| 1 |
For the pastry, sift flour and salt together into a large chilled bowl. Drop the bits of butter into the bowl. Working quickly, use your fingertips to rub the flour and butter together until they have the appearance of flakes of coarse meal. |
| 2 |
In a separate bowl, mix together the egg and sour cream. Stir the flour-butter mixture into this, working with your fingers until you can gather the dough into a soft, pliaole ball. |
| 3 |
Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate one hour. Cut the chilled dough in half and roll out each half to 6x14-inch rectangles. Set aside any scraps. Butter the bottom of a jelly-roll pan with one tablespoon of soft butter. Lift one sheet of pastry over the rolling pin and unfold it into the pan, or drape the pastry over the rolling pin, lift it up and unfold into the pan. |
| 4 |
For the meat filling, melt the butter in a 12-inch skillet. When the foam subsides, add the chopped mushrooms and cook over moderate heat for 6 to 8 minutes, or until lightly browned. If you are using ground raw meat, add it to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally until the meat loses its red color (about 10 minutes) and any accumulated liquid in the pan cooks completely away. |
| 5 |
Scrape the meat mixture into a large mixing bowl and stir in the chopped onions, parsley, cheese and milk. Now gather this meat mixture into a ball and place it in the center of the dough in the pan. With your hands, pat the meat into a narrow loaf extending across the center of the dough from one to the other. Lift the second sheet of pastry over the rolling pin and gently drape it on top of the meat loaf. Press the edges of the two sheets together. |
| 6 |
Dip a pastry brush into the egg/milk mixture and moisten the edges of the dough. Press down edges all around the loaf with the back of a fork so that the tines seal the edges securely. Prick the top of the loaf in several places with a fork to allow steam to escape. |
| 7 |
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Gather all of the excess dough together into a ball and roll it out into a thin rectangle. With a pastry wheel or small, sharp knife, cut dough into long, narrow strips. Brush the loaf with more egg/milk mixture. Crisscross the pastry stips over the top of the loaf in an attractive pattern. |
| 8 |
Brush the strips with milk/egg mixture and set the baking pan in the center of the oven. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the loaf has turned a golden brown. |
| 9 |
Serve thick slices of the hot meat loaf accompanied by a bowl of cold sour cream and a side of lingonberries. |