Under the Troll Bridge Pasties
This Michigan favorite, the pastie, has a flaky homemade crust stuffed with a simple filling of beef, potatoes, onions, carrots, and turnips. Serve these Under the Troll Bridge Pasties with brown gravy. The perfect handheld meal!
In an effort to include a little more Michigan into the blog, I decided to search out some authentic ‘Michigan’ loved food. I came across a great article from Only In Your State called 10 Iconic Foods Made in Michigan and #3 on this list was the pastie. So like when I wanted to make the Michigan Hot Dog (which isn’t even from Michigan!) I put in the work and set off to find out how to make one.
When looking around to get a basic idea of how to make these I found the blog Foodie with Family and her recipe for Yooper Pasties. In the post, she defined residents of the Lower Peninsula as ‘Trolls’. I also found out that while the pastie is generally served plain or with ketchup ‘Trolls’ usually prefer them with gravy. So what better name to call these than ‘Under the Troll Bridge Pasties’.
What beer pairs well with pasties with brown gravy?
The beer: Arcadia Ale’s Hopmouth.
For tonight’s Mitten Movie Night we are drinking this delicious double IPA. Arcadia is one of the first breweries we visited-seems like a long time ago but really less than 5 years ago. Since then so many great breweries, delicious meals and of course awesome beer.
Are Double IPA’s hard to pair with food?
Many say that it’s nearly impossible to pair a Double IPA with any recipe because they are heavier and full-bodied and are hard to balance with the flavors in a lot of dishes. While these pasties aren’t bland, they do have a mild flavor so it can’t easily overpower the notes in the beer. The flaky, buttery crust also goes well with the caramel flavors in this beer.
If you love Double IPA’s check out my pairing with Hawaiian Pizza.
What show pairs well with Under the Troll Bridge pasties and craft beer?
I really don’t have anything on deck to watch since we are in the middle of about 3 series: Sneaky Pete (Giovanni Ribisi is awesome in this), Santa Clarita Diet (who doesn’t love Drew Barrymore?) and Bates Motel (c-r-e-e-p-y) so we might just binge watch one of those to finish up the seasons we’re in the middle of.
For this, I used the same pastry dough that I made my Strawberry & Sesame Hand Pies with but doubled the recipe and substituted garlic powder for the sugar. It ended up being so flaky and buttery I almost had to pat myself on the back for this creation.
How to make Under the Troll Bridge Pasties with brown gravy:
Add all the ingredients into a mixer and let it come together in a ball. Place the ball onto some plastic wrap that has been lightly floured and put into the refrigerate for 1 hour.
What else can you stuff savory pastry dough with?
- Pizza pockets: salami, pepperoni, cheese, and marinara sauce.
- Ham and cheese hand pies: Black forest ham and cheddar cheese.
- Mashed potatoes and chives: Use leftover mashed potatoes, triple cheddar cheese, and chives.
- Grilled cheese: Just add cheese and bake. Perfect for kids!
There was not a one rutabaga to be found at my local grocery store so I substituted a turnip. Felt I was okay since the recipes that I looked at had meat, potatoes, and root vegetables. Forgive me if I am playing fast and loose with the rule of the pastie, please know I had good intentions.
While the dough is chilling clean, peel and chops all your veggies. Sautee them in 1 Tbs butter to soften them then put them into a bowl.
Cook and drain the beef then add it to the vegetables.
Add salt and pepper to taste then let the vegetables and beef cool.
A serious shout out to Checkered Chef for the awesome stainless steel rolling pin, I love it!
Roll and cut the dough out into large circles.
Add filling to one side then sprinkle with shredded cheese. After stuffing these full pinch the dough to crimp the edges so the filling doesn’t fall out.
Beat an egg and brush over the top of pasty.
Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 25 minutes.
Prepare the gravy according to the package directions if you’re a troll like me.
Tips for Under the Troll Bridge Pasties:
- For cutting the circles, I used a cereal bowl and it worked out great to make 6 pasties.
- Make sure as noted above, let the vegetables and beef cool before stuffing the pasties. As I found out the hard way, if it’s too hot it will make the dough too sticky to work with once you start assembling the pasties.
And here you are…..
From our home in the Bottom Left of the Mitten to yours ~ Enjoy!
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| Prep Time | 10 minutes |
| Cook Time | 35 minutes |
| Servings |
pasties
|
- 3 cups unbleached flour
- 1 cup butter cut into 1/2 Tbs sections
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 cup cold water adding 1/4 cup at a time
- 1-1/2 pound ground beef cooked and drained
- 1 small turnip cleaned, peeled and diced
- 3 potatoes cleaned, peeled and diced
- 3 carrots cleaned, peeled and diced
- 1 small white onion diced
- 1 cup shredded colby jack cheese
- 1 package brown gravy mix cooked according to package directions
- 1 Tbs butter
- 1 egg beaten
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Ingredients
Dough
Filling
|
|
- Add all the ingredients into a mixer and let it come together in a ball. Place the ball then onto some plastic wrap that has been lightly floured and put into the refrigerate for 1 hour.
