EASY-PEASY SPECIAL OCCASION SWEET PASTRY, Not Healthy

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

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

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

For anyone afraid of pastry-making the method from Candice Brown (she of the Bake-Off lipsticks) is a lifesaver.  The pastry is made like a cake: butter and sugar are creamed, eggs are added and then flour. The result?  A  rich biscuit-like shell that melts in the mouth, not unlike the French sable, with a delicate sandy texture.  It's perfect for custard, fruit and cream pies.  

It is very rich with four egg yolks. This one is clearly for special occasions. 
  
Making the pastry healthier was only partially successful.  There's no changing the ratio of butter and sugar but brown sugar replaced some of the white and one-third of the flour is wholemeal.  

67 is working on a healthier version which doesn't lose its 'More! More!' qualities.  

A filling suitable for the pastry is Coconut Cream and Cherry.  Also Lemon Meringue Surprise.

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

Ingred:
   100gm/3 1/2oz unsalted butter, softened
     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

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

Tip

• another easy-peasy pastry recipe is no-roll pastry

Candice Brown had a recipe page in the Sunday Times magazine