(and the scariest competition ever)
look! i baked. i know, i thought it would never happen but i did! not in the spirit of masochism either, in the spirit of charity...and...a little healthy competition. when i heard foodiemeet's call for bakers for an event to benefit the stop, they had my attention. i would definitely go to support. when i heard that the event was a bake-off, a little voice inside me said "oh reeeeeally? with judging? i'm IN!" see, that voice has a lot in common with my "i drank way too much and was already cranky to begin with" voice. they both speak first, think later and are followed by regret, represented by the voice that starts every sentence with "noooooooooooo!! what were you thinking??" and that's how i entered myself in a bake-off when i am nothing short of scared of baking.
there were only two things i could think of to do: drag someone into this with me, and run to my mommy. that's how i decided to make patties, one of the only things my mom (and aunt, who is my mom's back-up in the kitchen) actually bakes, and why my friend, steph, quickly found herself in a competition where she's the underdog. i knew i could get her to say yes in an instant--she and i are friends because we have a lot of little voices inside in common. steph is chinese-jamican, hence our entry: sri-macian patties! perfect. since i'm a much bigger fan of savoury food, i thought, i'll cram my baked goods full of curry leaves and things. and since a cross-cultures entry might seem unique, we'd have that working in our favour! yes. oooh, they'd be so tasty since both patties on their own can't be resisted! but guess what?
combining those flavours is hard! "fusion" is hard! i mean how to narrow down what best represents jamaican flavours? fresh thyme, scotch bonnet peppers...and sri lankan? fresh curry leaves, green chilies? it took a few tests to try to get any of those flavours to stand out in such strong company. now we were freaked out about the savoury component too! the baking almost seemed easy! you know, for someone. and then there was the competition...
foodiemeet sent out a list of everyone's entries, and after reading it, steph sent me an email. stating simply "i fold." yeah, she wishes. but i shared her sinking feeling. "bacon blondies"? "mango curry snow crescents"? how many drinks will i have to throw back before even making the rounds tonight to check out these clearly baking-since-the-womb geniuses' creations? and when is the fried rice foodiemeet challenge?? that's what i want to know! this is discrimination.
ok, deeeep breath. this if for a great cause. a super cause. it's not all about me. ok! i'm ok.
now, someone calm steph down.
sri-maican patties
(dough recipe courtesy of my mom and aunt)
for the dough:
1 lb all purpose flour
6 oz unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
1/2 tsp kosher salt
ice water
for the filling:
1 cup of vegetable or beef broth
3 tbs tamari or soy sauce
2 tsp corn starch or tapioca starch
2 large potatoes, peeled and diced, steamed for 10 mins.
1 tsp mustard seeds
4 scallions, trimmed and sliced (white and green parts)
4 cloves garlic, minced
20 curry leaves
4 pieces rampeh
1 serrano green chili, chopped
1 scotch bonnet pepper, deseeded and deveined, minced
1 tsp turmeric
2 tbs fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
¼ c frozen peas, thawed
¼ c frozen corn, thawed
3 tbs peanut or vegetable oil
1 egg
in a large mixing bowl, add flour, butter and salt. work butter into flour with cold hands (chill them for seconds in ice water if necessary), breaking cubes into pea-sized pieces, and add ice water (water only), 2 tbs at a time to the flour in the process. only add as much water as needed to bring the dough together roughly. when the butter and the flour is in pea-sized pieces and still crumbly, turn dough out onto a clean floured surface. continue to work dough quickly with hands to combine--do not knead, just pat together. add spoons of water if needed until just combined into ball, don't worry if the edges are somewhat crumbly. wrap dough tightly in plastic wrap and chill in fridge for half an hour.
meanwhile, combine broth, soy sauce and corn starch in a bowl and set aside.
steam potatoes over boiling water for about 10 minutes or until amost fork-tender. remove from heat.
heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. add mustard seeds and allow them to toast (they will pop and then subside). If you have a splatter guard on hand, you may want to cover the skillet with it, otherwise, cover most of the skillet with a lid to contain the seeds, just until the popping stops.
add turmeric, curry leaves, rampeh, scallions, garlic, scotch bonnet pepper, green chilies, and 1 tbs of the thyme leaves to skillet. cook, stirring, for 1-3 minutes until spices have toasted and the garlic has softened. If the oil is too hot, lower your heat to avoid scorching. add potatoes, ½ tsp of salt and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally until edges start to brown (about 5 minutes). add the peas, corn and the remaining salt and pepper. stir and cook for 2 minutes. stir broth mixture and add it to the skillet. cook, stirring for about 3 minutes until the sauce thickens. add the remaining tbs of thyme leaves and stir through. remove skillet from heat and remove the rampeh pieces. using the back of a large spoon, break up the potato pieces. don't worry about mashing a few peas and carrots, and don't try to completely mash potatoes. when well combined, transfer mixture to a large bowl and allow mixture to cool.
preheat oven to 375 degrees.
remove pastry from fridge and discard plastic wrap. on a clean well-floured surface, roll out pastry to a 1/8” thickness. cut out 3 1/2” diameter rounds. place rounds on a piece of parchment paper, quickly re-roll scraps and cut out as many more rounds as you can.
break egg into a bowl and whisk lightly.
pour ¼ cup of water into a separate small bowl.
drop 1 tbs of filling into the centre of each of the rounds, dip your finger or a small brush into the water and wet the edges of one round. pick up one round and fold into half-moon shapes and press them closed securely. lay it onto a large, parchment-lined, 4-sided baking sheet. continue with the remaining rounds. using a fork, press edges shut, imprinting them. dip a brush into egg wash and liberally coat each pastry top. bake for 45-50 minutes until the pastries are golden. serve hot or at room temperate.
note: patties will store in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for a few weeks. reheat in oven before serving.
makes 15-18 patties.
