Making Flaky Pastry

It is often stated that professional chefs don’t bother to make their own Flaky pastry, as the quality and convenience of the shop bought is excellent. I have always done the same, until now. Today I have decided to give making it myself a go, starting with an easy recipe.

I started by putting 4oz butter in the freezer for about an hour before I was ready to begin making my pastry. I weighed out 6oz of Plain flour, sieving this high over the bowl to add air to the flour. Next I removed my butter from the freezer and coarsely grated this into the flour. Using a palette knife (avoiding touching the cool pastry with your warm hands as much as possible), I began to combine the butter with the flour, when well combined and resembling chunky breadcrumbs (left), I added 1 tablespoon of chilled water.

Again I went in with my palette knife and began to combine the mix again.  In my case I needed to add a bit more water and then finished off using my fingertips to combine into a soft dough (right).

As with all pastry doughs, I rested this dough in a food bag in the fridge (left), in my case for a couple of hours, until I needed the dough.

Next I used my pastry to make a Field Mushroom Tarte Tatin. I have never made a savoury Tarte Tatin, only apple ones. Not sure if this is a common alternative, but with venison for dinner today, I thought it would go well together. First I placed a few dots of butter, seasoning and some thyme leaves followed by a field mushroom, presentation side down, in the base of an individual tart tin.  Next a teaspoon of homemade Red Onion Chutney, a little more seasoning, a layer of spinach leaves, followed by a sheet of pastry, carefully tucking this around the mushroom, to seal everything in (right).

I baked this in the oven for around 20 minutes, until cooked through and golden. To serve I inverted the tin onto my board, carefully turned the tart upside down and placed on the plate to reveal the field mushroom (below). It looks very attractive and I served it with Venison Loin with Celeriac Puree and a Port Sauce. It was delicious and not too time consuming for those who, unlike me, don’t enjoy spending all afternoon cooking!