Little Pumpkin Pasties

Perfect for fall, Halloween, or a Harry Potter party, you should totally try to keep in mind the recipe for Little Pumpkin Pasties!

You will find no end of inspiration on the internet for this dish. Pumpkin Pasties are a stand-out food item in the Harry Potter series, IMHO because that sound darling and tasty. My particular version is envisioned as a sweet little snack with mild creamy punch, just bite-sized enough.

Here's the recipe, which makes about 24 pasties (up to 28 if you're thin with the dough):

• Step 1: Turn on the soundtrack to "Goblet of Fire," because HEY: Weird Sisters.
• Step 2: Spin around like a crazy elf
• Step 3: Bake

Filling:

• 2 oz cream cheese
• 1 TBS brandy (optional)
• 2 TBS sugar
• 1/2 cup (or a little less) pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon

Whip cream cheese. Add brandy (if you are using it), whip some more. Add everything else and mix until fully combined. Filling fulfilled!

Pastry (or you could go pre-made route)

• 1.75 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 tsp salt
• pinch cinnamon
• pinch nutmeg
• 1/4 c vegetable oil
• 3 tbl unsweetened almond milk
• 3 tbl cold water

Mix the dry ingredients together, then add the oil. Stir (or mush with your hands) until crumbly. Add milk and water, and mix until a nice dough forms

Roll out until thin (1/8" is typically recommended ... I just make it thin, but not unworkable). Using a large-ish biscuit cutter, cut out 24 - 28 circles.

Pre-heat over to 350 degrees F.

Dab 1/2 tsp - 1 tsp in the center of each circle of pastry dough. Wet the edge and fold over to make a half-circle; crimp the edge with the prongs of a fork to seal. Using a sharp knife, cut 1 to 3 small slits for venting.

Place all pasties on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush them lightly with a mixture of whole egg and a pinch of salt (this will make them shiny), and bake for 30 minutes.

The outcome is a slightly sweet, slightly savory collection of pasties that will be eaten in two bites. If you like pumpkin pie and a mild cheesecake flavor, I think you'll enjoy them. :)

More Pasty Recipes from Around the Web!

• Britta.com (the original Potter-recipe place, at least for me) -- also found at The Leaky Cauldron -- and they sound GOOD
• The Geeky Chef -- practically the same as above. But with a really pretty picture.
• Diamonds for Dessert -- another with ingredients similar to the above (adapted from Geeky Chef, in fact, but this time with an illustrated guide to filling them!
• Dumbledore's Vegan Army - VEGAN, and slightly more savory
• Food.com - well rated, but not with many ratings. This one looks safe, if not a little like pumpkin-pie pockets
• Instuctables - I love it when Instructables does things.
• Anticraft - Anticraft does it in the round! Nice touch.
• Mugglenet - this version is probably the down-right easiest, as it uses canned Pumpkin Pie mix and pre-made pastry crust
• Good Food (?) - I don't even know what this site is, but BLESS THEM: this is a non-Harry Potter, non-American take on Pumpkin pasties. It has CHEESE and it is SAVORY and I am going to try it soon.

Mmm... I hope by this year's trip to Hogsmeade that the Three Broomsticks will add Pumpkin Pasties to the menu.