- While the dough is chilling clean, peel and chop all your veggies.
- Sautee them in 1 Tbs butter to soften them then put them into a bowl.
- Cook and drain the beef then add it to the vegetables. Add salt and pepper to taste then let the vegetables and beef cool.
- Roll and cut the dough out into large circles.
- Add filling to one side then sprinkle with shredded cheese.
- After stuffing these full pinch the dough to crimp the edges.
- Beat an egg and brush over the top of pasty. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 25 minutes.
- Prepare gravy mix to package directions. Serve on the side. Enjoy!
The ‘Un’ Shish Kabob
I love Shish Kabobs. They are so good! And talk about a versatile meal. It can be mixed up any way you like. But let’s be honest, threading the wooden stakes can be a pain. One night I wanted these but did not feel like soaking the stakes, cutting everything up then putting it on the stakes. Smooshing them onto our grill (we use an electric grill) and then cooking them until they were tough because the middle didn’t get completely cooked so I had to keep turning and turning it. No! That is when I came up with the idea for the ‘Un’ Shish Kabob. All the goodness of the original but so easy.
When I make mine I usually choose chicken or a combination of chicken & steak if I can find a good deal on it. Then I always add mushrooms & onions. Always. For my other  vegetables I usually do 1 red & 1 green vegetable. For this one I used Brussel sprouts and Roma tomatoes. I really love Brussel sprouts. So gather your ingredients……
I use my broiler pan for this. Now, how often do you think about using your broiler pan? Probably no often. So enjoy this. You may think of other ways to use it now that you’ve got it out. Go ahead and spray it with some Olive Oil spray.
Clean & cut your veggies. I kept my tomatoes whole. After they are cooked they almost ‘burst’ open when you cut into them. Try it, you will love it.
Add the vegetables to the broiler pan. Melt 4 Tbs. of butter. Season them with Salt & Pepper then pour the butter over them.
Now cut up your chicken.
Add your cubed chicken to the other side of the pan. Next you’re going to pour the Italian Dressing over your chicken. This really makes it tangy and gives it a little kick.
Now you are ready to put this into the broiler. While your placing everything onto the pan preheat the broiler. Once everything is on the pan go ahead and pop it in. I set my timer for 8 minutes. When the timer goes off, pull the pan out and turn the chicken and vegetables. Set for another 8 minutes.
During the first 8 minutes of cooking I usually start my ‘Quick Baked Potatoes’. Scrub and cut your potatoes in half. Cover with plastic wrap. When I start the second 8 minute timer I put the potatoes in to cook.
Once the timer goes off for the 2nd time pull the pan out and turn the chicken and vegetables. Check your potatoes. If they easily poke through with a fork your good to go. If they are a little thicker you may have to cook them for another 4-6 minutes. Do not overcook as it will make them hard and inedible.
Set your timer for your last 8 minutes. So you will put these in the broiler for a total of 24 minutes, turning the chicken and vegetables every 8 minutes. They should be all nice and crispy on the edges. Oh yeah, look at this.
Plate up your ‘Un’ Shish Kabobs and potatoes. I love dipping my chicken into Steak Sauce and topping my potatoes with butter and sour cream. And here you are……..
From our home in the Bottom Left of the Mitten to yours ~ Enjoy!
| Servings |
servings
|
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 8 ounces mushrooms
- 1 small onion
- 4 Tbs. butter melted
- 1/4 cup Italian Dressing
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- 8 ounces brussel sprouts
- 2 roma tomatoes
- 3 potatoes
Ingredients
'Un' Shish Kabob
Quick Baked Potatoes
|
|
- Clean & cut your veggies.
- Add the vegetables to the broiler pan. Melt 4 Tbs. of butter. Season them with Salt & Pepper then pour the butter over them.
- Cut up your chicken.
- Add your cubed chicken to the other side of the pan. Pour the Italian Dressing over your chicken.
- Set your timer for 8 minutes. So you will put these in the broiler for a total of 24 minutes, turning the chicken and vegetables every 8 minutes.
- Scrub and cut your potatoes in half. Cover with plastic wrap. When I start the second 8 minute timer.
- Check your potatoes. If they easily poke through with a fork your good to go. If they are a little thicker you may have to cook them for another 4-6 minutes. Do not overcook as it will make them hard and inedible.
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