Rich Short Crust Pastry

A light, crumbly and rich pastry recipe

This is a wonderful pastry for quiches, pies and anything that needs a tasty pastry.

Richer than the standard short crust pastry this recipe uses all butter and a couple of egg yolks to achieve the full richness.

You can make this by hand or in a blender. The less you handle pastry the better. My grandmother always made a good pastry and she claimed it was because she had cold hands.

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Ingredients

250g of plain flour
125g cold unsalted butter (cubed/diced)
2 egg yolks
pinch of salt
2-3 tablespoons of cold water

Method

If using a blender pop the flour, salt and butter in and pulse until well mixed and you have a bread crumb consistency. Add the egg yolks and mix. Then add enough water to combine the mix to a dough.

If making by hand pop the flour, salt and butter in a bowl and mix with the tips of your fingers. The secret to good pastry is to handle it as little as possible.
Once you have a bread crumb consistency
add the egg yolks and mix (I usually use a knife from here until I have combined to a dough). Then add enough water to combine the mix to a dough.
Work the dough lightly until smooth. Cover in cling film (or pop in a plastic bag) and refrigerate for half an hour or more before using.