Bermudians love some mussel pie at Cup Match and any time of the year. The local custom is to have the lid of the hot pie sliced open and a dollop of mayonnaise inserted.
For the Pie Filling:
1/4 bushel of small mussels, scrubbed
2 lbs potatoes, cut in small dice
2 medium onions, chopped fine
2 tbs fresh thyme
1 tbs parsley, minced
2 tbs curry powder
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp graving browning
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup water
3 tbs cornstarch
Steam the mussels in 3/4 cup of water and reserve the broth. Remove the mussels from their shells and keep ready. Strain the broth of all grit (a fine strainer or cheesecloth should be used) and re-heat.
Boil the onions, potatoes, thyme and parsley together in the water until the potatoes are tender.
Add curry powder, Worcestershire sauce, gravy browning, and mussels and bring to boil. Thicken with cornstarch mixed with cold water, added while mixture is boiling. If it’s not thick enough, repeat with more cornstarch and water. Allow the filling to cool before proceeding.
For the Pastry:
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup cold vegetable shortening
1/4 cup iced water
Stir together the flour and salt. Cut the shortening into the flour in stages until it represents small peas. Sprinkle with a little water and toss to moisten the dough. Work the dough as little as possible, using as few strokes as you can to get it all combined into a ball of dough. Flatten slightly and wrap with plastic wrap, and chill for at least an hour or up to 4 days in the refrigerator (a month in the freezer). Let dough soften at room temperature before rolling out. Use the inverted pie pan or ramekin to measure the circle of dough needed. Fill pans or ramekins, cut and fit dough to top of pie. Bake until golden-brown and bubbly within.
