Dock

To pierce a pastry dough with a fork in an even pattern. This is typically done to shortbread cookies and to pie or tart shells that are pre-baked. The holes allow hot air to escape from within and underneath the dough, thus preventing any bubbles forming. Docking also allows room for expansion during baking, so the pastry again remains flat as it bakes and then cools. The docking holes do fill in as the pastry bakes so that, once filled, a pie or tart will not leak.