Shortcrust Pastry – dairy free
A really forgiving shortcrust pastry that can be made using lard and olive oil rather than butter but still retain that buttery texture!
What is shortcut pastry generally used for?
For us, I like to use shortcut pastry as the base pastry in my pies for that solidity, it holds up well and if we ever let the pies cool a little, then you can pick it up by the slice! I also use it as the top of the pie in a lot of circumstances, though I have been known to use puff pastry instead, storebought even! 😀
Do I really need to use Lard ?
You can use another semi solid fat instead of lard, some flavours lend to sweet over savoury though, so keep that in mind, like coconut oil, it has a similar melting point to lard but it has much more flavour to it, it definitely feels more like it should be in a sweet pie to me! Of course, you can just use butter if you want as well!
Tips and Tricks!
I thought an infographic of all the stages would be a good way to show the texture you are going for!
You don’t want to overwork the dough, you want those little white spots of solid fat to still be visible, as these heat up and melt they create air pockets in the pastry, lending it to be lighter and more flaky!
There are a couple of videos on my channel that show the method I use to roll the dough out, but one of the things I do is to roll it onto my rolling pin before rolling it into/onto the pie dish. I find this works really well.
The thing about this pastry is how forgiving it is, I struggled to get a pastry that was still flaky and short but not tough because rolling it out is not my forte, this pastry is very flexible, so I can tear pieces off and fill gaps if need be and stretch it to fit and it still cooks up beautifully.
Dairy Free Shortcrust Pastry
Equipment
- Thermomix or Food Processor or pastry cutter if you have the hand strength!
Ingredients
- 400 g Plain / All Purpose Flour
- 60 g Olive Oil or oil of choice
- 60 g Lard or semi solid fat of choice
- 110 g Iced water
- 1 pinch salt optional
Instructions
- Place all of your ingredients into your Thermomix or Food Processor400 g Plain / All Purpose Flour, 60 g Olive Oil, 60 g Lard, 110 g Iced water
- Thermomix Speed 4 for 15 seconds or pulse in a Food Processor or work with a pastry cutter until the mix has formed small balls.
- Tip the dough out onto a dough mat/clean bench and bring together, don't work the dough too much just make it all stick together.
- Divide into two and place in a silicone or plastic zip loc bag.
- Refrigerate for a minimum of 30 mins.
Video
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Mention us @oursmallfootprint or tag us using #OSFRecipes so we can see your creations! You can also leave a comment below!
