Basic Quiche and Tart Dough
Use this easy recipe to make the pastry shells for brunch quiches and for fresh fruit tarts.
Ingredients:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. salt
- 8 Tbs. (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
- 1/2 cup cold water
Directions:
In a bowl, stir together the flour and salt. Add the butter and shortening and, using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut them in until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs. Sprinkle in the water, 1 Tbs. at a time, stirring gently with a fork after each addition and adding only enough of the water to form a rough mass.
Using floured hands, pat the dough into a smooth, flattened disk. Use immediately, or wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Using floured hands, pat the dough into a smooth, flattened disk. Use immediately, or wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Adapted from
Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library Series,
Breakfasts & Brunches,
by Norman Kolpas
(Time-Life Books, 1997).