70 GOURMET TRAVELLERPUFFPASTRY
635 gmchilledunsaltedbutter
675 gm(4½cups) plain flour
1 tbspsalt
1 tbsp white vinegar (see note)1
Dice135gmbutter(refrigerate
remainder).Combineflour,salt
anddicedbutteronlowspeedin
a foodprocessoruntilit resembles
sand(about1 minute).Addvinegar
and305mlwater,andmixon
lowspeeduntiljustcombined
andsmooth(about2 minutes).
Shapedoughintoa 2cm-thick
rectangle,wrapinplasticwrap
andrefrigerateovernight.2
Rolloutdoughtoa 20cm
x 50cmrectangle.Coverand
refrigerate.Placeremainingchilled
butterbetweentwosheetsofbaking
paperandbeatwitha rollingpin
intoa 20cmsquare.Thebutter
shouldremaincoldyetpliable.
Placebutter10cmfromoneend
ofthepastry,foldbottomthirdof
pastryoverbutter,thenfoldover
remainingthirdofpastrytocover.3
Turndough 90 degreesclockwise
androllpastryawayfromyoutoa
20cmx 50cmrectangle.Foldtopthird
ofdoughdown,thenbottomthird
overagain.Turn 90 degreesand
repeat,thenwrapinplasticwrap
andrefrigerateovernight.4
Repeatfoldingandrolling
twicemore(4foldsintotal),
thenwrapinplasticwrapand
refrigerateovernight.5
Halvedoughandrollone
halftoa 4mm-thickround,
orcutindividual4mm-thickrounds
(freezeremainderforanotheruse
forupto2 months).Coverand
refrigerate until required.
NoteAddingvinegar
(orlemonjuice)to
thepastrieshelps
stopthegluten
developing,resulting
in a shorter,more
tender pastry.PASTRY PERFECTION
- Rememberthatthepastryshouldalwaysbechilledbeforeyou
workit; otherwiseit willshrink,loseshapeormeltif toowarm. - Besuretodustoffanyexcessflourduringtherollingandfolding
process,otherwiseit toughensthepastry. - Don’tcuttherestingtimesshort;theequalconsistencyofthebase
andthebutterresultsin evenlayersandbeautifulflakypastry.
Masterclass