NEVER FAIL PASTRY MIX

Submitted by: Tom Ellefson

Recipe for: 20 servings

Ingredients:

PASTRY MIX INGREDIENTS
6 cup Flour
1 tbsp Salt
1 lbs Can of vegetable shortening
TO MAKE 1 PIE CRUST
2 cup Pastry mix
2 tbsp To 3, ice water

Procedure:

1. To make mix: sift flour and salt together into a large bowl drop
shortening into the mixture by spoonfuls and with a pastry blender or two
knives,cut it into the flour mixture until the mixture is crumbly.
2. Stop when the mixture still looks coarse--do not let it become
smooth.
3. If you know exactly how the mixture should look you can do this in
the food processor, but be careful not to over process.
4. Store pastry mix in a tightly sealed container on pantry shelf in
medium to cool weather for 1 to 3 months.
5. If the weather is warm or humid, it is better to keep this in the
refrigerator.
6. Let it warm to room temperature and recrumble a bit if needed before
using.
7. To use: for a single pie crust you will need: 2 cups pastry mix 2 to
3 tb ice water toss the mix and ice water gently unitl the mixture
begins to stick together.
8. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface--formica, marble or a
cutting board--and gently roll out a circle to fit your pie pan.
9. Some people use a pastry cloth or a square of clean muslin to cover
the surface they are working on, roll the pastry out right on the
cloth, and then lift the cloth and pastry, turn it uside down into the pan,
and peel the cloth away.
10. As you lift the dough into the pan, remember that tears can be
repaired with a bit of water and a small piece of dough, or you could
remove the holey inadequate curst, knead it back together and try again.
11. The more you knead, however, the tougher the pie crust will become,
so practice until you have a light sure touch.
12. Cheap trick: if you fear that you"ll never get the hang of rolling
out a pie crust that doesn"t tear apart, you might try placing a ball
of dough into a large size plastic bag and roll the dough while it is
still int he bag.
13. When it isthe right size, cut open the bag, remove the top sheet,
flip the dough inot your pan,and remove the bottom sheet.