Description
Lawson sweet shortcrust pastry weaves culinary magic into desserts with its buttery, crumbly texture. Home bakers can easily master this classic pastry, creating delectable tarts and pies that elevate simple ingredients into extraordinary treats.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups (312.5 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (113 grams) cold butter
- 1/2 cup (113 grams) cold vegetable shortening
Fat Binding Ingredients:
- 8 tablespoons (120 milliliters) cold water
Seasoning:
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Sift flour and salt together in a spacious mixing vessel, ensuring even distribution of dry ingredients.
- Incorporate cold butter and shortening into the flour mixture, using fingertips to create a texture resembling rough breadcrumbs.
- Gradually introduce chilled water, one tablespoon at a time, gently combining until a cohesive dough emerges.
- Partition the dough into two equal portions, shaping each into a flat disc to facilitate even cooling and rolling.
- Encase each disc in plastic wrap, sealing tightly to prevent moisture loss, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to relax the gluten and firm up the fat.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to approximately 1/4 inch thickness, maintaining uniform coverage.
- Carefully transfer the rolled pastry to a pie dish, pressing gently into corners without stretching the dough to prevent shrinkage.
- Trim excess pastry around the edges, creating a neat rim, and use a fork to create small perforations across the base.
- Return the lined pie dish to the refrigerator for an additional 20 minutes to re-chill and set the pastry.
- For blind baking, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), line the pastry with parchment and pie weights, and bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove weights and parchment, then continue baking for 5-10 minutes until the crust achieves a light golden color.
Notes
- Keep butter and shortening cold for the flakiest, most tender pastry texture.
- Use a light touch when rubbing in fats to prevent overworking the dough, which can make it tough.
- Chill the dough twice to ensure maximum structure and prevent shrinking during baking.
- For gluten-free version, substitute all-purpose flour with a mix of gluten-free flour blend and xanthan gum.
- Prep Time: 50 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: British
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 8
- Calories: 354
- Sugar: 0.1 g
- Sodium: 153 mg
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9 g
- Trans Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 43 g
- Fiber: 1.5 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 30 mg