All about Pastries

1. Mary Jane Bacay

2.  What is pastry?
A large variety of baked crusts made from
doughs rich in fat
 5 examples of pastry
 Cream puffs
 Puff pastry
 Danish & French pastries
 Rich yeast & cake-type sweet rolls
 Pies

3.  2 main types of pastry
 Plain Pastry
 Golden-brown flaky
(blistered) surface
 Tender
 Usually used for pies
 Puff Pastry
 Extra rich
 Extra flaky
 Used for special pies or fancy tarts

4.  All-purpose flour
 A firm “fat”
 Usually vegetable shortening or lard
 A small amount of water
2 Tbsp. for each 1 cup of flour
 Salt

5.  Purpose of flour in a recipe?
 Gluten of the flour forms the structure of the
pastry
 Which fats are used to make pastry?
 Vegetable shortening or lard
 Why wouldn’t you use butter or margarine?
 They produce a less tender pastry
 Lard produces the most tender pastry
 Oil makes a mealy pastry

6.  Purpose of water in pastry
 Provides moisture needed to develop gluten
 Purpose of salt in pastry
 Contributes to the flavor of pastry
 Has no influence on flakiness or tenderness

7.  The gluten in the flour forms a structure in
which entrapped air and moisture expand
during baking, giving a blistered effect that
is characteristic of flaky pastry.
 Too much flour will produce a tough pastry

8.  Fat...
 coatsthe particles of flour
 Separates the gluten strands
 “Shortens” (makes tender) the pastry
 Too much shortening
 Fragile & crumbly pastry
 Too little shortening
 Tough pastry

9.  Too much water
 Pastry will be tough
 Too little water
 Pastry will be dry, crumbly, and difficult to roll

10.  Temperature of ingredients
 Room temperature = more tender pastry
 Overmixing the ingredients causes gluten to
overdevelop & a tough pastry

11.  Conventional
 Combine flour & salt
 Cut fat into flour mixture with pastry blender
until shortening is the size of small peas
 Sprinkle water, 1 Tbsp. at a time over flour
mixture
 Mix lightly with a fork and form a loose ball
 Hot-water
 Oil

12.  Handle the pastry as little as possible
to avoid toughening it
 6 steps in rolling pastry:
1. Gather dough into a firm ball
2. Flatten dough ball with palm of hand
3. Roll pastry from the center toward the edge
4. Roll gently until pastry is 1/8 inch thick & 1 inch
larger than pie pan
5. Fold pastry into “fourths”
6. Unfold pastry into pie pan, pressing on the sides
& bottom
 Do not stretch the pastry because it
will cause shrinking during baking

13.  Flute: Pinching the edge of the pastry with your
fingertips to retain filling and create an attractive
edge.
 Hook the points of the fluted edges under the pan
rim to minimize shrinking during baking.
 Prick the bottom & sides of the pastry used for a
single-shell pie before baking
 Prevents puffing during baking
 Slit the top of a two-crust pie to allow steam to
escape during baking
 Cover the fluted edge with a 1½-inch strip of foil to
prevent overbrowning

14.  If only 1 rack is needed to bake a pie, place
it in the center of the oven
 If 2 racks are needed to bake pies
 Arrange racks evenly in the oven
 Arrange the pans to allow the heat to circulate
 Good pastry
 Evenly browned
 Blistered surface
 Crisp & tender

15.  Dessert
 FruitPie
 Custard Pie
 Tart
 Accompaniment
 Pastry cut into strips or
fancy shapes
 To garnish salads or soups
 Main Dish
 Quiche
 Chicken Pot Pie

16.  Nutrients
 Allpastries contain a high
proportion of fat
 Contribute energy &
calories to the diet
 Storage
 Store unused chiffon,
custard, & meat pies in the
fridge
 Both baked & unbaked pies
can be frozen
 Wrap them in freezer wrap or
put in freezer bags

17.  4 forms of convenience pastries
1. Mixes
2. Frozen
Whole pies
Pie fillings
1. Canned
Pie filling & canned fruits
Custards
1. Ready-to-eat
You can create homemade pastry mix
 Combine the correct proportions of flour,
salt, & shortening
 Store in an airtight container
 Add water when you are ready to bake a pie