Leek Pasties

While in Mammoth, I wanted to have a relatively heavy dish to accompany the vichyssoise, and I knew that I was making the mushroom appetizers and therefore would have plenty of pastry dough. I decided to make something like a calzone using pastry dough, and soon found out that these are actually called Cornish Pasties (though the filling is completely nontraditional)

Recipe:
1/2 Puff Pastry recipe
2 leek whites, halved, cleaned, and sliced
goat cheese
balsamic vinegar

Cut large rounds out of the pastry dough. The size is really up to you, but mine were about 5 inches in diameter. In a pan over medium-high heat, add some olive oil, the leeks, and a little salt. Cook the leeks until lightly browned, then spoon into the center of each circle. Splash balsamic vinegar on top of each pile of leeks, then top generously with crumbled goat cheese. I never really measured the amount that I used, but you should be able to get close with the pictures.

Carefully fold over the dough. Mine were stuffed pretty densely, so I had to fight back escaping filling using a fork. With the tines of a fork, crimp the edge of the dough to seal it. There is no need to cut holes in the dough to let steam escape, as you would if you were using pie or pizza dough. Bake at 350ºF for 25 minutes, then allow to cool 10 minutes or so before serving. Yielded 5 pasties for me, but depending on how you cut the dough you can probably get 6.

The crust comes out nice and crispy, and the filling is full of flavor. If made in a smaller size, these would make great appetizers, or they could be a main course if a bit bigger. There are many various fillings you could use, but I don't think anything greasy would work well with it (i.e. a lot of cheeses).

I nearly forgot - I got my first award, thanks to Elle at Elle's New England Kitchen. Thanks, Elle!