Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Adventures in dough making

I made more meat pasties this weekend, using leftover roast pork from a friend's family dinner. We had whole roast pig @ Incanto and it was fabulous.

The wine wasn't so bad either wink wink nudge nudge.

I was asked to take some leftover roast pork home to share with the boys, and of course I didn't refuse. I admit that I did not realize JUST how much it was until the next morning.

Well after yelling at everyone for inept behavior I decided I would make change pace and direction. We would go out, do some errands, have some lunch, return and make dough. The dough could be baked that day or the next, but it would be done ...

Anyhow, suffice to say, knitting beckoned after badgering the family and scrubbing toilet with bleach. So I wrapped up my dough to bake the following day.

I opened my fridge the next morning and this dough beast was climbing out of the cellophane... That thing grew ... and was punch kneaded and regrown I think 3 times by then. I learned to worry about a term called "over proofing" which at first I thought HM meant "over poofing".

Anyways, it was poofy when I got home, but I decided to stick it out and make my pork pasties. The Manfriend pulled it, seasoned one with bbq and the other with spring onion and olive oil that I wrapped with fontina cheese (still too dry). We were ready to go. The problem was ... me. Rolling that dough took more upper body strength than I have. Seriously, it sent me back to the push-up regimen. The worst part of it was when you would roll the dough out, it would spring back.

My smarter cooking and baking friends tried to explain gluttons, and likening my experience to pizza dough and allowing the dough to rest after kneading ...

Whatevs. Rolling the dough out took a lot of work. I was so angry with it when I finished my second sheet pan, I didn't even bother trying to save the rest of the dough. It went straight in the compost.

Also the pasties were ugly. Seriously so ugly that even if I could take littlesnoopy good pictures, I wouldn't have shot them. Well, maybe just for the pure, "can you believe that crap?!?" pleasure.

Final product was brought into work to share with co-workers and co-knitters alike. The pasties were finished. And honestly? I think I am too ... at least with THAT kind of dough, for a little while.

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