WEIGHT EQUIVALENTS

Avoirdupois 1 ounce = 1 pound = 2.3 pounds = Metric 28.35 grammes 453.6 grammes 1 kilogram

LIQUID MEASUREMENTS pint = 1 deciliters pint = litre scant 1 pint = litre 1 pints = 1 litre 1 gallon = 4.5 litres HANDY LIQUID MEASURES 1 pint = 20 fluid ounces = 32 tablespoons pint = 10 fluid ounces = 16 tablespoons pint = 5 fluid ounces = 8 tablespoons pint = 2 fluid ounces = 4 tablespoons 1/16 pint = 1 fluid ounces =2 tablespoons HANDY SOLID MEASURES Almonds ground 1 oz = 3 level tablespoons Arrowroot 1 oz = 4 level tablespoons Breadcrumbs fresh dried 1oz = 7 level tablespoons Butter and Lard 1 oz = 3 level tablespoons Cheese grated 1 oz =2 level tablespoons Chocolate grated 1 oz = 3 level tablespoons Cocoa 1 oz = 2 level tablespoons Desiccated coconut 1 oz = 4 level tablespoons Coffee Instant ground 1oz = 4 level tablespoons Cornflour 1 oz = 2 level tablespoons Custard powder 1 oz = 2 tablespoons Curry powder and spices 1 oz = 5 tablespoons Flour 1 oz = 2 level tablespoons Gelatine powdered 1 oz = 2 tablespoons Rice uncooked 1 oz = 1 tablespoons Sugar caster and granulated 1 oz = 2 tablespoons Icing sugar 1 oz = 1 tablespoons Yeast granulated 1 oz = 1 level tablespoons AMERICAN MEASURES 18 fluid ounces = 1 American pint 8 fluid ounces = 1 American standard cup 0.05 fluid ounces = 1 American tablespoons 0.16 fluid ounces = 1 American teaspoon AUSTRALIAN MEASURES Cup Spoon and Liquid measures These are the measures in everyday use in the Australian family kitchen the spoon measures listed below are from the ordinary household cutlery set.

CUP MEASURES (using the 8-liquid ounce cup measure) 1 cup flour 4 oz 1 cup sugar (crystal or caster) 8 oz 1 cup icing sugar (free from margarine etc.) 5 oz 1 cup shortening (butter margarine etc.) 8 oz 1 cup honey golden syrup treacle 10 oz 1 cup brown sugar (lightly packed) 4 oz 1 cup brown sugar (tightly packed) 5 oz 1 cup soft breadcrumbs 2 oz 1 cup dry breadcrumbs (made from fresh breadcrumbs) 3 oz 1 cup packet dry breadcrumbs 4 oz 1 cup rice (uncooked) 6 oz 1 cup rice (cooked) 5 oz 1 cup mixed fruit or individual fruit such as sultanas etc. 4 oz 1 cup grated cheese 4 oz 1 cup nuts (chopped) 4 oz 1 cup coconut 2 oz SPOON MEASURES 1 oz flour 2 1 oz sugar (crystal or caster) 1 1 oz icing sugar (free from lumps) 2 1 oz shortening 1 1 oz honey 1 1 oz gelatine 2 1 oz cocoa 3 1 oz cornflour 2 1 oz custard powder 2 LIQUID MEASURES 1 cup liquid 8 oz 2 cup liquid 20 oz ( 1 pint) 2 tablespoons liquid 1 oz 1 gill liquid 5 oz ( pint) Metric equivalents and oven temperatures are not listed here as they are included in all the recipes throughout the book. When using the metric measures in some cases it may be necessary to cut down the amount of liquid used this is in order to achieve a balanced recipe and the correct consistency as 1 oz equals in fact 28.35 gm.

