This is a handy stock recipe to know. Any surplus raw pastry freezes really well so you can have it ready to go the next time you need it. Use sweet pastry to make tarts or flans, biscuits or cookies, fruit pies or tartlets. In most applications you will need to blind bake the pastry. Reason being the pastry will usually take longer to cook than the filling. Blind baking is a baking technique where a tart crust is partially or fully baked before adding the filling. Ensuring that both the filling and the pastry are perfectly cooked at the same time. This is done by placing parchment paper, greaseproof paper or foil over the crust, adding weights like beans, rice or baking weights and baking. It helps set the crust’s structure, preventing it from becoming soggy when filled with custards or other fillings that don’t require much baking. After blind baking, the crust is usually cooled before adding the final filling.
Sweet Short Pastry
Course: Blog, DessertsCuisine: FrenchDifficulty: Beginner1
servings20
minutes30
minutesIngredients
250g Plain Flour
125g Butter unsalted
90g Powdered Sugar
2 Eggs* (large 55g)
Directions
- Sweet Short Pastry
- Into a blender add the sugar and flour. Pulse to combine the two dry ingredients.
- Dice the butter. Keep it in the fridge so it is cold and hard. Add it to the blender. Blend until the flour has a sandy texture.
- Add 1 whole egg plus 1 yolk before adding the white of the second egg. Then blend. If pastry forms a ball in the blender without the second white, discard it. If the pastry is still crumbly in the blender, add the second white. The pastry will form a ball in the blender.
- Empty contents of the blender onto a bench. Use your hands to form the pastry into a flat disc. Cover with cling film and rest in fridge minimum 30 mins. Pastry is ready to do what you need to. You may freeze pastry at this time if need be.
- Baked Tart Crust
- Remove pastry from fridge. Place the pastry between two sheets of greaseproof paper and roll into a large circle 4mm thin. Big enough to cover the tart pan.
- Place thin pastry circle over the tart pan. Use your hands to line the tart pan with the pastry. Use your fingers to even out the pastry so you have even thickness within the tart pan. Repair any cracks or tears. Rest in fridge for 20 mins.
- After the 20 mins resting, if there has been any shrinking of the pastry, use you fingers to evenly spread the pastry again you are now ready to Blind Bake.
Place a large sheet of greaseproof paper over the pastry. Add baking weights ( you can use rice or beans ) place onto a baking tray for easier handling and blind bake for 20 mins in a preheated oven 180c. Remove baking weights and bake for another 10 mins or until the base of the tart is cooked. When tart shell is cooked it will have an even golden colour. - Allow the tart shell to cool before adding any fillings.
Recipe Video
Notes
- * Eggs. Add 1 whole egg plus 1 yolk before adding the white of the second egg. This will ensure you will end up with pastry dough that is not too wet
- When directions ask you to rest the dough. Do so. This will prevent the pastry from shrinking when you bake the pastry.
- I have used Caster Sugar many times successfully instead of powdered sugar
- Freeze any surplus pastry for next time
