Rose's Baking Basics

Sweet Cookie Tart or Pie Crust (Pâte Sucrée)

Makes One 9½ inch tart shell or one 9 inch single pie crust

Oven Temperature: 425°F/220°C, then 375°F/190°C

Baking Time: 25 to 35 minutes

Baking Equipment: For a tart: One 9½ by 1 inch high fluted tart pan with removable bottom, coated with baking spray with flour if not nonstick

An expandable flan ring or 12 inch round cardboard template

An 8 by 2 inch round cake pan

A cookie sheet lined with nonstick aluminum foil or with regular aluminum foil lightly coated with nonstick spray

For a pie: One standard 9 inch pie plate

Optional: a second 9 inch pie plate, to aid in shaping

For both: A large coffee filter, several smaller cup-style coffee filters, or crumpled parchment

Dried beans or rice as weights for blind baking

A foil ring to protect the edges of the crust

A cookie crust is firmer but more tender than a flaky pie crust. It maintains its crisp and tender texture even when chilled, which makes it more suitable for tarts that require refrigeration.

Makes 321 grams

unsalted butter	85 grams	6 tablespoons (¾ stick)
1 large egg yolk (reserve the egg white; see Baking Pearls)	19 grams	1 tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon (17.5 ml)
heavy cream	29 grams	2 tablespoons (30 ml)
bleached all-purpose flour (see Baking Pearl)	150 grams	1¼ cups (lightly spooned into the cup and leveled off)
fine sea salt	.	⅛ teaspoon
superfine sugar	37 grams	3 tablespoons
lemon zest, finely grated (optional)	3 grams	1½ teaspoons, loosely packed

Mise en Place

▪ Cut the butter into ½ inch cubes and refrigerate.

▪ Into a 1 cup measure with a spout, weigh or measure the egg yolk and cream. Cover and refrigerate.

Make the Dough

Food Processor Method

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt.

2. In a food processor, pulse together the sugar and lemon zest, if using, until the zest is very finely grated.

3. Add the cold butter cubes and pulse until the sugar coats the butter.

4. Add the flour mixture and pulse until the butter is no larger than small peas.

5. Add the egg yolk and cream and pulse just until incorporated. The dough will be in crumbly pieces unless pinched.

6. Scrape the dough into a plastic bag and press it from the outside of the bag just until it holds together. Remove the dough from the plastic bag and place it on a very large sheet of plastic wrap. Use the plastic wrap to knead the dough a few times until it becomes one smooth piece. There should be no visible pieces of butter. (Visible pieces of butter in the dough will melt and form holes during baking.) If there are visible pieces of butter, use the heel of your hand in a forward motion to smear them into the dough.

Hand Method

1. Very finely chop the lemon zest, if using. In a medium bowl, stir together the lemon zest, flour, sugar, and salt.

2. With a pastry cutter or two knives, cut in the cold butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

3. Mix the egg yolk and cream into the flour mixture until the dough comes together and can be formed into a large ball.

Both Methods

Chill the Dough

7. Flatten the dough into a 6 inch disc. Wrap it with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes, or until firm enough to roll or press into the pan. (If pressing the dough, see instructions found here.) It can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 6 months. If chilled for more than 30 minutes, depending on the room temperature it can take as long as 40 minutes to become malleable for rolling.

Baking Pearl

Unbleached all-purpose flour will result in as tender a crust, but due to its higher protein content, you will need to use slightly more cream: Use a total of 38 grams/2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons (40 ml) cream. The higher protein content in the flour will cause the crust to brown more quickly, so watch carefully when baking.

Variations

Same Day Sweet Tart Cookie Crust

For when you don’t have time to freeze the dough-lined tart pan for a minimum of 8 hours before baking, or if you prefer a tart shell with thinner sides and without a decorative border.

Roll the dough ⅛ inch thick and transfer it to the tart pan. After easing the dough into the bottom and against the sides of the pan, fold over the excess dough so that it drapes over the edge of the pan. Run a rolling pin over the top of the pan to cut off the excess dough. Then use your fingertip to press the dough gently against the side of the pan so that it rises about ⅛ inch above the rim. (There is no need to remove dough from the outside of the pan because this method prevents any dough from getting stuck.)

Freeze the dough-lined tart pan, lightly covered with plastic wrap, for an hour before blind baking. The thinner dough on the sides will not slip down more than just a little, even without extended chilling. The sides, however, are more fragile, so take care when removing the filter.

Sweet Almond Cookie Crust (Almond Pâte Sucrée)

For the French Chocolate Tart.

Omit the lemon zest and use only 106 grams/¾ cup flour. Add 50 grams/½ cup sliced, preferably unblanched almonds, and process them with the sugar until finely ground. (If making the dough by hand, grate the almonds with a rotary grater or use store-bought almond flour instead.)

Sweet Chocolate Cookie Tart Crust (Chocolate Pâte Sucrée)

Makes 455 grams/about 1½ cups

Another choice for the French Chocolate Tart or the Pecan Tart. Cocoa powder replaces some of the flour, powdered sugar gives a fine texture, and a whole egg replaces the egg yolk and cream for a little more structure. If pairing with a very sweet filling such as in the pecan tart, it’s fine to decrease the powdered sugar to 57 grams/½ cup, lightly spooned into the cup and leveled off.

unsalted butter	113 grams	8 tablespoons (1 stick)
bleached all-purpose flour	185 grams	1½ cups (lightly spooned into the cup and leveled off), plus ½ tablespoon
unsweetened alkalized cocoa powder	23 grams	¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon (sifted before measuring)
fine sea salt	.	a pinch
powdered sugar	86 grams	¾ cup (lightly spooned into the cup and leveled off)
1 large egg, lightly beaten	50 grams	3 tablespoons plus ½ teaspoon (47.5 ml)

1. Cut the butter into ½ inch cubes and refrigerate.

2. Process or sift together the cocoa, flour, and salt to remove any lumps. Empty it into a bowl and proceed with either the food processor or hand method as for the plain sweet cookie crust.

3. After baking and removing the weights, fill the tart shell without continuing to blind bake first; longer baking will make the crust less tender if it continues to bake with the filling.

Making Sweet Cookie Tart or Pie Dough in a Food Processor