vegan pastry

you guys, homemade pastry!!!!!!!1

oh man. i think i have mentioned before that i have always been terrified of pastry. i have no idea why. i throw shit in a bowl and beautiful bread comes out, but pastry has me in the fetal position on the kitchen floor. 

i have conquered my fear. i was inspired by this crazy OLD school cook book that i bought at value village in calgary. i mention calgary because the book was published sometime in the mid-80's by the big carrot - i used to shop there all the time when i live in toronto, which is the OPPOSITE SIDE of this giant country. it was crazy and nostalgic and inspiring to find this book. 

anyway, it has a vegan pastry recipe in it. it's not perfect, it doesn't make quite enough dough, and ended up a little dry. anyway, i tweaked it, and this is what i came up with. 


ingredients:

2 1/2 c flour (all white is easier to work with, but if you want a healthier option, use 1 c whole wheat)
1 t salt
1/2 c earth balance vegan buttery spread*
about 3/8 c water

*i have not tried this recipe with other oils/margarines, so i can't guarantee you'll have success, but by all means, try!

to make:

place flour and salt into the bowl of a mixer or food processor (i have not tried making it by hand, though i'm sure you could if you've got big muscles!)

melt earth balance, and with the mixer running (paddle attachment), drizzle it slowly in!

 

you'll end up with a somewhat clumpy bowl of flour.

again, with the mixer running, drizzle in the water slowly. this is the tricky part. it will look like the dough is still pretty bally, but when you squeeze it, it will bind together. 

if it sticks together like that, you're ready to go. 

if you're not using the dough right away, wrap it tightly in a plastic bag and keep it on the counter (if it's going to be an hour or two) or in the fridge (if it's going to be more than that). 

when you're ready to use it, wad up your dough into a... wad. 

 

halve the wad. 

set one half aside, and roll the other half into a ball, then roll out with a rolling pin. this will take some elbow grease, and if it's not round don't worry too much. feel free to pull bits of dough off and stick them on (with a little water) as needed. when it's done, it'll be about 1/4" thick, and you'll notice it looks big enough to cover a pie plate.

 

 spray some olive oil onto the pie plate, then plop that dough into place!

smooth the dough into place, and using a knife (carefully!!) or scissors, cut off any excess around the edges. 

fill with your favourite filling (i recommend vegetable and tofu pot pie), and top with the second half of the dough, rolled out as the first. cut a fancy shape in the middle, and use a fork to press down the edges!  

bake (about 35-40 minutes at 350 is a general rule of thumb, but it will depend on your recipe!)