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P
astry has a way of scaring many cooks,
and with good reason. Heavy hands and
excessive flour will leave you with a
tough dish that many people will scrape clean of
filling and leave graceless on the dessert plate.
If your pastry is tough, the cause could be
not enough fat or too much flour. If you Iii a to
slather lots of flour on your rolling pin and on
the counter top you can expect a tough result.
Try placing a lightly floured piece of waxed
paper on a damp counter, to avoid slipping. Roll
out the pastry to a diameter of five inches. Then
cover the pastry with a second piece of waxed
paper and finish rolling, from the centre out.
Shrinkage is frustrating and can be remedied
with less water in the pastry or more fat, or by
fitting the pastry more loosely in the pie plate.
I have discovered that soggy bottoms can be
avoided by putting the pastry -lined pie plate in
the freezer while I prepare the rest of the pie. Bake the pie in a pre -heated oven
(400° for 10 minutes) and then turn down the temperature according to the recipe.
If you still don't want to tackle the classic flaky pastry recipe, don't despair.
There are some great recipes that don't rely on a light hand and careful blending,
and really are "as easy as pie." I have one that you make right in the pie plate
with a little oil and a dash of milk. It is a short pastry, crumbly rather than flaky,
but tasty and quick and never tough. The other selections are just as foolproof.
Make up a few pie shells and pop them in the freezer for a quick and easy dessert
at a later date. The following recipes are for 9 -inch pies, but I have stretched the
Quick Pastry and the Toasted Oatmeal and Coconut in a 10 -inch pan.
As Easy as Pie
Quick Pastry
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 t salt
1 t sugar
Mix well and add:
1/2 cup oil mixed with 3 T milk
Mix in a pie plate and pat into place;
follow normal pastry recipe.
Oatmeal Pastry
This recipe was recently given to me
and I tried it out before passing in on.
I halved the recipe and did not need
any water for moisture when I patted
the dough into my pie plates. I found
it a bit on the salty side when I used
butter, but ideal for savoury dishes
like quiche. This recipe involves a bit
more time than I had planned, but the
taste and texture is worth the effort.
1 pound Crisco
2 t salt
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 pound butter
5 cups flour
Beat butter and Crisco and then add
dry ingredients. Add a sprinkle of
water if too dry. Chill 24 hours or 3
hours in the freezer. This is to set the
fat and to avoid the use of too much
flour when handling it. Treat like
regular pastry.
Toasted Oatmeal and Coconut
This is not a true pastry, but is so easy
and tasty that it should be in this list
for you to try with your summer pies.
This nutty flavoured shell is great
for those hot summer days when you
want a pie but hate to turn the oven on
for any length of time. It's ideal for
chilled cream pies or a cream cheese
mixture topped with fruit and glaze.
1 cup rolled oats (3 or 5 -minute
cooking variety)
1/2 cup coconut
Carefully toast this mixture in the pie
plate under the broiler. Stir every few
seconds once it starts to toast to pre-
vent burning and get an even toasting.