Swabian Meat Pasties Schwabische Maultaschen Food

AUTHENTIC SWABIAN MAULTASCHEN

Steps:

• **See the blog post for step-by-step photo instructions**
• Place the ground pork and beef, spices and milk powder in the bowl stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add about 1/2 cup crushed ice to the ground meat mixture in the stand mixture. This will keep the meat cold and prevent the fat from melting as the mixture is mixed/emulsified to create the desired texture.Mix the meat on low-medium speed for a few minutes (be careful not toover-mix) until the mixture is emulsified. Meaning if you take a clump ofmeat and pull it apart with your fingers you should see tiny threads pulling apart. Set the meat mixture aside until ready to use.Note: If you're using pre-ground store-bought beef and pork it may not emulsify properly because of a lower fat content, in which case don't worry about it and just move on to the next step.Freezing the Meat Mixture: You can use the meat mixture immediately or you can freeze it so you can have it on hand for convenience to save time when you're ready to make another batch of Maultaschen.
• Boil the spinach for 1-2 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water, thoroughly squeeze out the water and very finally chop it. Set aside.
• In a frying pan, heat the butter and saute the onion until soft and translucent, 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and parsley and cook for another minute ortwo. Let the mixture cool down so it's not super hot.
• Put the meat mixture in a large bowl along with the onion/parsley mixture, the chopped spinach, prepared breadcrumbs, spices and eggs. Use a stand mixer or your hands to thoroughly combine the mixture.NOTE: If you prefer an even finer texture you can run about one third or so of this mixture through the blender and then stir it back in to the rest of the mixture.
• For the dough you can either use prepared sheets of pasta dough or you can use a shortcut: Wonton wrappers. Wonton wrappers are just basic pasta dough (flour, eggs, water) and they're already pre-cut into just the right sized squares which makes them super convenient. And they're vastly cheaper than buying pre-made sheets of fresh pasta. Place a small spoonful of Maultaschen filling on a square of fresh pasta dough (about 3 1/2 x 3 1/2) leaving about 1/4 inch of space from the edges. Brush the edges with the egg, place another pasta square on top and press down with your fingers to seal.To ensure the edges are sealed tightly you can either use a fork to press the edges together or use a fluted pastry/pasta cutter wheel to make pretty edges.How to Freeze Maultaschen: For convenience you can freeze the Maultaschen at this point. Lay them out in a single layer on a lined cookie sheet and freeze them. Once frozen remove them and put them in an airtight container or ziplock bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
• To cook the Maultaschen: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a low boil. Working in batches so as to not overcrowd, place the Maultaschen in the pot and keep the water at a very gentle simmer. Simmer for 10-15 minutes.Remove the Maultaschen with a slotted spoon and transfer them to a colander to drain.
• To serve: The most traditional way Maultaschen in der Brühe which is warming the Maultaschen in a rich clear broth (usually beef broth) and serving it as a soup. There are other populars ways to serve Maultaschen (see blog post) and those recipes will follow!

SWABIAN MEAT PASTIES (SCHWABISCHE MAULTASCHEN)

Steps:

• Stir together flour and 1/2 teaspoons salt.
• Stir in 8 tablespoons water, vinegar and oil until mixture forms a ball.
• If necessary, add more water.
• Cover; let stand 20 minutes.
• Moisten bread in about 1 cup water; squeeze out moisture.
• Combine squeezed out bread with spinach, parsley, ground meats, sausage, CHOPPED onion, eggs, nutmeg, salt and pepper.
• Mix very well.
• Roll out 1/4 of the dough at a time until 1/8 inch thick.
• Cut into an even number of 3-inch squares.
• Place 1 1/2 tablespoons filling on centers of half the squares.
• Top with other squares.
• Crimp edges together with a fork.
• Bring stock or broth to a boil.
• Add pasties; simmer in uncovered pan about 10 minutes or until they rise to the top.
• Melt butter in a skillet.
• Saute SLICED onion in butter until golden.
• Serve pasties with sauteed onion rings.
• Garnish with breadcrumbs.
• Makes 6 servings.
• Best of International Cooking.

