How to make your own Hoosier Patties!

What is a Hoosier Pattie?  Well these patties are probably not the ones you are thinking of…Moo!  A Hoosier Pattie is a combination of a food I loved growing up as a kid and a newfound food from my most recent travels.  I grew up in a small town in Michigan, Brighton, and not only did I have family in the area, but also in the U.P. (Upper Peninsula) – Sault Ste. Marie to be exact.  So having roots in the U.P., we kids were exposed to foods you just don’t find in Indiana – one of them being Pasties (a meat & root vegetable pie).  I remember these fondly and looked forward to the times when Mrs. Paulsen, a neighbor from down the street (also a U.P. native) would make these delicious pies and send a batch up the street for us to enjoy!  She did this quite often; she was like another Grandmother to us kids.

I recently took my first Cruise of the Western Caribbean, with one of the ports of call being Ocho Rios, Jamaica.  Talk about a country rich in foodie flavors – Jerk Chicken, Jamaican Coffee and what I have come to crave, the Jamaican Patties.  These are similar to the meat Pasties that I enjoyed growing up, but with a kick.  The crust is golden yellow and the meat inside is spicy.  The Pasties claim to fame is being stuffed with root vegetables – something the Jamaican Patties lack.  So I decided to combine the two and give Indiana their official meat pie which I am calling the Hoosier Pattie!

I started with a recipe for the Jamaican Patties crust which is very similar to pie crust dough with the addition of curry powder, mostly for color, but it does influence the dough’s flavor.  For the filling I decided to mimic the Michigan Pasties with an Indiana twist.  Instead of using beef, I decided to use Indiana’s other white meat, shredded pork.  I kept the root vegetables of the Pasties with the addition of what Indiana is famous for – Corn! 

This was my first time even making pastry dough and I believe I did a bang up job!  It was great having the smell of my Hoosier Patties fill the house, actually aroma coming from the oven – that’s right, I broke down and bought a new range.  It has not been fun trying to create ideas for the blog or even cook dinner without an oven – it has been over three months!  My new range has a five burner cook top and a larger oven, with the broiler in the oven – not some little drawer underneath.  I went with black this time instead of the cream/beige/almond color of the old one.  I was lucky to find that the back of the cream dishwasher panel was black – so now they match (except the refrigerator, but I am working on that).

Sorry, I got sidetracked – here is the recipe for what I am sure will be the World Famous Hoosier Pattie, so enjoy!

Hoosier Patties

For Dough:
4 Cups of All Purpose Flour
1 Tablespoon of Curry Powder
½ teaspoon of Salt
½ Cup of Butter Flavor Crisco
½ Cup (1 Stick or 8 Tablespoons) of COLD Margarine
1 Cup of Icy Cold Water
1 Egg

For Filling:

1 lb of Pork Loin
2 Medium Golden Yukon Potatoes
1 Large Onion
2-3 Stalks of Celery
1 14 oz. can of creamed corn
2-3 Carrots
1 Large Turnip
2 cans 14 oz. of Beef Broth
Salt & Pepper to taste
Water
Corn Starch

Diced all your vegetables and place all ingredients for the filling in your slow cooker.  Cook on High for 4 to 6 hours.  Once your meat is cooked, remove and shred.  Strain vegetables, retaining the broth (you can use this to make gravy for your patties).  I then put my vegetables in a large bowl and with a potato masher mix the veggies, then added the shredded meat, salt and pepper to taste.  I then put my reserved broth in a pot on the stove to boil.  Once it was boiling, I added a rue of water and corn starch to make my gravy.

For the dough - In a Large bowl, sift together the Flour, Curry Powder & Salt.  With a pastry blender cut in the Crisco and margarine until the dough is crumbly.  Slowly add water and mix just until the dough forms – do not overwork (you may not use all the water).

Roll dough on a floured surface to 1/8” thickness.  Cut dough into 8” diameter circles – cover with plastic wrap or waxed paper until you are ready to assemble the patties.  Preheat your oven to 400 °F, line your cookie sheets with parchment paper or you will have to grease your sheets.  (I used my stoneware which worked great – I just have to put them in the oven while it is preheating).

Now place 2-3 Tablespoons of the meat/veggie mixture in the center of each pastry circle.  Moisten the edges with water and fold in half, sealing the edges with a fork.  Mix I egg with 1 Tablespoon of water as a wash for the finished patties.  Bake 20-30 Minutes until patties or golden brown.  Makes about 20 patties.

Until next time – Keep your Foodie Fluids Flowing, and AG Me On!