This time we fill, crinkle and bake our Karelian pies. You can also read the previous two parts of this series about cooking the rice porridge filling and making the pie shells.
Spreading the porridge on the pie shells (or crusts) is a chore, especially if the porridge is too cold. However, if the porridge is too hot, it might break the delicate rye shells. The job is easiest when the porridge is at room temperature.
Spread the pie shells on your work table. You can put a small batch like 20-30 pieces on your table at a time, if they fit. However, it is good to remember that thin rye shells dry very quickly and it is difficult to crinkle dried up shells.
You can put the porridge on top of the Karelian pie shell with a spoon or a spatula. Plastic butter knives are great too. It is preferable to have about the same amount of filling in each shell. However, each pie is individual and just by experimenting with different amounts you will find your own favorite. When there are hundreds of pie crusts, it is a good idea to use a piping bag used in the making of cream cakes to fill the pie. Last Sunday we filled and crinkled 876 pies and the piping bag speeded up our work considerably.
It is good to spread the rice porridge on the pie in the shape of the final pie. It is also good to have more filling in the centre of the shell than at the edges. This is because, when the edges are folded inwards, the final thickness of the filling at the edges increases. Apply a thin layer of filling to the long ends of the pie as well, so that the pie closes nicely when crinkled. Watch the video below for a demonstration.
After the filling has been spread, it is time to crinkle. The edges of the pie are folded inwards and the crinkles are pressed / pushed into the pie according to the two videos below with your index fingers. The fingers should be slightly bent. The thumbs run behind the forefingers and act as guides, but the thumbs do not press. Most importantly, crinkles are not pinched with the index fingers and thumbs; you wouldn’t like it yourself if you were pinched. To understand the significance of crinkles, cook Kolmonen's book Karjalan parhaat leivonnaiset (translated: The Best Pastries of Karelia) (1993) is also quoted:
Mitä enemmän ryppyjä saadaan, sitä enemmän muodostuu makupintaa. (translated: The more wrinkles you get, the more flavor surface is formed.)
Learning to crinkle takes time. Best results are obtained only by repetition.
After crinkling, the pies can finally be baked. Carefully lift the pies (approx. 12-15 pieces) onto a baking paper or a silicone mat on a baking sheet. In a convection oven, a good and sufficient temperature is typically 250°C. In convection ovens for professional kitchens, a lower temperature may be sufficient. Large convection ovens have powerful fans that can blow hot air into the pie through the crinkles, and the pie bulges and explodes (been there, done that...). In a conventional oven, a suitable baking temperature is 275-300°C at home.
Note! It may so be that the silicone coating of the baking paper does not withstand heat above 275°C. If so, you can bake pies on a baking sheet directly by sprinkling some rough rye flour on the sheet.
Bake the pies until the porridge starts to brown on the top (for about 15-20 minutes). Of course this time depends on the power of your oven.
After baking, the tops of the Karelian pies can be greased with butter or a mixture of butter and milk/water. We do not recommend spreading the mixture to the bottoms of the pies as too much is just too much and this softens the pie.
Karelian pies are now baked. Do not burn your mouth. Allow the pies to cool slightly. By stacking greased Karelian pies on top of each other in one way or another, they remain succulent and warm longer.
See you next time!