Making pastry

apple_mint

I fancy trying a wholemeal pastry to a savoury pie .... do I just supplement the white plain flour with wholemeal flour?

Chipps

I think you need a bit more liquid with wholemeal pastry. It is a lot heavier, so might be worthwhile doing half & half to begin with.

apple_mint

Half and half ... good idea Chipps, I'll try that.

squeaky

It might also be worth, when you do half and half, using self raising flour instead of plain. This will help keep things lighter too.

The same is true of suet pastry should you want to make some one day.

MrsMW

I don't make pastry anymore because of arthritis in my hands, I did start making it in the processor but then I discovered that supermarkets often have ready made pastry reduced so I buy it when I see it and freeze it. I got 5 blocks for 20p each last week.

catkins

Thanks for all the replies. I cheated and bought frozen yesterday, but I will try again next week

MATH

For those who don't have a food processor but do have an electric hand mixer you can rub the fat into flour using an electric hand mixer with the sturdy mixing (not dough hooks) attached and then finish off by hand.

squeaky

Before I got my Kenwood Chef I used to mix the pastry with a spoon in a sort of slice and press sort of way until I got the breadcrumb look. Added water and still used the spoon to mix until it was obviously close (lumpy breadcrumb look) and only then would I finish it off by hand.

But I have to say - the mixer is easier

foreverskint

Along similar lines, we were taught, at catering college, to mix the water in using an old fashioned flat bladed knife ( butter knife). I still do it this way and it seems to be o.k.

I beleive that the rolling is the important part, Never roll your pin straight over the edges of the pastry, stop just short, and don't roll backwards and forwards, just roll forwards, then turn the dough.

My cookery teacher at school would inspect our palms to make sure taht there was no trace of flour anywhere except our finger tips:rolleyes:

catkins

I posted on here a few weeks ago because my pastry is always a disaster. Quite a few of you kindly took the time to give advice and today I tried again and success!!!! I made it in the food processor and used one of the recipes given that included an egg yolk. Left it to chill in the fridge and if I say so myself perfect. Haven't tasted it yet but it looks good.

Quite pleased with myself today - hopefully at last got the hang of pastry (at my age it's about time!), have made bread (by hand), spicy chickpea and potato pasties, goats cheese and red onion tarlets and banana muffins. Cor won't hubby be pleased when he gets in (he likes his food!)

Thanks again