v:gourmet

This is a bit of a long story … but the other day Sammy put in an order for Jamaican Meat Patties because he had them at a friend’s house and liked them. In soliciting suggestions for where to buy them in Toronto my friend, Pamela, challenged me to making my own Jamaican veggie patties. Of course I had to accept the challenge. So today I went out to get some ingredients and on my way back I bumped into my new buddies, Sam and Gordon, who are doing work on the house across the street. We struck up a conversation, I told them what I was up to, and they asked to be my official taste testers. Sam is from St. Vincent and Gordon is from Jamaica and I got 100% thumbs up from both of them which I take as a big endorsement. Sam even said he wasn’t dipping in the hot sauce because he only does that when the flavours aren’t good enough. Score.

For the filling:

1 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 large yellow onion, diced

1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/8 tsp cayenne

coarse sea salt

2 larges cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup coconut milk

1/4 cup finely diced carrots

1/4 cup finely diced yellow potatoes

1/2 cup fresh green peas (or frozen)

1/2 cup sweet fresh corn (or frozen)

1/2 cup shredded kale

1 tbsp minced fresh thyme

1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/2 tsp freshly ground white pepper

For the pastry:

1 1/2 cups unbleached flour + 1/4 cup for rolling out the pastry

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

2 tsps turmeric

1/2 tsp fine sea salt

3/4 cup chilled coconut oil

2 tsps apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons ice water

For the filling: In a medium-size saute pan over medium-low heat, combine the coconut oil, the onion, cinnamon, allspice, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Saute, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are caramelized. Add the garlic and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk, carrots, and potatoes, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the carrots and potatoes are tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in the green peas, corn, cabbage, thyme, and lemon juice, cover, and cook for 3 minutes more. Season with additional salt and the white pepper (or to taste) and set aside to allow the flavors to marry.

For the pastry: Combine 1 1/2 cups of the white flour with the pastry flour, turmeric, and salt in a large bowl and mix well. Set the remaining 1/4 cup white flour aside. Add the coconut butter to the flour mixture and rub with your fingertip until the mixture resembles fine sand, about 10 minutes.

Combine the vinegar and water and mix well. Then, without overworking the dough, add the vinegar mixture by the tablespoon, while stirring, just until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl and begins to coalesce. Squeeze into a tight ball, flatten, cover in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350F and remove the dough from the refrigerator.

With the reserved flour, lightly dust a clean surface, roll out the dough until it is about 1/8 inch thick. Cut six 6-inch circles from the dough (you can use a bowl). Spoon 2 heaping tablespoons of the filling onto the center of one side of each circle, leaving about a 1/8-inch border. Fold the other half over to make a half-moon, press to seal, and make ridges around the edge using a fork.

Transfer the patties to a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until golden brown, about 35 minutes. Serve immediately with some hot sauce.

Adapted from  Bryant Terry’s Vegan Soul Kitchen via 101 Cookbooks