Savoury Pastry
My sister stumbled across “From My Kitchen to Yours” by Sally Wise in a Charity Shop and passed it on to me. I am not sure why anyone would discard this wonderfully practical gluten free recipe book and I wish I would have had it 18 months ago.
The first chapter “Basics” includes recipes for Pikelets, Cornbread, Gravy, Sweet Pastry, Naan Bread, Tortillas. Her other chapters contain recipes for many old fashioned favourites : Cottage Pie, Goulash, Fried Rice, Butter Chicken, Spaghetti Bolognese, Date Slice, Apple Crumble, Chocolate Caramel Slice.
The book reminded me a lot of the “Day to Day Cookery” recipe book that all students of Home Economics in the 1970’s learnt to cook from. There are no beautifully styled photographs and there is an absence of ‘unusual’ or hard to source products in the recipes, but this book is packed full of ‘Delicious and gluten-free recipes the whole family will love’.
So I celebrated this addition to my collection of recipe books by baking the ‘Savoury Pastry’. This crisped up beautifully although I suggest refrigerating the dough for at least an hour if you live in the tropics. Sally’s Sweet Shortcrust Pastry is on my ‘to do’ list.
Savoury Pastry
Makes approximately 350 g
Ingredients
180 g gf self raising flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
90 g butter*, chilled and cut into cubes
yolk of 1 egg
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 cup cold water
Method
Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Alternatively, if you don’t have a food processor, rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips.
Turn out into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Briefly whisk the egg yolk and lemon juice and combine with the water. Pour into the well and mix with a metal spoon until smooth, adding extra water only if necessary to bring the dough together. Shape the dough in a ball, cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.
* Substitute dairy-free margarine for Dairy-free pastry
Gluten Free Pastry
Gluten free pastry is like baking gluten free bread…. it is a challenge. And one that I will hopefully conquer. I have had more failures than successes and on the weekend, I was able to rescue a failure to make an okay base for a quiche.
The problem was that while I chilled the pastry before I rolled it, I had ignored the 30 degree C temperature in the kitchen. The pastry rolled beautifully between two sheets of baking paper, but then fell apart. The day and kitchen was just too hot. Luckily though I was able to mould it by hand into the tray. Ahh, that’s living in the tropics for you.
From the ABC program, The Cook and the Chef.
For an alternative recipe, you can also access Maggie Beer’s Gluten Free Pastry (1) with the link above.
Ingredients
125 g cream cheese cut into chunks
75 g unsalted butter chopped and kept cold
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup gluten free flour
2 g Xanthan gum
Method
Preheat oven to 210 C.
In a food processor, pulse the cream cheese and cold butter. When combined add the flour and Xanthan gum. Whiz just to combine, scraping down the side of the bowl.
Turn out onto surface which has 1/4 cup gluten free flour and bring together with your hands.
Chill pastry then using a rolling pin, roll the pastry between two pieces of baking paper greased on both sides. Roll to 1/2 cm thick and place in pie tins.
Add filling and cook in oven for 20 minutes.
I have since found another version of this recipe with Sally’s pies looking beautiful.
Update:
I made this recipe again at a cooler part of the day and the pastry handled better. I did leave the pastry in the fridge for over an hour. I divided the dough in half, putting half back in the fridge while rolling half to try and limit the dough warming up too much.
I also blind baked the pastry for 15 – 20 minutes before pouring in the quiche mixture.
