Cookies & Bars
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Jamaican Beef Patties

This recipe is from my friend Nicola. She obtained the recipe from her mother's helper who made them for Nicola and her family in Jamaica. The recipe has been standardized from the original but confirmed by Nicola as tasting the same as they did when she ate them at home. - Will
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Ingredients

Filling

1-3 teaspoons cooking oil
2 stalks scallions finely chopped
1 lb. ground beef
1 medium onion finely chopped
1 tablespoon + 1 tablespoon thyme
1 Habañero finely chopped (see warning below)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon Beef Bovaril
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ketchup
1 teaspoon paprika
3/4 - 1 1/2 cups water

Pattie Dough

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup butter
3 tablespoons shortening (Crisco)
5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon ice-cold water

Dough Directions

Sift flour, salt and sugar together. In a separate bowl, combine butter and shortening. Cut half of the shortening into the flour mixture until it has the grain of cornmeal. Cut the remaining half in until it is pea-sized.

Sprinkle the dough with the 5 tablespoons of water. Blend the water into the dough, lifting the ingredients with a fork as necessary, allowing the moisture to spread. If needed to hold the ingredients together, add the extra water a little at a time.

When you can gather the dough into a ball, stop handling it. Cover and refrigerate while you make the filling.

Filling Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix together meat, scallions, pepper, onion and half of the thyme. Place in the frying pan with teaspoon cooking oil and cook over a low flame until meat is cooked, about 10 minutes. Pour off excess fat.

Add in bread crumbs, the rest of the thyme, the beef seasoning, black pepper paprika and ketchup. Cook for 15 more minutes, adding water as necessary to keep the mixture moist. Cool before filling pastry.

Roll out pastry until 1/8 inch thick, and cut into whatever shape you want (I usually cut them into 4 inch diameter circles). Put filling on one half of the dough, and moisten the outer edge with some water (just wet your finger and spread the water). Fold dough over the filling, and then press the edges together firmly, sealing them with a fork.

Bake 15-20 minutes. Cool on racks.

Variations

You can, of course, use any kind of dough you'd like. The recipe above yields crisp, flaky crust that in and of itself is delicious.

Tips & Notes

Warning! Habañero peppers are the world's hottest pepper, and care should be taken while handling them. Do not touch your eye after handling the pepper, as the oil from the pepper's skin will burn your eye. I recommend wearing gloves or using a towel to hold the pepper while cutting them.
Habañero peppers are also referred to as Scotch Bonnets. I'm not 100% sure that they are the same pepper, but they're close enough for the recipe.
This dough refrigerates and freezes well, and reheats to perfection!
Dough can be made in a food processor.