Baking pastry

The old adage that a good pastry maker has 'cold hands and a warm heart' is not far from the truth. Making melt-in-the-mouth pastry is not difficult but does require patience and attention to detail

Extracted from Cook Simply Everything by Marcus Wareing and Jill Norman, priced £20, published by Dorling Kindersley.

One of the most important things to remember when making pastry is to allow adequate time for resting and chilling. The times given in each recipe should be followed as the resting time will make the pastry easier to handle and prevent any shrinkage.

Among pastry doughs, pâte brisée or shortcrust, and its sweet variations, is justly celebrated. It bakes to a crisp, compact pastry, which makes a smooth container for tarts or a sturdy base for a layered confection.

Pâte feuilletée ('inside out' puff pastry) has a complex texture as the repeated rolling and folding layers that, on baking, rise up to form thin, buttery flakes.

Choux pastry is a moist, airy paste, which puffs up in the oven to form a crisp outer shell with a hollow inside. It can be piped and shaped in many ways and makes a good container for creamy fillings.