Vegan and Vegetarian Cornish pasties re-posted here for Chandrani's Lunchbox event

Boscastle Harbour, Cornwall,  at low tide

Delicious with a dollop of  green tomato chutney!

 May blossom and flowering gorse in Rocky Valley, Bossiney, Cornwall

I just got back from another wild and wonderful weekend in Cornwall, walking the cliffs and beaches, so what better way to participate in Chandrani of Cuisine Delights'

 "Spotlight: Lunchbox ideas" event than to re-post my pasty recipe! Pasties are a complete meal, all sealed up in their own edible pastry wrapping so they are ideal for lunchboxes. 

To make 10 pasties with some filling left over (makes a great pitta/ toastie filling for those who prefer bread to pastry) I used:

Pastry:

500g organic wholemeal flour

200ml extra- virgin olive oil mixed with 50ml water

water to mix

• Measure the flour out into a bowl
• Whizz up the oil and 50ml water in a blender with a little of the flour 
• Rub this into the flour until the mixture looks a bit like breadcrumbs
• Mix to a dough with cold water (use as little as possible- the pastry comes out crisper that way)
• Form into a ball and set aside, covered, in a cool place while you prepare the filling

Filling:

900g (uncooked weight) peas, potato, celery, white cabbage, pumpkin and swede (rutabaga) all chopped finely or diced no bigger than 1cm. (You could also use sweetcorn, parsnip, turnip, celeriac, carrot/ sweet potato etc.)

a little olive oil for sweating

200ml water

1 tab miso

1 tab soy sauce/ Liquid Aminos

1 tab tomato puree

1/2 tsp coarse-ground black pepper

1 tsp hing

1 tsp mixed herbs

1 tsp thyme

• Sweat the vegetables over a medium heat in a large, shallow pan with the lid on, stirring from time to time to prevent sticking. Do this for a minimum of 5 minutes, or until the vegetables are starting to soften. 
• Mix the remaining ingredients with the water to make a stock and add to the pan. Cover and simmer until all the liquid has been absorbed.
• Adjust the seasoning if necessary and set aside to cool.
• Dice 250g of vegetarian Cheddar cheese and add to the filling when cool. Alternatively, use a handful or two of preserved black beans (douchi) 
• Now roll the pastry out about 3-4mm thick and use a saucer or bowl to make circles around 15cm in diameter. 
• Place a spoonful of filling in the centre of each circle, brush the edges with water and pinch the opposite edges together to make the classic pasty shape. 
• Place on oiled baking sheets, brush the pasty tops with water and sprinkle with sesame seeds
• Bake in an oven preheated to 200C for 15-20 minutes, until the pasties are browning nicely on top
• They are equally delicious hot or cold with plenty of salad and your favourite chutney. I like pumpkin, tomato, plum or green tomato.

More vegan-ising ideas: instead of black beans, use "Scheeze", "Cheezely", TVP chunks, seitan, tofu or your favourite cooked bean. I chose the black beans because their sharp tanginess is somewhat akin to a mature cheese.


Reminder: don't miss out on my "Amazing Almonds" event; submissions accepted until the end of April.