Homemade pastry for savoury and sweet dishes.

Easy, quick and tasty shortcrust pastry recipe. This shortcrust (or pie crust) is suitable for a range of savoury and sweet preparations.

INGREDIENTS

• 250 g (8.8 oz) plain flour

• 180 g (6.3 oz) plain butter

• 1 egg yolk (from a medium size egg)

• 50 ml (1.7 fl oz) whole milk

• 1 or 2 pinches of salt (for a savoury shortcrust)

• 1 teaspoon fine white sugar (for a sweet tart)

NOTES

• Milk brings a softness to the crust, but if you prefer a dough that is harder and crispier then replace the milk with water.

• If the dough is slightly wet at the end when gathering it into a ball, just sprinkle a little bit of flour on your bench and roll the dough in the flour before kneading the dough.

• For the cling wrap, I use a 100% Certified Compostable Cling Wrap sourced online to avoid using plastic. These days you can buy the more sustainable stuff in most supermarkets.

PROCEDURE

1. Sieve flour into a large bowl.

2. Add the butter to the flour and using your fingertips, rub the cubes into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

3. Whisk the milk. egg yolk and salt together and add to the bowl by spreading it over the top of the mixture.

4. Using a spatula combine the liquid into the mixture with a “hacking” motion with the edge of the spatula until it resembles a dough.

5. Remove the mixture from the bowl onto a work bench and form it into a ball. Using the palm of your hand push the ball out into four different directions.

6. Gather the pastry, form it back into a ball, flatten it and wrap it in plastic film and chill it in the fridge for at least one hour.

7. Remove it from the fridge at least 20 minutes before rolling.