Vegetable pies: They have a guarantee for a specialty from the European Commission
Sklandrausis is one of the most traditional and unique Latvian dishes. It was the first Latvian dish to be awarded the status of "Guaranteed Traditional Specialty" by the European Commission, listing it alongside other European specialties such as champagne, gorgonzola and camembert. These are vegetable pies made from rye flour that are filled with a mixture of carrots and potatoes and eaten cold with tea or milk. The dish originates from Kurzeme (western Latvia) from the 16th-17th century. The two-part name (Sklandrausis) suggests that rausis (pie) was traditionally made by scraping hot ash or charcoal over pies, while sklandrausis means "slope" referring to the inverted edges of the pie crust.
Ingredients needed:
- 400 g rye flour
- 125 g butter
- 1 glass of hot water
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 7 medium carrots
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 tablespoons of honey
- 1 egg
- 2 medium potatoes
- 100 ml of milk
Method of preparation:
Peel a squash, grate it and squeeze the juice. Peel a squash, grate it and squeeze the juice. Peel a squash, grate it and put it in a separate saucepan. Cover with water and cook until tender. softened.
While the vegetables are boiling, prepare the dough. Dissolve the salt and sugar in the water. Mix the flour with the softened butter (100 g) and add the water, mixing well to get a dough. Knead the dough for 5 to 7 minutes until it is soft enough to work with.
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
Roll out the dough to a thickness of 3-5 mm. Use an 8 cm cookie cutter to cut 15 discs. Fold 1 cm from the edges up to form a pastry basket. Place the baskets on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
Prepare the filling. Squeeze the carrots and put them in a food processor. Add honey, egg and sour cream and process for 20 seconds. Squeeze the potatoes, mash until smooth, add milk and butter (25 g) and mix until well combined.
To fill the pastry baskets, spread 1 teaspoon of mashed potatoes on top with a tablespoon of processed carrots. Repeat the procedure until all the pieces are filled. Put the tin in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until the pastry is cooked and the filling turns golden.