BriarPatch Food Co-op | Winter 2023-24
s e i t s a P h s i n r o C f o y r Histo Deli
the pasty and tossed the ends into the tunnels to avoid consuming arsenic dust that may have accumulated on their hands.
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Those mining days are long gone, but locals still love a good pasty.
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Those mining days are long gone, but locals still love a good pasty.
Men in search of fortune at the Empire Mine, circa 1900. This is a photograph taken at the end of a long shift. Many of these miners are Cornishmen, nicknamed “Cousin Jacks.” Pasties were a regular mealtime fare: meat and veggies wrapped in pastry dough and baked. Photo credit: @visitgrassvalley
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rass Valley’s Empire Mine was home to some of the oldest, deepest and richest gold mines in California. During the 1800s, hundreds of Cornish Miners, nicknamed Cousin Jacks, flocked to the gold mines of the Sierra Nevada. In Grass Valley, some reports show the Cornish population to be as high as 85 percent in 1890.
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Down into the subterranean mines, miners carried their midday meal in metal lunch pails – usually coffee or tea and a humble, handheld pie filled with meat and potatoes called a “pasty.” Pasties are the quintessential food of Cornwall, a region in southwest England that has mined tin and other metals since the Bronze Age. An easily transportable food, folk history suggests miners held onto the crust of
At BriarPatch, the legacy continues. We serve up to 12 different varieties throughout the year, both for meat lovers and vegetarians, loaded with organic ingredients. For St. Patrick’s Day, a green pasty naturally dyed with spinach juice and stuffed with Cornish brisket and veggies is a seasonal favorite. Fruit-filled dessert hand pies sweetened with fruit are a treat for all ages.
Here’s a recipe from our Deli crew, retooled for home cooks.
