Prune pastelito. Photo by Liddie Martinez
By LIDDIE MARTINEZ
Española Valley
Grandma always made prune pastelitos when she was expecting company. These flaky, prune pie squares paired perfectly with a steaming hot cup of coffee and the casual conversation she had with cousins, neighbors, or her sister, my Tia Fela, every time she came to visit. How I loved for my Tia Fela to visit! She lived in El Rito so, when she came over, it was for a week at a time, and it took about that length of time for the two sisters to catch up on all the gossip happening in both communities. My sister and I would quietly creep in to serve the coffee and pastry while trying hard to dissolve into the background so we could listen to the scoop instead of being sent away to perform other household tasks.
They would talk about the latest news on every family member and then move on to the retelling of our favorite stories about their shenanigans at the dances held at the SPMDTU back in the day. We heard about them hitching the horses to the wagons and getting stuck in the mud and having to sleep over at relative’s house on the way home. They would stay up late telling stories by the fireside. We heard about old sweethearts, brothers lost to war and babies that didn’t survive whooping cough. They remembered every name. We heard about the mad storms that destroyed crops and damaged roofs and barns. They remembered wedding cakes made, and twin calves born and delivering breached babies. So much to remember…
When I bake these special pastelitos, a whole host of ghosts surround me to make sure I acknowledge the past and remember to honor those who shared their memories and their recipes. These sweet treats are meant to be shared with people you love.
I will be taking a break from writing my food column for a few months, but we will be running the greatest hits from previous years and, I will be back mid-summer! Until then, enjoy coffee, pie and conversations with the elders in your life. Their stories are amazing and deserving of our time and full attention.
No Fail Pie Crust
2 Cups All Purpose Flour
¾ Cup Cold Butter, cut into small cubes
1 ½ Teaspoon Coarse salt
1 Cup Ice cold Water, more or less
Mix flour and salt together and cut butter into flour using pastry blender. This is where your time should be spent. Keep at it until the mixture looks like coarse sand. There will be pieces of butter visible in the dough; that is OK.
About the liquid, you will never use the exact amount of water in your crust. Weather, humidity levels, how your house is heated will all factor into the amount of water required. I always prepare plenty of ice water and then water a plant with the remainder.
Never knead pie crust! When you add the water, do it in small quantities. Rake your finger through it and remove the sections that bind together until you form two (2) balls of dough, one slightly larger than the other. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate while you make the filling or overnight.
Prune Filling
3 cups pitted prunes
1 cup sugar
2 tsps. cinnamon
½ cup orange juice
½ cup water
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes on low. You can add a slurry made from 3 Tbsp. cornstarch and 1/3 cup cold water to thicken or just simmer until desired consistency has been reached. Be careful not to scorch the filling – stir constantly. Allow the filling to cool before assembling.
Roll out the larger pastry ball using flour on surface and line baking sheet with pastry, trimming off the excess. Spread filling thinly and cover with second pastry sheet made from the small ball. Trim leaving ¼ inch of overhang, then tuck edge of top crust under the bottom crust and press tightly against baking sheet to seal. Flute edges and cut a vent into the center before baking.
Brush top with an egg wash made from one egg yolk and a tablespoon of water. Sprinkle with sugar and bake for 15 minutes at 425°, then lower heat to 350° and bake for an additional 45 minutes. Cool before cutting into 2-inch squares.
Makes 24 servings.
Editor’s note: Liddie Martinez is the author of the popular award winning Chile Line Cookbook: Historic Recipes of Northern New Mexico, which is available online at https://thechileline505.square.site/.