Shortbread dough: Liza Hlinska tells about its types and cooking secrets

Shortcrust pastry is considered the most common, simple, and most importantly, quick to prepare. It is often used as a base for various pastries and as a separate dessert.

Famous chef Liza Hlinska on her Instagram page talked about the main types of shortcrust pastry and the points that are important to remember when making it.

There are three main types of shortcrust pastry:

• Sugar dough – ideal for tarts and sweet cake bases, as it holds its shape and filling well.
• Sablay – used for cookies, or as a base for mousse or creamy textures.
• quiches

Cooking Secrets:

1. All products used to make shortcrust pastry, including flour, must be chilled. This also applies to kitchen appliances that will be involved in the preparation: a board, a rolling pin, a knife, and even a mixer. This is an extremely important point because the dough must be of a certain structure, otherwise, it will be far from perfect.
2. Solids and liquids should be mixed separately. There is a simple rule: bulk ingredients are mixed with flour and liquid ingredients with egg. And they should be combined only before kneading the dough. At the same time, it is recommended to beat sugar with eggs in advance. This way, it dissolves faster, and the dough doesn't have to be kneaded for a long time. In addition, it is extremely important to add it strictly in proportions: excess sugar will make the finished product hard.
3. If you decide to use two types of flour, remember the principle of substitution. It is believed that you can replace flour by no more than 10%. That is, if the recipe calls for 300 g of regular flour, then you can add only 30 g of another type of flour.

Life hacks in making sand dough:

1. If you are kneading dough turns out to be oily, put it in the fridge for 30 minutes.
2. To avoid making the product hard in the end, keep an eye on the proportions of egg whites and sugar.
3. Don't knead the dough for too long, as all the carbon dioxide will be released and it will become dense.