Savory Hand Pies with Jim Dodge

Join celebrated pastry chef and author Jim Dodge as he shares over four decades of his experience and stories at the Artisan Baking Center!

We love the versatility of hand pies: They can shine as the perfect addition to a packed lunch, a lovely appetizer, or as a main course when served with a bowl of soup or a salad. Their flavors can be varied endlessly to fit the season or special event, making them the perfect vehicle for creativity.

In this class you will learn:

• How to make two different types of hand pie doughs; both by hand, and using a stand mixer and food processor.
• How to infuse the two doughs with spices and herbs.
• Proper dough resting for easier handling and rolling.
• How to sauté meat fillings so they remain tender.
• Rolling and shaping to create the classic Cornish crimped edges for the perfect hand pie seal.
• Controlling oven temps for even baking and browning.
• And, once the pies are baked, proper handling, cooling, storing and freezing.

Class Menu:

• Cornish Beef, Potato, Parsnip & Turnip Pasty
• Chicken, Leak, Herbs, Parsley Crust Hand Pie
• Jamaican Curried Vegetable, Turmeric Crust Hand Pie

This is both a demonstration and hands-on class: students will make two of the recipes and Chef Jim will demo the third. Each student will leave with the 2 types of hand pies that they make in class.

Meals: We will start the class with a tasting of the hand pie that Chef Jim demonstrates and finish the day with a tasting of the two varieties of student-made pies during the end of class Q&A.

Menu is subject to change.

Jim Dodge is an award-winning pastry chef and author who comes from seven generations of hoteliers from the lakes region and white mountain of New Hampshire. After early training and direction at his parents’ luxury resorts, he began a two-year Swiss pastry apprenticeship with chef Fritz Albicker, at which time he decided become a pastry chef instead of a hotelier. The Swiss influence with his New England heritage, resulting in unique methods of preparation and styling. In 1978, Jim moved to the West Coast to be the executive pastry chef at the Stanford Court in San Francisco for 10 years, during which he became one of the first pastry chefs to be nationally recognized.

In 1991, Jim opened The American Pie, a pastry shop and cafe offering modern American fare in Hong Kong; a wholesale bakery and a second American Pie followed. In 1993, Jim returned to the States and left retail baking for education, joining the New England Culinary Institute in Montpelier, VT, as senior vice president.

He is the author of “The American Baker” and “Baking with Jim Dodge”. Besides teaching pastry domestically for over 35 years, he has taught in Japan, Korea, Mexican and Panama. Jim is an advisor to the Julia Child Foundation and jury chair for the Julia Child Award.

Please stay home if you’re experiencing any symptoms of illness. Email us at [email protected] if this occurs to speak with a class coordinator.

Categories: Baking Class, Beginner, Cooking Class