Homage to Edward Kidder.....

.....Edward Kidder was a renowned 18th C. pastry cook (or pastry-master), who published a series of wonderful recipes and designs for pasties in receipts for pastry and cookery, c. 1720. He printed particularly interesting recipes for doe, stag & lamb pasties. Complete with intricate templates.


A popular superstition throughout Cornwall is that a crust of the pasty should be left uneaten. Cornish miners would discard this last crust in order to appease the "Knockers", the spirits of dead miners believed to haunt the tin mines. Sailors and fisherman would likewise discard a crust to appease the spirits of dead mariners. These crusts were usually snapped up by seagulls, popularly held in West Country superstition to be the souls of dead mariners.

It was commonly held that the pastry of a pasty ought to be strong enough to survive being dropped down a cornish tin-mine and not shatter! In earlier centuries pasties were made with a hard durable crust formed from rye flour. It was so tough and resilient it did not crack easily and was highly suited for pasties which were to be sent long distances as gifts - venison pasties for instance were popular wedding gifts and were even sent abroad. By the eighteenth century this inedible pastry had given way to a more edible variety.

1. Assemble the ingredients: 500g plain flour, 220g chilled fat (butter or butter & lard), iced water, 1 egg, beaten, 350g lamb, 1 onion, 2 cloves garlic, 200g peas & green beans, fresh mint, flat leaf parsley, pepper, thyme.

2. Make your pastry by sifting the flour, season with salt, add the chilled butter cut into small cubes. Rub the flour and butter together until it is a breadcrumb consistency, add chilled water until it is a smooth dough consistency. Divide into seven sections and put in the fridge.

3. Cut the lamb into small pieces. Season and add the dried thyme.

4. prepare your other ingredients; dice the onion, chop two cloves of garlic, chop two mushrooms and chop up the mint and parsley.

5. Mix these ingredients into the meat mixture.

6. voila!

7. From one of the chilled pastry portions, roll out and cut out your pastry decorations.


8. It is probably better if you have a slightly daintier knife than the one I used.

9. roll out the other chilled pastry sections. Cut out circles. Put the filling mix in the center.

10. Fold over the pastry circle and brush whisked egg around the edges. Press the edges together, in a crimping effect.

11. Brush with whisked egg.

12. Add the decoration.

13. Arrange on a tray on greased proof paper.

14. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes.

15. Remove and leave to cool.

16. And the halved view.....mmmmm