Rich shortcrust pastry

Sift the cake flour, salt and icing sugar together in a mixing bawl. Grate In the butter. Rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs and all the butter is well blended. Lightly beat the egg yolk and water together and sprinkle over the dough. Blend rapidly with a spatula and gently squeeze the dough into a ball. Cover with clingwrap and chill for at least 30 minutes. ROLLING OUT THE DOUGH: Work as quickly as possible. Place the ball of dough on a lightly-floured marble surface or pastry board. Flatten the dough by tapping three hollows in it with a roiling pin. (Leave the dough at room temperature for about 5 minutes if it has been in the fridge for a long period because it will crack if it’s too cold.) Place the rolling pin across the centre of the dough and quickly roll the pin back and forth. Continue rolling the pin away from you. Never roll the pin over the edge of the dough. Lift the dough periodically and sprinkle more flour on the working surface if necessary. Roll into a round about 3,5 mm thick. The diameter of the round should always be about 50 mm more than that of the pie dish.

LINING A LOOSE-BOTTOMED FLAN TIN: Lift the dough with the rolling pin and place over the tin so that the side that was downward is now facing upward. Lift the edges slightly to allow the dough to gently drop into the flan tin. Break off a piece of excess dough, coat with a little cake flour and use to press the pastry against the sides of the flan tin to form a neat right angle. Chill for 30 minutes. Trim the excess dough by rubbing the pin over the edge of the flan tin. Neaten the edges. Prick the base of the pastry with a fork.

BAKING THE PASTRY SHELL BLIND: Preheat the oven to 200 ºC (400 ºF). Line the pastry shell with wax paper. Fill With dried beans or raw rice; the latter is especially suitable for small tarts. Bake for 10 minutes until the crust is partially done, but not brown. Remove the paper and beans, prick the base with a fork once more and bake for a further 5 minutes. The pastry is done as soon as the edges are golden brown and pull away from the sides of the flan tin. (If the pastry shell is to be filled with a cooked or cold filling, adjust the baking times as follows: 15 minutes with beans. After removing beans, another 8-10 minutes.) Cool on a wire rack and remove the ring once it has cooled completely.