Easy as PIE

Tips to help you conquer the fear of making pastry

Pastry can be fickle. One time it rolls like velvet. Another, it emerges from the bowl more like concrete than dough. If pastry is your nemesis, don’t despair. Cold ingredients, a hot oven and a bit of patience will guarantee results.

Chill out

Make sure the fat you use is cold. If your kitchen is warm, chill the mixing bowl as well to give your dough a fighting chance. When the dough is mixed, wrap it in plastic wrap, and pop it in the fridge for at least an hour before rolling. Not only does this relax the gluten in the wheat, making it more tender, but also chilled dough is easier to handle.

Measure twice, blend once

Scooping can compact flour up to 30 per cent. Since too much flour makes pastry tough, accuracy is key. For a tender crust, give the flour a quick whisk, spoon it into a dry measure and then level off with a knife.

Cut the fat — literally

Unlike cakes and cookies, where fat is blended into the batter, pastry dough needs little blobs of fat suspended in the flour. No matter what method you use, cut in cold fat until it is about the size of peppercorns — not coarse crumbs as some recipes suggest. In my all-butter pastry (see page 128), frozen butter and a box grater deliver perfect results.

Take a hands-on approach

Unlike the flour, the amount of moisture you add is not precise. You’ll have to rely on feel, working quickly so the warmth of your hands doesn’t melt the fat. The dough needs enough water to hold together when pressed between your fingers, but not so much that it forms a ball.

If your recipe suggests a range of measurements, use the smallest amount and add more until you reach the right consistency.

Use ice-cold water and sprinkle it over the flour-fat mixture so it distributes evenly. Don’t dump it in one spot.

Read y to roll

Rolling pins are a personal choice. I like a tapered French rolling pin made of maple. My mom’s trusty pin has ball bearings in the handle and is older than I am. Modern silicone ones are inexpensive, come in different styles and are easy to clean.

Don’t fuss too much about the rolling pin. Timing and technique are more important.

Before rolling, let the chilled dough warm up; otherwise, it will crack. But don’t let it get too warm or it will stick.

The dough is ready to roll when your finger can make an indentation without going all the way through. If your finger sinks to the counter, the dough is too warm. If it barely dents the surface, it’s too cold.

When your dough is ready, dust your surface with flour. Any flat surface will do – wood, marble or even an old-fashioned pastry cloth. To prevent the rolling pin from sticking without working too much flour into the dough, dust the pin, not the top of the dough, with flour.

When you roll the dough, don’t use a back-and-forth motion. Instead, roll from the centre out, stopping about an inch from the edge. Turn the disk a quarter turn after each roll. Continue the roll-and-turn technique until the dough is about 8 inches (20 cm) wide.

Then roll from the centre out in all directions until the dough is not quite 0.6-cm (1/4-inch) thick and a couple inches wider than the pie plate. Transfer the dough to the pie plate, trim and chill for 15 minutes before filling to help keep the pastry from shrinking.

Turn up the heat

You want the dough cold and the oven piping hot. Preheat the oven for a good 20 to 30 minutes to ensure stable heat.

Now, roll up your sleeves and bake.