Pate Brisee For Three Cherry Tart Recipes

PATE BRISEE FOR RUSTIC CHERRY TART

Steps:

• Lay roughly three quarters of butter on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet and freeze until hard, at least 30 minutes. Meanwhile, refrigerate remaining butter.
• Combine flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor. Add refrigerated butter and pulse to combine, about 10 times. Add frozen butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with some blueberry-size clumps.
• Add ice water and immediately pulse until just incorporated, about 10 times more. Squeeze a small amount of dough to make sure it holds together. Pulse a few more times, if necessary.
• Empty dough onto a piece of plastic wrap. Bring edges together to gather dough, pressing so it comes together into a mass. Roll out dough, still in plastic, to a 6-by-8-inch rectangle (1/2 inch thick). Refrigerate at least 45 minutes and up to 2 days; dough can be wrapped in plastic, then in foil, and frozen up to 1 month.

SOUR CHERRY TART

Steps:

• For the pate brisee, place the flour, sugar, salt and butter pieces in owl and crush the butter into the dry ingredients with the tips of your fingers until combined somewhat but with pieces of butter still visible in the mixture. Add the ice water and stir with a fork just until the mixture holds together. Gather it up, pressing it between your hands to flatten it and make it round, and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for one hour.
• Rub a small amount of flour into a pastry cloth and roll the dough into a very thin circle, about 12 1/2 inches in diameter. Roll the dough onto the rolling pin and gently fit it into the bottom and up the sides of an 11-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press the dough against the sides of the pan to fill in any holes and make it adhere to the metal. Remove any excess overhanging dough by rolling the rolling pin across the top of the pan. Refrigerate the tart shell for one hour.
• Meanwhile, in a bowl combine the cherries, tapioca, sugar and almond extract. Sprinkle the ground almond-sugar mixture in the pastry shell and arrange the cherry mixture on top. Place the tart pan on a cookie sheet and bake in a 400-degree oven for one to one-and-a-quarter hours, until the dough is nicely browned. Unmold and serve with strong coffee.

ALL BUTTER PIE CRUST FOR PIES AND TARTS (PâTE BRISéE)

Steps:

• Remove from refrigerator and let sit for a few minutes: When you are ready to roll out the dough, remove the disk from the refrigerator and let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes to take enough of a chill off of it so that it becomes easier to roll out. While the dough disk is still wrapped in plastic, warm the edges with your hands. If there are any cracks in the dough, massage them to close them.

PâTE BRISéE TART CRUST

Steps:

• Whisk flour, salt, and sugar in medium bowl. Add butter and shortening; rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 4 tablespoons cold water. Work mixture with fingertips until dough comes together in moist clumps, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic; chill until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 400°F. Roll out dough on floured work surface to 10-inch round. Carefully transfer dough to 8-inch springform pan. Press dough onto bottom and about 1 1/2 inches up sides of pan, pressing to adhere to sides. Fold down and roll 1/2 inch of dough sides inward, forming double-thick edge at top of crust sides. Using dull edge of small knife, make small indentations at 1/2-inch intervals on double-thick edge. Chill 20 minutes.
• Line crust with foil; fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake crust until sides of crust are set, about 18 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Pierce bottom of crust all over with fork. Continue to bake until bottom is set and pale golden, about 14 minutes longer. Remove from oven and cool in pan on rack.

PATE BRISEE FOR PEAR AND TART-CHERRY PIE

Steps:

• Make sure all your ingredients are thoroughly chilled before you begin. Place the flour, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl, and stir to combine.
• With a pastry blender or two knives, cut the cold butter into the flour mixture by pressing down quickly, using as few strokes as possible. You may leave a few pea-size pieces. Add 4 tablespoons water. Gather the dough and gently press into a ball. It should come together loosely; if not, add water 1 tablespoon at a time. Divide dough in half; place each on plastic wrap. Flatten into disks. Wrap tightly; refrigerate 1 hour or overnight.
• Remove disks from refrigerator. On a lightly floured surface, press rolling pin gently all over dough to flatten it slightly. Working from the center to the edge in all directions, roll out dough into a round about 3 inches larger than the pie plate.
• Wrap the dough around the rolling pin; lift and center it over the pie plate. Gently unroll the dough over the plate, leaving an even amount of overhang around the perimeter. Baking time depends on individual recipes.

PATE BRISEE (PIE DOUGH)

Steps:

• In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.
• With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

PATE BRISEE (FRENCH SHORTCRUST)

Steps:

• Place flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse 3 or 4 times to mix. Add cubed butter; pulse until crumbly.
• Pour slow stream of ice water through feed tube while the processor is on low speed until dough holds together when pinched, making sure not to add too much.
• Divide dough evenly into 2 pieces. Form dough into discs on a lightly floured work surface. Wrap discs with wax paper or parchment paper before wrapping with plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or until use.
• Roll dough out on a lightly floured work surface using a lightly floured rolling pin between 2 pieces of parchment paper to desired thickness when ready to use.
• Butter two 9-inch tart pans. Roll crusts 1 at a time onto the rolling pin and unroll over tart pans. Gently push dough into the prepared pans, molding to the sides. Trim edges with fingers or a knife. Fill and bake according to filling recipe instructions.

PâTE BRISéE

Steps:

• Pulse flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor (or whisk together by hand in a bowl). Add butter, and pulse (or quickly cut in with a pastry blender or your fingertips) until mixture resembles coarse meal, with some larger pieces remaining. Drizzle 1/4 cup water over mixture. Pulse (or mix with a fork) until mixture just begins to hold together. If dough is too dry, add 1/4 cup more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse (or mix with a fork).
• Divide dough in half onto two pieces of plastic wrap. Gather into two balls, wrap loosely in plastic, and press each into a disk using a rolling pin. Refrigerate until firm, well wrapped in plastic, 1 hour or up to 1 day. (Dough can be frozen up to 3 months; thaw in refrigerator before using.)
• Shortening Variation
• Replace 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter with 1/2 cup cold vegetable shortening, cut into small pieces.
• Lard Variation
• Replace 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter with 1/2 cup cold lard. For the best quality, it's worth seeking out leaf lard. You can buy rendered leaf lard from online vendors, or from artisanal butcher shops.
• Cornmeal Variation
• Replace 1/2 cup flour with 1/2 cup coarse cornmeal.
• Cheddar Variation
• Reduce butter to 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) and add 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar to the flour mixture along with the butter. Increase sugar to 1 tablespoon.

PATE BRISEE FOR SOUR-CHERRY PIE

Steps:

• Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter, and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through the feed tube until dough just holds together (no longer than 30 seconds).
• Divide dough in half, and shape into disks. Wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days).

PATE BRISEE

Steps:

• In a food processor, pulse flour, salt, and sugar several times to combine. Add butter; process until mixture resembles coarse meal. With motor running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream until dough just holds together; do not process more than 30 seconds.
• Divide dough into two equal pieces; place each on plastic wrap. Flatten into disks; wrap, and chill at least 1 hour.

PATE BRISEE FOR THREE-CHERRY TART

Steps:

• Pulse flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor to combine. Add butter; process until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube until dough just holds together (no longer than 30 seconds).
• Shape dough into a disk. Wrap in plastic, and refrigerate at least 1 hour (up to 2 days).