festival in early July. In this recipe, beef, rutabaga, carrots, onions and potatoes are essentially steamed within the crimped, D-shaped dough pocket that's slit to allow just enough steam to escape.

Level: Easy
Yield: 6 servings
Nutritional Analysis

Per Serving

Serving Size

1 of 6 servings

Calories

684

Total Fat

43

Saturated Fat

12

Carbohydrates

59

Dietary Fiber

3

Sugar

4

Protein

15

Cholesterol

53

Sodium

605

Total: 2 hr 45 min
Prep: 30 min
Inactive: 1 hr
Cook: 1 hr 15 min

Level: Easy
Yield: 6 servings
Nutritional Analysis

Per Serving

Serving Size

1 of 6 servings

Calories

684

Total Fat

43

Saturated Fat

12

Carbohydrates

59

Dietary Fiber

3

Sugar

4

Protein

15

Cholesterol

53

Sodium

605

Total: 2 hr 45 min
Prep: 30 min
Inactive: 1 hr
Cook: 1 hr 15 min

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling dough

1 cup shortening or lard

Kosher salt

1 cup ice cold water

8 ounces ground beef

4 ounces rutabaga, cut into 1/4-inch dice

1 medium carrot, cut into 1/4-inch dice

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

1 small russet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice

1/4 cup picked fresh parsley leaves, chopped

Freshly ground black pepper

1 egg, whisked

Ketchup, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Add the flour, shortening and a pinch of salt to a food processor and run the motor until the dough starts to clump together. With the motor running, drizzle in the water. Stop the motor when a ball begins to form. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for about 1 hour. This step allows the glutens to relax and makes for easier rolling.
Mix together the beef, rutabaga, carrots, onions, potatoes and parsley. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Set aside until ready to form the pies.
Cut the dough into 6 even pieces, about 5 ounces each, and form into balls. Make sure the dough is cold for easier handling. Flour a work surface and roll out each ball of dough into an 8-inch circle. Evenly divide the filling (about 3/4 cup per pastie) on one half of each dough circle. Fold the dough over to cover the mixture and crimp the edges using a fork. Slice 3 small slits on top of each pocket. This prevents steam from building up and splitting the dough. Brush the pasties with the egg and bake on the prepared baking sheet until the crust is golden brown and flaky, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Serve with ketchup.

Cook’s Note

Pasties can be baked and then frozen. To reheat, place in a 300 degree F oven until warmed through, about 20 minutes.

My Private Notes

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11 Reviews

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A. Human

I've been making pasties my entire life, but they're time intensive so I make a couple dozen and freeze them individually so they can be pulled out and microwaved. I use a top quality beef gravy powder, mixed with a salt free beef stock base to cover them generously in as well.<br /><br />This is where I've changed the recipe, so if recipe alterations drive you crazy, you can stop here. I save A LOT of time if I don't have time to chop all of the ingredients with the following changes: precooked 90/10 ground beef (grease reserved if you want to add it back to the filling- some people like fat in the pasty, but we dispose of it), and diced frozen potatoes (I'll never cut up potatoes for pasties again! Just be sure to use the 100% potatoes version). You can even use frozen chopped onions and carrots if you want to. Allow all frozen ingredients to thaw first- or mix the frozen ingredients with the hot cooked ground beef to jump start the thaw. If you don't have time to make crust or you're not impressed with your own crust making skills, Pillsbury pie crust cut in half makes a good sized pasty and save a great deal of time. I've never had a complaint from my family that grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. No matter how many people I'm serving, the table always goes silent except for the sound of people happily eating when the pasties are served!

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