Extra rich shortcrust pastry is almost like shortbread due to the high fat content. It is a very short pastry and this means that it doesn't hold together very well. Try not to overwork it if you can, if you are really struggling roll it between 2 sheets of cling film. Due to the added sugar this pastry is the reserve of sweet pies. It is absolutely the best for a double crust apple pie
Link to measurement conversion chart
Ingredients
- 8oz/225g Plain flour
- 2oz/50g Butter
- 2oz/50g Margarine, cut to approx 1cm cubes
- 2oz/50g White fat or lard, cut to approx 1cm cubes
- 1oz/25g caster sugar
- 1 egg yolk beaten
- Pinch of salt
- a splash of water
Method
- Put the flour Into a large mixing bowl with the sugar, salt and fat. Rub all together using your finger tips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs, these wont be fine due to the high fat content
- Add a splash of water and stir with a knife or your hand. The crumbs should start to form a dough, if not add more water a little at a time. Do not add too much!
- Empty the bowl onto a work surface and gently knead the dough just until it forms a ball and the ingredients are mixed, have a care - do not overwork the dough
- Put the dough in the fridge for a min 30 mins to rest before you use it
Hints, tips and variations
- Cold ingredients are better, use fat straight from the fridge
- Finger tips are best as they hold less heat than your palms – remember cold is best.
- Small cubes of fat mean you less handling and effort to get to the breadcumb stage
- If you add too much water the pastry will be too wet and sticky to use. If you have not gone too far and have a slightly sticky dough, add a little more flour by dusting the work surface when you are ready to knead your pastry. Otherwise discard the sticky mess, learn from your mistake and start again
- If re-rolling pastry scraps layer the scraps rather than scrunching and kneading them together, this helps avoid overworking
- Don’t re-roll more than 3 times, at this point it is time to feed the birds.
- try substituting 1oz of flour for ground almonds
- when making pastry for mince pies, we add a grated zest of orange and a splash of orange juice instead of water
- If needing more or less pastry for your recipe, remember that the measurements are 3/4 fat to flour and the world is your pie crust.
Acknowledgements
The original version of this recipe can be atributed to my mother in law. It was always the recipe she followed for making mince pies at christmas. We have adapted it so that our pies are slightly different to hers. Thanks Joan for the inspiration and John's fond memories.
Here are some of the recipes in our collection that benefit from using extra rich short crust pastry;
- Mince pies made using our Cranberry mincemeat
- Louise's South African Lemon meringue pie
We hope you have enjoyed these recipes
Happy eating!