AUTUMN MEAT PASTIES

Steps:

• Brown beef or lamb. Add garlic and let simmer 10 minutes. Drain grease and add to gravy (or use the grease to make the gravy).
• Cook all the veggies however you like best. Use anything that sounds good. I like root vegetables and as large a mix as I can get. Peeled or unpeeled, diced or minced. You want everything bite size or smaller. You want them cooked before you add them to the meat and gravy. If you like them crunchier, just steam them lightly. If you like them mushier, cook them longer.
• Add veggies to meat and gravy. Mix well.
• If you are making your own bread, before the second rise, you need to separate the dough into individual pastie sizes -- When I use the Elevated Challah recipe, I divide it into 16 parts for large pasties, twice that for small pasties.
• I just divide the dough in half, and in half again, until I end up with a size that will probably work. I would guess that a small pastie is about 1/2 cup of dough. A large one is about twice that. Let the bread do its second rise.
• If you are buying prepared dough, make it up as you go along. I've never done it that way, but I am sure it will work just as well. Divide it into pieces big enough to stuff with the gravy mixture. I think mine usually end up around 5-6" diameter.
• Preheat the oven to 375 f.
• Roll each pastie through a bit of flour. Roll out into a circle, about a quarter of an inch thick. Fill the middle with between 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the gravy mixture (depending on the size of the dough).
• Mix the egg white and tablespoon of water. Spread a small amount along the edge of the dough, then fold it over. Pinch the edges closed. It will look like a half moon.
• Another option is to roll out two smaller circles, fill one in the middle with the gravy mixture, and set the second over the top and then pinch the dough closed (it will look like a full moon).
• Score the top of the dough (take a knife and poke holes or cut small lines) and place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
• Very lightly coat each pastie with cream (this makes it brown pretty).
• Bake for 20-30 minutes, until it is golden brown on top.
• I always have leftover gravy mix, which never bothers me. I just eat it as it is.

MAULTASCHEN (GERMAN MEAT-FILLED PASTA DUMPLINGS)

Steps:

• If using fresh spinach, bring a pot of water to a boil.
• Drop in the spinach and blanch for 1-2 minutes. Drain in a colander and squeeze as much liquid out as possible.
• If using frozen spinach, simply thaw and squeeze out the liquid in a colander.
• Chop finely.
• Heat the butter or oil in a sauté pan and sauté the onions over medium heat till translucent.
• Add the ground beef and sauté till just cooked through.
• Drain excess oil and allow to cool.
• Mix the spinach and ground beef mixture together in a bowl.
• Drain the bread and squeeze dry.
• Crumble in the bread, mix well, and season to taste with nutmeg and salt and pepper.
• Add 3-4 eggs and mix or knead to form a paste.
• Add 1-2 tsps of the stuffing to each wonton wrapper, moisten the edges with a little of the egg-water mixture, and fold in half.
• Press down on edges to seal.
• Cook for 8-10 minutes in rapidly boiling, salted water.
• Drain and serve with a little beef or chicken broth, in soups, or topped with bread crumbs toasted in melted butter.
• VARIATIONS:.
• Use different types of bread for different flavors: rye, whole wheat, or stale rolls.
• Substitute ground chicken or lamb for the ground beef. A.
• Add a little minced ham or sausages for extra flavor.
• Kräutermaultaschen (Herb maultaschen): substitute 1 bunch minced parsley and 1 bunch minced chives or scallions for half the spinach.

MAULTASCHEN (SWABIAN POCKETS)

Steps:

• Combine the flour, eggs, and salt in a bowl and mix to make a pasta dough.
• Then add a little water and knead until it has a firm but elastic consistency.
• To make the filling, melt the butter in a skillet and fry the bacon with the onions until both are quite translucent. Combine the bacon mixture with the sausage meat. Moisten the hard roll in water, press dry, and put through the meat grinder (better than the food mill or food processor), along with the bacon mixture, cooked spinach, ground meat or smoked farm sausage, leftover roast, etc. Then fold in the eggs, parsley, and seasonings; mix together.
• The filling should be very spicy indeed.
• On a board that has been sprinkled with flour, roll out the dough into rectangular sheets (about twice as wide as you want your 'Maultaschen' to be). Take a tablespoon measure and put little dabs of filling at equally spaced 3-inch intervals all down the middle of one side of the sheet of dough.
• Mix together the egg and canned milk and apply it to the spaces in between, the outer edge and the fold line. Fold the plain half of the sheet of dough over to cover the filling, press down firmly on the spaces around the little packets of filling, and use a pastry wheel or knife to separate the packets into 3-inch square or diamond- shaped 'Maultaschen'.
• The process is similar to making ravioli.
• Cook thoroughly in beef stock or boiling salted water for about 10 to 15 minutes, depending upon the size of the 'Maultaschen'.
• They'll bob up to the surface when they're done; remove them with a slotted spoon and allow to drain.
• Serving suggestions: Cut an onion or two into half-rings, fry in butter until golden brown and empty the contents of the skillet over the 'Maultaschen' on the serving dish.
• Serve with slippery potato salad or a mixed green salad.