In Michigan, The Pasty Isn't X-Rated. It's A Portable Pie With History Baked In
The lightly seasoned meat and veggie pie, prevalent in the Upper Peninsula, is pure fuel. Popularized by Cornish miners in the 1800s, it's come to symbolize tenacity in the face of trying conditions.
When Stephen Bosio of Pasadena, Calif., fed his 9-month-old son a pasty, the act felt, by his assessment, more important than it should have.
"Teddy is a fifth generation pasty-eating man," Stephen told me.
Outside the rural Midwest, the term "pasty" is associated with a particular brand of nipple clamp rather than a pastry shell stuffed with ground beef and root vegetables, although the pronunciations of these terms differ. The food variety, ironically, rhymes with "nasty" rather than "tasty." In Michigan's Upper Peninsula (U.P.), where Stephen and I grew up, the dish is as culturally ubiquitous as deep-dish pizza is
