Taste of the Upper Peninsula

The History Of A Pasty- Those responsible for bringing the pasty (sometimes called Cousin Jack) into the Lake Superior region during the middle 1800's were the Cornish miners or otherwise known as "Cousin Jack". Because of their English origin they were called "Cousins" and "Union Jacks," but the term soon became "Cousin Jacks." Their wives were known as "Cousin Jennies." Back in Cornwall the wives baked the pasties in the morning, rolled them in their aprons and hurried down to the mine shafts. Their husbands and sons, grouped under the trees at the noon hour, received a sizzling meal in the only possible manner it could be supplied. When theses sturdy miners came to Michigan, the pasty came, too, not only for the Cornish-men,but for the Scandinavians, Italians, Finns, and other nationalities that followed this hardy breed of pioneers down the mine shafts. It didn't take long for others to realize that cold sandwiches did not compare with the steaming, succulent contents of the "Cousin Jack mouth organ." The pasty consists of tasty, economical meal of roast beef, potatoes, onions, rutabaga, and carrots, seasoned and nicely wrapped in a delicious crust and baked.