Pies to Brighten Bleak Winter Days

Karelia, historically the southeastern part of Finland, is home to a rich culinary culture that still thrives today. Much of the region was ceded to Russia after the 1939-1940 Winter War with Finland, and current divisions are a bit mind-boggling: North and South Karelia belong to Finland, while Ladoga Karelia, Olonets Karelia, White Karelia, and the Karelian Isthmus are part of Russia.

Yet what the entire region has in common are the small, rich, open-faced pies known in Finnish as karjalanpiirakat. So distinctive are these pies that in 2003 the European Union granted them TSG (Traditional Specialty Guaranteed) status, which indicates their authentic character.

Karelian pies are related to the rich bread and pie baking traditions of Russia. Their name in the Karelian dialect is kalitt — an etymological cousin of the Russian open-faced pie called kalitka, native to northwestern Russia. Some Russian linguists unfamiliar with cuisine insist that the word derives from the Russian kalita, or purse, the shape of which these pies can be said to resemble. In any case, what especially distinguishes these pies is that, unlike most Russian pies, which are made with yeast dough or various forms of short pastry so they will be tender, kalitki are always made with unfermented rye dough. According to food historian Maksim Syrnikov, so important is rye flour to the production of kalitki that even during Soviet times, when rye flour was a deficit item elsewhere in Russia, it was available in the Karelian region for baking these pies.

The pies are filled with cooked porridge, traditionally barley or a mixture called talkkuna — malted grain (usually barley, rye or oats) that has been laboriously soaked and dried and then reconstituted into porridge. In Russian, this dish is known as tolokno, and it was the mainstay of many a peasant family. However, as soon as other options became available, barley and oats largely disappeared as fillings. In Finland, once the price of rice dropped in the late nineteenth century, creamy rice porridge became the filling of choice. In Russian Karelia, mashed potatoes remain the most popular, and buckwheat porridge is also used in some villages.

Both kalitki and Karelian pies turn hard after standing, which is why the pies are either dipped in a buttery milk mixture or brushed with butter and then covered with a dishtowel to keep them soft. To contribute an even creamier texture, in Finland the pies are usually topped with a mixture of mashed hardboiled eggs and butter. In some parts of Finland, and in Russia, they are often served with chopped smoked fish instead, the local vendace (ryapushka) being the favorite. Karelian Russians also like to serve the pies with the classic clear fish soup ukha. No matter how they are presented, Karelian pies are delightful for supper during a cold, bleak time of year.

Karelian Pies

Rice filling

6 Tablespoons water

6 Tablespoons

short-grain rice

1½ cups whole milk

¼ (generous) teaspoon salt

Egg Butter

1 egg

2 Tablespoons butter,

at room temperature

Salt

Milk-Butter Dip

3 Tablespoons butter

6 Tablespoons whole milk

Dough

½ cup + 2 Tablespoons

medium rye flour

6 Tablespoons

all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

7 Tablespoons

whole milk

1 Tablespoon butter,

softened, in bits

In a small pan bring the water to a boil and add the rice. Cook, stirring, over low heat until the water has been absorbed. Then begin adding the milk little by little, stirring constantly, as though you are making risotto. It will take about 20 minutes for the milk to be absorbed. The rice should be soft and creamy but still moist. Remove from the heat and stir in the salt. Let rest 15 minutes before using. (If you are making this filling early in the day, it will thicken on standing. Heat it gently to soften again.)

Place the egg in a small saucepan and boil for 8 minutes, then pour cold running water over it to cool. Peel and set aside. Cream the butter, then mash the egg in with a fork. Using a hand mixer or immersion blender, whip the mixture until soft and fluffy. Season to taste with a little salt.

Mix the butter and milk in a wide saucepan over low heat until the butter melts. Keep warm.

In a medium bowl mix together the flours and the salt. Stir in enough water to make a sticky but firm dough, then work in the butter by hand.

On a lightly floured board, roll the dough out very thin, 1/16” thick, to an 8” x 12” rectangle. Fold the dough in quarters and turn it, then roll out again, as though making puff pastry. Repeat this folding and rolling process 1 more time.

Fold the dough into quarters once again and roll it out into a long rectangle, about 12” long x 4” wide. Fold the dough in half lengthwise and then roll it out again into a narrow strip, about 20” long and 2” wide.

Cut the strip into 10 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, then flatten into a small disk. Let the disks rest, covered with a dishtowel, for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 450º F. Roll each disk out thin into an oval about 5” long and 3 ½” wide. Place 1 to 2 teaspoons of the rice filling down the center of the dough, leaving 1/2” free of filling at either end. Gently flatten the filling.

With floured hands, starting at the bottom, pinch the edges together at the bottom end to form a point, and then work your way up the sides of the dough, crimping the edges decoratively between thumb and forefinger to create a border around the exposed filling. Bring the top edges together in a point to make a canoe-shaped pastry with an upright, crimped pattern. As each pie is made, place it on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake the pies at 450º for 10-12 minutes. They will not color much, but the tips of the dough will turn dark in spots (this is desirable). Remove from the oven and, using tongs, immediately dip each pastry into the milk-butter mixture, to coat on all sides.

Set the pies on a serving plate. Spoon a dollop of egg butter onto each pie and serve immediately. If you want to prepare them ahead of time, return the pies to the baking sheet after dipping them in the milk-butter mixture, and cover with a dishtowel to keep them soft. Then reheat gently in the oven. Top with egg butter and serve.

Makes 10 small pies.