BASIC SHORT-CRUST PASTRY

Basic Short-Crust Pastry image

Regarding this basic short-crust pastry: the dough takes just 10 minutes to make, so resist the temptation to buy that pre-made crust from the refrigerator case. Homemade pastry always tastes better. Make it the day before. You can even roll it out, line the tart pan and keep it frozen until you're ready to bake.

Provided by David Tanis

Time 10m

Yield One 9 and 1/2-inch tart crust

Number Of Ingredients 4

Ingredients

145 grams all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 stick cold unsalted butter (1/4 pound), cut in 1/8-inch pieces
3 tablespoons ice water

Steps:

Put flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer or food processor. Add butter and quickly cut it into flour until mixture resembles coarse meal.
Add ice water and mix briefly, about 30 seconds, to form a soft dough. Remove dough, shape into a thick disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight. Bring to cool room temperature before rolling.
To roll, lightly flour dough and counter. Roll out gradually, periodically letting dough rest for a moment before continuing. This makes rolling easier and will keep dough from shrinking back during baking.
Roll dough to a thin round approximately 13 inches in diameter, then trim to make a 12-inch circle (refrigerate and save trimmings for patching). Lay dough loosely into a 9 1/2-inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom, letting it relax a bit. Fold overlap back inside to make a double thickness, then press firmly against the pan so the finished edge is slightly higher than the pan. Refrigerate or freeze for an hour before pre-baking.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 1268, UnsaturatedFat 28 grams, Carbohydrate 95 grams, Fat 93 grams, Fiber 3 grams, Protein 14 grams, SaturatedFat 58 grams, Sodium 658 milligrams, Sugar 0 grams, TransFat 4 grams