ALL ABOUT PASTRY MAKING

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 103, 22 July 1927, Page 4

ALL ABOUT PASTRY MAKING

There are several kinds of pastry, such as short crust, suet crust, flaky, rough puff, puff and raised pie pastry, but beginnei's would be well advised to master the plainer kinds of pastry first. Rules Whatever the kind of pastry, however, certain rules apply to all. Make pastry in a cool place, and keep everything, including the hands, as cool as possible. Use a special board, slate or marble slab for pastry making, unless one of the new kitchen tables with porcelain tops is available. v Do not make pastry too moist; it should be able to be handled easily without sticking to the hands or knife. The oven must be understood, as the hottest part may be at the top or a the bottom. In some cases the oven heat is uniform all over. Bottom heat %i good for puff pastries, and it allows the pastry to rise before the crust browns and hardens. Should pastry become too brown before it is cooked cover it with a sheet of paper, sprinkled with water. Oven Temperatures Puff Pastry.—34o deg. Fahrenheit to begin with. When well risen reduce to 325 deg. Meat Pies. —300 deg. Fahrenheit; reduce later to 290 deg. Tartlets, Flans, Fruit Pies. —320 deg. Fahrenheit. Reduce the latter when the pastry is cooked to allow of the fruit cooking. Short Crust Pastry.—Required: Mb. of flour. 4oz. of butter or butter and margarine mixed, pinch of salt. 1 teaspoonful of castor sugar, a squeeze of lemon juice. Cold water to mix. Method. —Sieve the flour and salt into a basin. Rub in the butter lightly with the tips of the fingers until as fine as breadcrumbs, add the sugar, make a well in the centre, put in the lemon juice, and add the water gradually, stirring in the flour with a knife. The amount of water cannot be given, as some flours require more than others, but the pastry should be just moist enough to roll. When mixed, knead with the hand until smooth, then roll out on a floured board. This pastry may be made richer by using more butter, up to 60z., to 11b. of flour, and the yolk of an egg beaten up with a little of the water. It may be made plainer by using 3 to 4oz. of lard or dripping in place of butter, and adding 1 teaspoonful u£ baking powder. Suitable for fruit pies, tarts, tartlets, turnovers, dumplings, and also for moat pies. The richer short crust makes good flans. Note. —Do not use sugar for meat pie pastry. Flaky Pastry.—Required: ?.lb of flour, 6oz. of butter or butter and lard mixed, pinch of salt, water. Method. —Divide the butter into three portions. Sieve the flour and salt into a basin, and rub in one portion of the butter. Mix to a stiff paste with the water, roll into a long thin strip on a floured board. Divide the remaining two portions of the butter into three. Put one-tliird in small pieces in even rows all over the strip of pastry, leaving a margin of nearly an inch from the of the pastry all round. Dredge lightly with flour, and fold the pastry in three. Press the edges well together with the rolling pin, and turn the pastry with the fold to the left. Roll out again, and proceed in the same way with the second portion of butter. Again roll, and use up the third portion of butter. The pastry must have in all three folds and three rolls, and the fold must always be turned to the left. Suitable for meat pies, sausage rolls, tarts, tartlets, and so on. Roman Pie.—Line a round, not too high, greased cake tin with short crust pastry. Mince 21b. of cooked meat of any kind, mix it with 4oz. of cooked macsfroni, cut small, a teaspoonful of chopped parsley, a pinch each of thyme and marjoram, salt and pepper, and a gill of brown or white sauce. Fill this into the pastry case, cover with a round of pastry, knock up the edges, make a hole in the centre, decorate with leaves of pastry, brush over with egg, and bake in a good oven for about one hour. Turn out carefully. This may be eaten hot or cold.