Swedish Meat Pies
Makes 8 Individual Pies
This is one of my favorite recipes. It is hearty and has loads of Midwest flavor, but we don’t eat a lot of savory pies here, so this meal feels special and transports me to a European outdoor market or a picnic on a grassy hill or lakeside.
Swedish meat pies is a recipe from Melissa Bahen in Scandinavian Gatherings, an adorable book of recipes and crafts for “everyday celebrations.” Check out Melissa’s blog, Lulu the Baker, and consider getting your own copy of Scandinavian Gatherings.
Swedish meat pies is a recipe from Melissa Bahen in Scandinavian Gatherings, an adorable book of recipes and crafts for “everyday celebrations.” Check out Melissa’s blog, Lulu the Baker, and consider getting your own copy of Scandinavian Gatherings.
Ingredients:
Pastry
1 cup butter, softened¾ cup sour cream2 cups flourPinch of salt
Filling
2 tablespoons olive oil1 small onion, chopped2 stalks celery, chopped (Use the leaves—they have a ton of great flavor.)1 large carrot, chopped1 clove garlic, minced2 cups frozen hashbrowns (I like using the thick cut variety.) 1 pound ground turkey (Melissa uses ground beef, but I don’t eat beef.)Salt, pepper to taste (Melissa suggests ½ teaspoon of table salt, but I only ever use kosher salt. Learn to salt to your taste at every stage of the recipe. It’s a skill worth perfecting.) Pinch of nutmegPinch of allspice2 cups shredded cheese (Invest in really good, funky cheddar cheese and shred it yourself.) Instructions
1. Make pastry. Combine butter and sour cream in mixing bowl. Mix on low until combined. (If you forget to soften your butter, give it a good whip in the bowl before adding the sour cream.) 2. Add salt. Combine.3. Add flour (I usually use half unbleached all-purpose flour and half whole wheat or whole wheat white flour for pastry.)4. Mix until just combined. 5. Transfer to plastic wrap, flatten, wrap, and chill for at least 1 hour. 6. Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. 7. Add onion, celery, and carrots. Salt to taste. Cook until tender. (I like a little caramelization on my vegetables.)8. Add garlic and shredded hashbrowns. Cook until garlic is fragrant. 9. Add ground turkey, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and allspice. 10. Cook until turkey is cooked through. 11. Transfer meat mixture to a large mixing bowl. 12. Add cheddar cheese to the hot mixture and combine. (The cheese will melt into the meat and vegetables.)13. Chill the mixture. (I’ve found this really important because the dough is quite delicate and if the mixture is warm, the dough will start to melt.) 14. Heat oven to 350 degrees. 15. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. (Pre-cut parchment sheets are a gamechanger!)16. Remove dough and divide into 8 equal portions. (A food scale is great for this! Weigh the dough in grams, divide by 8 and then measure each portion of dough to that amount for equal pies.)17. Roll each portion of dough into a circle on a floured surface. (Make sure you keep the dough moving while rolling to keep it from sticking.)18. Fill half the circle of dough with the chilled filling. 19. Dampen the edge of the circle with water using your finger. 20. Fold over the empty side of the circle.21. Press the seam closed with a fork.22. Make to slits for steam release. (At this point, you can freeze the uncooked pies. Place on the pan and pop in the freezer until solid. Wrap each pie in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container or freezer bag. When ready to bake, remove from freezer, unwrap, and following baking directions below—accounting for the additional time needed for baking from frozen.) 23. Place on baking sheet—4 to a pan. 24. Melissa suggests baking for 30 minutes. (Mine always take about 10 minutes longer.) Pies are done when they are golden brown and the filling is bubbling out of the steam slits. (From frozen, a single pie takes about 45 minutes to bake.)25. Cool for 5-10 minutes. (Melissa suggests these are best served not “piping hot.” I agree.)26. Serve! (I like to serve these with a simple side salad.)
Pastry
1 cup butter, softened¾ cup sour cream2 cups flourPinch of salt
Filling
2 tablespoons olive oil1 small onion, chopped2 stalks celery, chopped (Use the leaves—they have a ton of great flavor.)1 large carrot, chopped1 clove garlic, minced2 cups frozen hashbrowns (I like using the thick cut variety.) 1 pound ground turkey (Melissa uses ground beef, but I don’t eat beef.)Salt, pepper to taste (Melissa suggests ½ teaspoon of table salt, but I only ever use kosher salt. Learn to salt to your taste at every stage of the recipe. It’s a skill worth perfecting.) Pinch of nutmegPinch of allspice2 cups shredded cheese (Invest in really good, funky cheddar cheese and shred it yourself.) Instructions
1. Make pastry. Combine butter and sour cream in mixing bowl. Mix on low until combined. (If you forget to soften your butter, give it a good whip in the bowl before adding the sour cream.) 2. Add salt. Combine.3. Add flour (I usually use half unbleached all-purpose flour and half whole wheat or whole wheat white flour for pastry.)4. Mix until just combined. 5. Transfer to plastic wrap, flatten, wrap, and chill for at least 1 hour. 6. Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. 7. Add onion, celery, and carrots. Salt to taste. Cook until tender. (I like a little caramelization on my vegetables.)8. Add garlic and shredded hashbrowns. Cook until garlic is fragrant. 9. Add ground turkey, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and allspice. 10. Cook until turkey is cooked through. 11. Transfer meat mixture to a large mixing bowl. 12. Add cheddar cheese to the hot mixture and combine. (The cheese will melt into the meat and vegetables.)13. Chill the mixture. (I’ve found this really important because the dough is quite delicate and if the mixture is warm, the dough will start to melt.) 14. Heat oven to 350 degrees. 15. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. (Pre-cut parchment sheets are a gamechanger!)16. Remove dough and divide into 8 equal portions. (A food scale is great for this! Weigh the dough in grams, divide by 8 and then measure each portion of dough to that amount for equal pies.)17. Roll each portion of dough into a circle on a floured surface. (Make sure you keep the dough moving while rolling to keep it from sticking.)18. Fill half the circle of dough with the chilled filling. 19. Dampen the edge of the circle with water using your finger. 20. Fold over the empty side of the circle.21. Press the seam closed with a fork.22. Make to slits for steam release. (At this point, you can freeze the uncooked pies. Place on the pan and pop in the freezer until solid. Wrap each pie in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container or freezer bag. When ready to bake, remove from freezer, unwrap, and following baking directions below—accounting for the additional time needed for baking from frozen.) 23. Place on baking sheet—4 to a pan. 24. Melissa suggests baking for 30 minutes. (Mine always take about 10 minutes longer.) Pies are done when they are golden brown and the filling is bubbling out of the steam slits. (From frozen, a single pie takes about 45 minutes to bake.)25. Cool for 5-10 minutes. (Melissa suggests these are best served not “piping hot.” I agree.)26. Serve! (I like to serve these with a simple side salad.)
