Shortcrust Pastry (Pâte à Foncer)

A flaky, buttery crust is really EASY to make at home! Use a food processor or by hand to create the most flavorful crust that you’ll ever eat. A delicious crust makes all the difference for any tart, pie, or quiche! Pâte à Foncer contains an egg which gives a crust more stability and less shrinking when baking.

A good buttery, flaky crust makes all the difference in a scrumptious pie or quiche. It satisfies the soul with each bite. There’s really no need to ever buy a pre-made frozen or refrigerated pie crust. Anyone can make a flavorful crust at home. A food processor is the preferred method due to the speed but a bowl and a pastry cutter can produce a flaky crust as well. Once you’ve tried it, you’ll realize just how EASY it is! Follow my step-by-step pictures below!

WHAT IS A SHORTCRUST PASTRY?

A Shortcrust Pastry is a type of pastry base to make both sweet and savory pies, tarts, quiches, or cookies. The four types of Shortcrust Pastry are: Pâte à Foncer, Pâte Brisée, Pâte Sucrée, and Pâte Sablée. All Shortcrust Pastry contain different amounts of flour, a fat such as butter or lard, water, salt, and sometimes sugar and/or an egg for added richness.

The technique to make a shortcrust is to cut the fat into the flour while keeping the fat cold. This ensures that steam will be released in pockets while baking making a flaky crust. Water and egg, if using, are added only after the flour has been coated with the fat. When the flour is coated in the fat, it forms less gluten. It’s important to not over mix or over process the dough, otherwise the gluten strands will elongate and create a tough crust.

WHAT IS A PÂTE À FONCER?

A Pâte à Foncer is a shortcrust that has an egg added to the dough. The egg helps bind the ingredients together and keeps the crust from shrinking or collapsing when removed from a tart/quiche pan. A tart/quiche pan is basically a decorative ring with a removable circular base set inside the ring. Once the tart or quiche is baked and cooled, it is held by the base and the ring is removed which creates a beautiful decorative edges.

WHICH METHOD SHOULD I USE, FOOD PROCESSOR OR BY HAND TO MAKE A SHORTCRUST PASTRY?

Both methods are effective to make a flaky crust but a food processor has a few advantages. Using a food processor is a very fast way to make a pastry dough while keeping the fat (butter or lard) cold, just be careful not to over mix. I find that the food processor also makes it more uniformly flaky. If you don’t have a food processor, use the by hand method with a pastry cutter or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. If using the stand mixer, use the low speed so flour doesn’t fly everywhere.

INGREDIENTS TO MAKE SHORTCRUST PASTRY (PÂTE À FONCER)

• Egg
• Ice water
• All-purpose flour
• Salt
• Sugar, omit for savory tarts or quiches
• Unsalted butter

HOW TO MAKE SHORTCRUST PASTRY (PÂTE À FONCER)

• In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and ice water; set aside.

• In a food processor, add the flour, salt, and sugar if using; pulse a few times to combine.
• Add the cubed butter pieces and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

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• Add the egg-ice water mixture and pulse just until a dough begins to form.
• Be careful not to over mix!
• Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and form into a ball.

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• Lay a large piece of plastic wrap over the top of the dough.
• Using a rolling pin, roll the pastry into the size that will fit the quiche pan or dish that will be used.

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• To transfer the rolled dough to quiche pan or dish, leave the plastic on top of the dough.
• Roll the dough around the rolling pin, scrape up the underside with a bench scraper if needed, and lift.

• Unroll the dough over the top of the quiche pan or dish, remove the plastic wrap, and gently press the dough into place.
• Using the rolling pin rolled over the top or a paring knife, remove any part of extra dough that’s hanging over the rim of the pan or dish.

• Place the shortcrust pastry in the freezer for at least 25 minutes or longer to chill before baking.
• To ensure a flaky crust, the pastry dough must be cold before being filled and baked.

NOTES (IMPORTANT!)

• WITHOUT BLIND BAKING METHOD: (TIME SAVER)
• To save time, prepare the dough and place in the pan.
• Chill the prepared crust in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
• Fill and bake. 

• BLIND BAKING METHOD:  
• Prepare the dough and place in the pan.
• Chill the prepared crust in the refrigerator for 1 hour or if in a hurry freeze for at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lay a piece of foil or parchment paper over the top and edges of the crust.
• Fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for about 8 minutes.
• Pour in filling and continue to bake.

TO STORE

• TO MAKE AHEAD: 
• Prepare shortcrust pastry dough.
• Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days. 

• TO FREEZE: 
• Prepare the shortcrust pastry dough.
• Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place in a freezer Ziploc bag.
• Freeze for up to 3 month

Try Shortcrust Pastry (Pâte à Foncer) with my favorite quiche recipe, Asparagus Ham Quiche, pictured above.

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