Savoury Pastries

I used to think it was impossible to make edible wholewheat pastry. I have been proved wrong, but I must add that it is very easy to make something brittle and bland.

The secret of making moist and crumbly wholewheat pastry is to work carefully and to add water cautiously. It is a good idea to add lemon juice instead of water because the ascorbic acid breaks down the gluten and helps to give the necessary crumbly texture.

The next golden rule to remember is that the flavour of your pastry will only be as good as your shortening. For the best texture, half butter and half vegetable fat is necessary. Use your shortening straight from the refrigerator, and grate it into the flour using a cheese grater. This is much easier than mixing it in with two knives, and makes the rubbing in by hand much quicker.