ROUGH PUFF PASTRY This is the quick way to make a good puff pastry. You must work very quickly, and it takes a little practice. Rolling and folding the pastry dough creates layers of pastry and pockets of butter.

MAKES ABOUT 550G (ENOUGH TO LINE OR MAKE A 30CM PIE PLATE OR BASE)

● 250g plain flour

● A pinch of salt

● 150g unsalted butter, chilled

● About 150ml ice-cold water

1. Sift the flour and salt together into a large mixing bowl.

2. Quickly cut the butter into small cubes, about the size of the top of your little finger.

3. Stir the butter into the flour with a round-bladed knife so that it is evenly distributed throughout.

4. Drizzle the water over the surface, then mix with the knife until the dough starts to come together in a messy lump.

5. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly until it forms a streaky, rather lumpy ball. Flatten the ball with the palm of your hand and wrap in clingfilm. Chill for 30 minutes until firm.

6. Unwrap the chilled pastry and, on a lightly floured surface, roll out away from you into a long rectangle, three times longer than it is wide (no exact measurements needed here, but it should be about 1cm thick). Mark the pastry lightly into three equal sections with a blunt knife. Now fold the third closest to you up over the middle third. Brush off any excess flour with a dry pastry brush, then bring the top third over towards you to cover the folded two thirds.

7. Give the pastry a quarter turn anti-clockwise so that it looks like a closed book. Seal the edges lightly with a rolling pin to stop them sliding out of shape. Now roll out, always away from you in one direction, until it is the same-sized rectangle as before. Fold in the bottom and top thirds in the same way as before, wrap in clingfilm and chill for 15 minutes. Do this rolling and folding four more times, then the pastry is ready to use in the recipe.