First, I am impressed by the sheer ease of making this pastry with a stand mixer. Save the forearm workouts for yoga and long hours at the laptop - the stand mixer will save you the added strain of cutting in the shortening and kneading out this tougher dough by hand. This argument almost seems equivalent to 'Why walk a block to the corner store when you can drive?' or 'Why take the stairs 5 flights when you have the luxury of a mechanized box that can lift you there?' But when you are dedicating an hour (or more) to creating glorious creations in your kitchen, the time and energy saved by this modern convenience seems worth it. Furthermore, a handheld mixer just wouldn't cut it here. The stand mixer spun the pastry into a smooth conglomerate of dough rather than a handheld mixer which seems to throw separate small chunks of dough against the sides of the bowl.
One point for the stand mixer honourably earned.
Second, making your own pastry is cheaper. I've never been one for math, but here's how I figure it:
5 cups of flour at an estimated 15 cents per cup = $ 0.75
1 package of shortening = $ 1.99
1 egg (based on a dozen at $3) = $ 0.25
2 Tbsp of vinegar (based on 1L purchased at $2) = $ 0.06
cold water = $ 0.00
2 Tbsp sugar (based on 2kg at $4) = $ 0.05
1 tsp of baking powder (based on 225g purchased at $4) = $ 0.08
1 tsp of salt (based on 1kg purchased at $2) = $0.01
TOTAL = $3.20
Total divided by 3 (as 3 single-crust pies are created per batch) = $1.07 per pie
VS.
Tenderflake Frozen Pie Shells (2 per package at $5) = 3.50 per pie
Third, in this day and age (does that make me sound 70+?) I believe we should be taking more opportunities to control what goes into our food. Making your own pastry means limiting additives and better control over ingredients. Here is an example, for years my Grandmother has made her own butter tarts (and of course, homemade pastry to go with it). The tarts are absolutely delicious and a family favourite. There are many holidays and special times in my life that would not have been the same without these tarts. At the same time, for years, my Dad has been a vegetarian. Well it came to light a few months ago that Grandma has been using lard in her beloved tarts all along and Dad has been enjoying them assuming they were free of animal product all along. While lard has been traditionally used (and is used in products such as Tenderflake), vegetable shortening is an equally worthy ingredient. When food is homemade, the baker has greater control - and therefore greater responsibility and ability to choose wiser. Take back the ancient ability to choose ingredients rather than product!
Finally, what have I learned?
- pastry doesn't have to be tiring or complicated. It is in fact made easier with Artisan
- homemade is better
- to avoid a flour cloud be careful when turning the mixer on
- lentils can be used instead of dried beans or pie weights - a creative alternative that was discovered as a result of not having 'textbook' supplies on hand
'Till next time,
L.
I remember a day and age when . . . wait, I am about a month from being 50 . . . so I shouldn't be using that saying either, yet.
ReplyDeleteI like that you finish with "What have I learned?"
Great job Lauren, keep going!
Thank you for your comments P-Daddy. You may note I have corrected my post. Your comments bring to my attention that not all 'almost-50+-ers' date themselves with such phases. I would say the almost-50-ers I know make me questions my assumptions of what it means to be 'over the hill' as they certainly seem younger (much, much younger)
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