HOW TO BE A BETTER BAKER

WITH TRACY ALLESINA, HEAD PASTRY CHEF AT SWISSÔTEL SYDNEY

Nothing says “I’ve got my life together” like impressing your friends and family with homemade baked goods – and an important part of almost any baked good is pastry.

Puff pastry is used for sausage rolls, some pies and mille-feuilles, and is the kind that has layers of butter inside. As it cooks, the water in the dough and butter turns into steam, puffing up the layers. It’s more technical and time-consuming to make puff pastry by hand, so save yourself a lot of tears and just buy the pre-made frozen sheets, then simply thaw them before use.

Shortcrust pastry is more resistant to liquids as it has a more crumbly texture – slightly biscuit-like – so it’s good for quiches and tarts. Making shortcrust pastry is pretty basic, and you can easily fancy it up with lemon zest or vanilla. Just remember, you should always follow the recipe and don’t skip any steps. Use good butter at room temperature, too, or at least ensure it’s at the same temperature as the dough when folding.

AN EASY SHORTCRUST PASTRY RECIPE

125g chilled butter 1 cup plain flour ⅓ cup icing sugar mixture ¼ cup almond meal 1 egg yolk

PLACE the butter, flour, icing sugar mixture and almond meal in the bowl of a food processor and process until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

ADD the egg yolk and process until mixture just comes together.

TURN onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead until almost smooth. Shape into a disc.

COVER with plastic wrap, and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest before you use it in your recipe.