Pastry Dough

Pastry Dough. One could call it pie crust, a rough puff pastry, croissant dough, or a number of other names. I call it pastry dough, because all those aforementioned are pastries. :)

For awhile I have been toying with the idea of making pop tarts. Then, just the other day, I remembered Pasties. (Pronounced past-ee) Pasty, a Cornish food, miners would bring for lunch in the bottom of their lunch pails. If they got cold, they were easily re-heated on a shovel over a candle. With a pie-like crust, potatoes, onions, beef, and other vegetables inside, they were similar to a pot pie, only with out the pot.

Much to my surprise on the other my mom made pasties for supper! I was so excited! I knew right then and there that I was going to make pasties and pop tarts.

I had found this recipe from The Gluten Free Recipe Box a while ago, and knew it was going to be ah-ma-zing. Because I like to look up recipes, I looked around for awhile, but I didn't find any recipes that seemed better.

I chose to make it in the food processor attachment for our Bosch. That was a good idea. :)

Blend brown rice and sorghum flours, potato and tapioca starches, baking powder, celtic sea salt, sweetener, and guar gum.

Cut in spread and frozen shortening very thoroughly.

Add milk/cider vinegar (after it has sat for 10 minutes).

Mix until you can form a ball in your hand, it should feel like clay. Please ignore my lovely dried-out winter hands :P

Wrap with plastic and refrigerate for one hour, or until you are ready to use. You can probably make the dough up to two days before using. 

Pastry Dough [Free of Gluten, Dairy, Corn, and Eggs]
Ingredients:
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup tapioca starch
1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/4 cup potato starch (not flour)
1 T. dry sweetener (I can't remember what I used. Probably brown sugar. You could use Truvia or Stevia to make it sugar free)
3/4 t. baking powder (Make sure it is corn free! Hains feather weight is corn free.)
1/8 t. celtic sea salt
3 T. & 1 t. guar gum
5 T. Best Life Buttery Spread, cold, cubed
1/3 c. shortening, frozen 1-4 hours. (I used palm shortening, and make sure you freeze it in cubes, not a big hunk like I did. haha)
1 3/4 t. apple cider vinegar mixed with enough milk to make 1/4 cup. Let sit 10 minutes to curdle before using. (I used almond milk, if you are dairy free I suggest using a higher protein milk, such as almond instead of a lower protein, like rice.)
*Additional starch may be needed for rolling the dough out. I used some, but I didn't need a lot.
*Water for brushing on dough (use 1 egg white if you eat eggs)

Directions:
In 1/4 cup measurer, place cider vinegar. Add milk to make 1/4 cup of mixture. Let sit 10 minutes until curdled.
Meanwhile, place dry ingredients in food processor and blend well. Add spread and shortening, cut in very well, you don't want big chunks of fat like you would for biscuits. Add milk/vinegar mixture and mix until you can form a ball of dough in your hand, it should be like clay. Form dough into a ball, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

For Pop Tarts or Pasties:
Cut dough in to fourths, working with one fourth at a time (others remaining in fridge) roll out on starch sprinkled surface. Roll to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut dough to desired sizes. Put scraps back in fridge.
Preheat oven to 325F. Brush inside edge around your shapes with water (or egg white), fill with filling, avoiding outer edge. Top with another shape of dough, poke holes in top with 2-pronged fork to allow steam release. Use regular fork around edge for decoration. Brush top with water (or egg white). Repeat as needed until dough is gone.
Bake for 10 minutes* on parchment, turn oven up to 375F and bake for an additional 15 minutes* or until pastries are brown.
*If you over bake them, they will become extremely dry, and fall apart. Bake less for smaller pastries.

Other Uses:
Pie crust, I think this would make an awesome pie crust, one recipe would have more than enough for a top and bottom crust, but I don't think it would make two whole crusts.

Pigs in a blanket, I made three small ones with breakfast sausage, and they were amazing. Try with hot dogs, mini hot dogs, or and other type of linked meat.

Use your imagination, there are plenty of things you could use this for! :)

Pigs in a blanket made with breakfast sausage links.

-Emily

All pictures belong to EMPhotography. If you would like to use one, please ask me first, and wait until you have received permission to use it. Stealing makes everyone sad.


Recipe idea comes from The Gluten Free Recipe Box, please link back to me when using my version. Thank you!