Pasties: an Unorthodox Recipe

It's unorthodox because it has bacon and fresh herbs, apparently unheard of in the Upper Penninsula of Michigan. The original version is probably from my wife's Grandma Leah Paruleski, the crust is from Rita (Lulu) Paruleski, Bud's wife. It doesn't get more orthodox than that.


Crust
2 c crisco
2 c water, boiling
1 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp salt
6 c flour

Place shortening, boiling water, vinegar and salt in a mixing bowl; mix on low speed until shortening has melted. Add flour and mix until fully incorporated.

Filling
3 lb round steak, minced
3 lb potatoes, small dice (hold in water until ready to fill)
1 lb carrots, small dice
1/2 lb rutabega, small dice
12 oz Nueski Bacon
1 large onion (1 1/2 c)
1/2 bulb garlic (2 tbsp)minced
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped
1 tbsp italian parsley, chopped
1 tbsp kosher salt
2 tsp pepper
1/3 to 1/2 lb butter

Render bacon until soft and most of the fat is given up; drain.
Add onions and cook over medium heat until soft, about
5 minutes. Add garlic and
cook an additional 3 minutes; cool.
Drain potatoes and add all ingredients together.
*Preheat oven to 375.
Portion the dough into 10 equal pieces.
Roll out into a 9 1/2" circle. Place a 9" cake pan on top and cut. Place 1 c of filling in the bottom half of the dough circle, leaving about 1/4 inch space between the filling and the edge of the
pastry.
Place 3 pats of butter on the filling and fold the top over;
crimp to seal the edge. Don't forget to cut a couple steam vents in the top. Place on a sheet pan and bake for
about an hour.

*Unless you are going to freeze the pasties and reheat them later. In that case set the oven to 400. Bake 30 minutes, cool, wrap in foil and freeze. To reheat, unwrap and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes or until nicely browned