Pate Brisèe Leaves Recipes

"FALL LEAVES" PATE BRISEE

Steps:

• Pulse flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor untilcombined. Add butter, and pulse until mixtureresembles coarse crumbs with some larger piecesremaining, about 10 seconds.
• Evenly drizzle 1/4 cup water over mixture. Pulse untilmixture just begins to hold together (it should not bewet or sticky). If dough is too dry, add more water, 1tablespoon at a time, and pulse. Divide dough in half.Place each half on a piece of plastic wrap, and wrap.Press dough into 2 disks using a rolling pin. Refrigerateuntil firm, about 1 hour or overnight. (Dough canbe frozen for up to 1 month; thaw before using.)
• Roll 1 disk of dough to 1/8-inch thickness on a flouredsurface. Fit dough into a 9-inch pie dish. Trim edgeflush with rim. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Roll remaining disk to 1/8-inch thickness on a flouredsurface. Transfer to a piece of parchment. Cut out 18leaves, rerolling scraps if needed, using 3 1/2-inch leaf-shapedcutters. Transfer leaves toanother piece of parchment; chill if needed. Gentlypress the dull edge of a paring knife into leaves tocreate veins. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.

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 BRISèE LEAVES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough 1/8 inch thick. Stamp shapes with a 1 1/2-to-2-inch maple-leaf or other decorative leaf cutter. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets; refrigerate 15 minutes. Using the back of a knife or edge of a small offset spatula, score "veins" in leaves; refrigerate 15 minutes.
• Brush leaves with beaten egg and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Bake, banging sheet halfway through (to flatten leaves), until evenly golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool completely on sheet on a wire rack. Leaves can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.

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.

VERSATILE PATE BRISEE

Steps:

• Pulse flour, sugar, and 1 teaspoon salt in a food processor until combined. Add butter, and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. Drizzle 1/4 cup ice water evenly over mixture. Pulse until mixture holds together when pressed between 2 fingers (dough should not be wet or sticky). If dough is too dry, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse.
• Shape dough into 1 large disk or 2 small disks, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour. (Dough can be refrigerated overnight or frozen for up to 3 months. Let chilled dough stand for 10 minutes and frozen dough thaw before using.)

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

Steps:

• Sift flour and salt into a mixing bowl.
• Cut in butter until it is the size of large peas.
• Add water tablespoon by tablespoon; knead lightly to form a dough and chill before using.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• To make pastry lids for pies, divide dough into 4 portions and roll each portion into a round 1/8 inch thick. Crumple 16 pieces of foil into large marble-size pieces and spread melted butter over them to prevent pastry from sticking to foil. Place each pastry round on top of 4 pieces of crumpled foil and bake until golden brown, 15 minutes. It may be necessary to turn over the pastries to brown on both sides.

PâTE BRISéE

Steps:

• Put the flour, sugar, and salt into a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Add the butter and process until you have some pea-sized lumps left.
• Beat the egg and water together lightly and add to the processor. Process only until the dough comes together.
• Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and divide in half. Form each half into a small brick, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before rolling.
• This dough will keep for several days in the refrigerator and for 2 months in the freezer. Defrost before rolling.

APPLE-BLACKBERRY PIE WITH "FALL LEAVES" PATE BRISEE

Steps:

• Whisk together granulated sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. Add apples and blackberries, and toss to coat. Pour filling into prepared piecrust, and dot with butter.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack in lowest position. Meanwhile, brush rim of piecrust with egg wash. Arrange dough leaves over filling, creating a spiral from the edge into the center, overlapping leaves slightly to cover pie but leaving some openings. Lightly brush tops of leaves with egg wash as you work, to help them adhere. Once filling is covered with leaves, lightly brush top of entire pie with egg wash. Sprinkle with sanding sugar. Freeze for 30 minutes.
• Place pie on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Bake until crust is golden, about 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees. Bake pie, rotating sheet halfway through, until juices are bubbling in the center and crust is golden brown, 1 hour and 45 minutes to 1 hour and 55 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely.

PATE BRISEE

Steps:

• Place 1 3/4 cups of the flour in a food processor. Add the butter and salt and process until well mixed. Add the egg and oil. Process for 30 seconds, adding more flour as needed if the mixture is too wet. (The mixture should resemble coarse cornmeal.) Add the ice water and process for another 30 seconds.
• Remove the dough and form into a ball. Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for 30 minutes. When ready to use, roll out the dough on a lightly floured board.

PATE BRISEE (FLAKY SWEET PASTRY DOUGH)

Steps:

• Place one cup of flour, the butter, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Process just until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 10 seconds. Add the water and slowly pulse just until the pastry begins to hold together, about six to eight times. Do not let it form a ball. Turn the pastry out onto waxed paper and flatten the dough into a circle. If the dough is excessively sticky, sprinkle it with several tablespoons of flour. Wrap in waxed paper and refrigerate for at least one hour.

PATE BRISEE

Steps:

• Sieve flour and add salt and sugar
• Add butter and use your fingertips to mix it qickly into fine lumbs
• Add the egg and mix well without overkneading
• Add flour if dough is too moist
• Wrap in cling foil and rest in fridge for an hour