Basic recipes
SHORTCRUST PASTRY Makes 80z or 200gm pastry If you are going to make a flan or tartlets use plain flour. If not. 80z (200gm) plain or self-raising flour pinch of salt

20z (50gm) lard 20z (50gm) hard margarine water to mix or 1 standard egg yolk beaten 1 Sift flour and salt into a bow1. 2 Rub lard and margarine into flour; do this with the tips of your fingers not the palms of your hands continue rubbing in until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. 3 Mix with just enough water (or egg if you are making a flan or tartlets) to give a fairly stiff dough 4 Knead very lightly 5 If making flan or tartlets wrap in foil and chill for 2 hour before using. CHEESE PASTRY Makes 80z or 200gm pastry Do not use self raising flour for this pastry plain flour is used for dishes that need to keep their original shape. 80z (200gm) plain flour pinch of salt pinch of cayenne pepper (no more) 40z (100gm) butter 1 oz (37gm) cheddar or parmesan cheese very flnely grated 1 standard egg yolk to mix 1 Sift flour with salt and cayenne pepper into a bow 2 using your fingertips tub in butter until mixture resembles fine breaderumbs 3 mix in the cheese thotoughly 4 add enough of the egg yolk to make a very stiff dough do not make it too wet 5 weap in foll and chill for 1 hour before using FORK MIX PASTRY 80z (200gm) plain flour pinch of salt 20z (50gm) soft margarine 20z (50gm) white vegetable fat cold water to mix 1 sift the flour and salt into a bow 2 add the fats to the flour and blend with a fork until mixture resembles fine breadcrumb 3 add just enough cold water to mix to a stiff dough 4 Wrap dough in foil and chill using This makes it easier to handle. SUET CRUST PASTRY 80z (200gm) self-raising flour good pinch of salt 40z (100gm) shredded suet (from a packet) cold water to mix 1 simply mix flour salt and suet with enough cold water to give a fairly soft dough 2 knead very lightly before using PUFF PASTRY 80Z (200gm) plain flour pinch of salt 80z (200gm) butter left out of refrigerator for 1 hour cold water to mix 1 sift flour and salt into a bow 2 cut a large knob from the butter and rub into the flour using your fingertips 3 add just enough cold water to mix to a fairly soft dough 4 knead dough very lightly 5 roll pastry to an oblong

6 put the rest of the butter in one piece on half the oblong 7 fold over the other half of the dough to enclose the butter 8 press the open edges of the dough gently but firmly with a rolling pin to seal. 9 make sure the pastry is arranged on the board so the long sealed edge is on your left. 10 very gently roll dough to an oblong making sure that the butter does not penetrate the dough. 11 measure the oblong fold the bottom third up over the center third fold so giving three layers. 12 seal edges with a rolling pin 13 wrap dough in foil and leave to chill in refrigerator for 15 minutes (or 25 minutes if the kitchen is hot) 14 repeat the rolling folding sealing and chilling process five times 15 leave dough wrapped in foil to chill for 30 minutes before using. ROUGH PUFF PASTRY 80Z (200gm) plain flour pinch of salt 60z (150gm) hard butter 1 teaspoon lemon juice cold water to mix 1 sift flour and salt into a bow 2 cut the butter into small pieces each about the size of a hazelnut 3 put butter in the mixing bow! Toes lightly with a spatula or palette knife until butter is mixed in and coated with flour 4 add the lemon juice and just enough cold water to mix to a light fairly soft dough 5 roll out dough carefully into an oblong 6 measure the oblong fold the bottom third up over center third and fold top third down over center fold to make three layers 7 seal the edges with a rolling pin (It should not be necessary to chill dough between rolling) 8 repeat the rolling and folding process three times 9 wrap dough in foil and chill for 1 hour before using FLAKY PASTRY 80z (200gm) plain flour pinch of salt 60z (150gm) very hard butter 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1 sift flour and salt into a bow! 2 rub a quarter of the butter into the flour using your. Fingertips until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs 3 add lemon juice and just enough cold not wet dough 4 turn out on to a lightly floured board and knead gently 5 roll to a neat oblong 6 make sure one short end is towards you and the long edges are on your left and right 7 measure the oblong dot another quarter of the butter over the top two thirds of the dough 8 fold the bottom third of the dough up over the center third fold the top third down to make three layers 9 wrap dough in foil and leave to chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes 10 roll into an oblong the same size as before add another quarter of the butter fold in three seal edges and chill as before 11 repeat whole process once more (now all the fat is used up) 12 roll out and fold again (no fat to add this time) 13 wrap dough in foil and leave to chill in refrigerator for at least 1 hour before using. CHOUX PASTRY 2 oz (62gm) plain flour pinch of salt 2oz (50gm) margarine or butter pint (125ml) water 2 medium eggs. Beaten 1 sift flour and salt into a bow 2 put fat into a pan with the water

