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HOW
TO MAKE SHORT PASTRY
Bora
da everyone! I
hope you all had time to make and enjoy some of the
Welsh cakes from last week's recipe? I sit here on watching
the sun set typing this, its St David's (March 1st)
I have a pot of tea, a freshly baked batch of cakes
in front of me and some wonderful New Zealand cheddar
to eat with them. On the stereo I have my sister's Xmas
present playing, a CD of Bryn Terfyll singing all the
Welsh classic's . . . what a way to celebrate!
But
I digress as usual . . . this week's recipe was at the
request of our very own David, who asked me about pastry
making. So I am sharing with you the recipe I always
use for savoury tarts, tartlets and quiches. It is a
short pastry that uses butter and cream cheese, it gives
the pastry a very delicate texture and have a melt in
the mouth feel, not to mention being easy to make, with
no fancy techniques or baking knowledge needed.
Following
the pastry recipe is a special bonus this week! Well
there is no point in having a cooked pastry case sitting
there and nothing to do with it, is there? So we are
also going to make an onion
tart, a classical French dish that I love to
share with friends over a glass of Beaujolais, an espresso,
some brie or camembert and a little cranberry sauce
with a splash of lemon juice in it for extra tartness
and not a hint of meat in sight!
We
will be looking at other pastries over the coming weeks,
so you will always have an easy to prepare recipe on
hand when the occasion arises. Oh and a special recipe
soon to help the Irish celebrate St Patrick's Day!
Until
then, bon appetit and enjoy!
Ingredients
for Short
pastry
| butter
(at room temperature) |
125
|
gm |
| cream
cheese (at room temperature) |
125
|
gm |
| plain
flour |
250
|
gm |
How
to make Short
pastry
- Cream
the butter and cream cheese together
- Add
flour and combine quickly to a homogenous paste (add
more pastry if it seems to wet)
- Refrigerate
for one hour to allow it to rest
- Remove
from chiller and allow to come up to temperature before
rolling (enough to line 1 x 20cm flan ring)
- Lightly
grease and flour a 20 cm flan ring, roll out pastry
and line the flan ring
- Lightly
pierce the bottom of the pastry with a fork (this
is called docking the pastry) to stop any air bubbles
forming when baking, place on a tray
- Line
with some greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans,
lentils or similar
- Blind
bake in a pre-heated oven (170ºC) for 20 minutes
Chef's
Tip for Short
pastry
Do
not worry if the pastry tears when lining the case,
the texture of it means patching up is easy and undetectable
when cooked.
If
you would like to try making the pastry why not have
a go at making the Onion
Tart recipe
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Chef's
terminology:
|
| |
lt |
=
|
litres |
|
tsp |
= |
teaspoon |
| |
ml |
=
|
millelitres |
|
tbs |
= |
tablespoon |
| |
kg |
=
|
kilograms |
|
sq |
= |
sufficient
quantity (add to taste) |
| |
gm |
=
|
grams |
|
pc |
= |
piece,
meaning a whole one of |
|
Enjoy
and bon appetit . . . . .
Recipe
from professional
Chef Tallyrand
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