Pastry

The making of pastry is an integral part of the dessert repertoire and a therapeutic and rewarding practice. Even though pastry can be fickle and difficult, patience, care and perseverance will win out as you develop a deft hand and a feel for and understanding of the process.

As with all cooking, often the best way to understand a procedure properly is to have a few failures along the way. More can be learnt from mistakes than if you fluke it, as failure forces you to examine the whys and hows. So never despair: just turn around and have another go. It’s like falling off a bike: the best thing for your esteem and confidence is to start again and prove you can do it.