3 heat gently until fat melts and water is boiling 4 take pan off heat and add the flour all in one go. 5 beat mixture well 6 put pan back on a gentle heat and continue beating the mixture until it leaves the side of the pan and forms a soft mass in the center cool for 2 minutes. 7 very gradually a teaspoon at a time beat in the egg until you have a thick and shiny dough 8 use at once. HOT WATER CRUST PASTRY 8oz (200gm) plain flour 1 level teaspoon salt 4oz (100gm) lard 2 tablespoons milk 1 small egg beaten 1 sift flour and salt into a bow! 2 put the lard in a small saucepan with the milk and 3 tablespoons cold water 3 heat gently until lard has melted then bring to the boil 4 add to flour and brat well 5 add enough of the egg to make a smooth and glossy dough 6 use at once and remember to wrap any pastry waiting warm shaped in foil to keep it warm. OIL PASTRY 8oz (200gm) plain flour pinch of salt 6 tablespoons corn oil (do not use olive oil) 2-3 tablespoons cold water 1 sift flour and salt into a bow! 2 whisk the oil with the water 3 make a well in flour add the liquid to the well 4 using a spatula mix liquid into flour to make a firm dough 5 put dough between two sheets of greaseproof paper to roll it out.

Pastry notes

A cool kitchen
When you are rolling and shaping all the pastries (except choux and hot water crust which are warm mixtures) you need a cool atmosphere. It is often a good idea after shaping the flan or pie to let it rest in the refrigerator while the oven is preheating This helps to keep the pastry a good shape.

Preparing the pastry

Fats used for puff and other rich pastries should be cool and soft enough to use but never oily and butter should be absolutely fresh or the pastry may have a rancid taste when rubbing in fat your hands must be cool and use only your fingertips Add water carefully (I generally allow 2 teaspoons cold water to 1oz (25gm) flour A sticky mixture will give you a tough pastry use the minimum amount of flour when rolling out pastry A flour dredger with small holes in the top is a useful item in pastry making as it gives you a light dusting of flour on the surface on which you are rolling

Rolling the pastry

There is an art in rolling pastry use very light strokes and never stretch pastry or it will shrink back during baking and spoil your finished result when rolling out a lid for a pie for instance lift it carefully on your rolling pin then place it gently on the pie dish

Resting pastry
The ides of allowing puff and other rich pastries to stand between rolling and folding is to give the fat sufficient time to harden up again Otherwise you may end up with a sticky oily mixture.

Baking pastry
The oven must be properly preheated before pastry goes in allow at least 20 minutes when making a tart or pie with a pastry base avoid using oven glass dishes. Enamel or similar dishes are better conductors of heat and therefore cook the underneath pastry

Tins for baking

You can buy plain or fluted flan rings (strictly speaking a savoury flan should be baked in a baking sheet. The inside of the ring is lightly greased and the pastry fitted into the ring. Towards end of cooking the ring is lifted away so that the pastry can brown properly If you do not have a flan ring you can always s use a sandwich tin with a removable base.

Storing pastry in the refrigerator

You can wrap raw pastry in foil and keep it in the ordinary part of refrigerator for up to a week.

Freezing pastry
Uncooked pastry can be frozen for 4 months then thawed rolled and baked. You can freeze pastry already rolled and shaped-vol- au-vent for instance. If you are in a hurry these can be put into the oven tock-hard and they will behave beautifully! Add a hot filling when they come out of the oven For freeze owners I have given a few recipes for freezing pastry shapes and fillings which you will find at the end of the chapters You will see that fillings must a always be frozen separately and the flour in the filling replaced with cornflour.