(SLIGHTLY) HEALTHIER SWEET PASTRY, EASY PEASY

 

 This recipe is repeated after dropping off some search engines  

Spectacularly simple sensational sweet pastry a la Great British Baking Champion Candice Brown...

Gorgeous sweet pastry (before trimming) from pie-phobe 67 without angst!! 
'On a par with 5-star hotels; the best I've ever had' Blogger 

This fantastic pastry is easily one of the best 67 has ever made -- or ever eaten.  Beautiful texture, wonderful taste, it's like pastry found in 5-star+ hotels.  It's hard to believe it's home made.  

For anyone afraid of pastry, this method from Candice Brown (she of the Bake-Off lipsticks) is a lifesaver.  The pastry is made like cake: butter and sugar are creamed, eggs are added and then flour. 

The result?  A melt-in-the mouth biscuit-like shell not unlike a delicately sandy French sable.  It's perfect for custard, fruit and cream pies.  

It is very rich with four egg yolks and is for special occasions. But brown sugar replaced some white and one-third of the flour is wholemeal.

 

The recipe can be turned into Sweet Pastry Biscuits to accompany mousses and fruit parfaits.  

Sweet Pastry Biscuits

Cost: £1.75
Makes: a 25cm/10inch shell or 35 biscuits

Ingred:
   100gm/3 1/2oz unsalted soft butter
     75gm/2 1/2oz white sugar
     25gm/scant 1oz soft brown sugar

  4 egg yolks

  125gm/4 1/2 oz white flour
    59gm/1 3/4oz wholemeal flour
    25gm/scant 1oz ground almonds
    zest 1 lemon

Equipment: 23-25cm/10-11inch loose bottomed fluted tart tin or equiv.  For biscuits: baking sheets 

Method

1. Beat butter & sugar till pale, fluffy & almost white (it will take a few mins)
2. Add egg yolks; beat
3. Beat in dry ingred + lemon zest, one third at a time
4. Dump onto cling film, form a ball & flatten slightly, refrigerate 30 mins
5. Pre-heat oven to 350f/180c/160fan
6. Roll out pastry on floured board to 1/2cm/1/4inch thick OR roll between two pieces of greaseproof paper (easier)
7. Drape the pastry over the rolling pin OR remove top layer of greaseproof & upend into tin pressing gently into the bottom and flutes; try to get right into the crease at the bottom and the flutes (as you can see from photo, 67 wasn't diligent enough)
8. Prick bottom with a fork
9. Line base with greaseproof paper and fill with rice or baking beans
10. Bake 15 mins; remove paper & rice/beans; bake another 5-10 mins or until set & golden
11. Remove pastry from tin; egg wash hot pastry base; cool OR cool and brush with melted chocolate (easier & keeps pastry from getting soggy when filling is added!!)
12. Fill as needed

Sweet Pastry Biscuits

Follow steps 1-6 but roll out the pastry to a generous 1/8 inch thick.  Cut into rectangles or circles.  Place on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper or a silicone mat (ou may need to use a fish slice for this step).   Bake 10 mins or until golden,  turning the tray halfway to prevent dark brown edges   Cool on the tray 5 mins; transfer to a wire rack.  Serve with ice cream, mousse or fruit salad.  If you like, lightly dust the biscuits with cinnamon sugar before baking.  

Candice Brown has a recipe page in the Sunday Times magazine

This recipe has been developed by B M Lee/ Bright Sun Enterprises.  It may not be reproduced without the author's written permission.