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Practice is more requisite than judgment to arrive at perfection in making pastry, particularly raised crusts, and very little can be given in the way of general instruction on the subject.—The flour should be of the best quality, dried before the fire, and then allowed to get cool before it is wetted.—Good salt butter, washed in several waters, to extract the salt, is cheaper in some seasons, and is as good as fresh butter. Fresh butter should be worked, on a board, with a wooden spoon, or the hand, to extract the butter-milk, before it is used for delicate pastry; after you have well worked, dab it with a soft cloth.
Finely shred suet makes very good crust for fruit, as well as meat pies, and, if good, is more delicate and wholesome than lard; veal suet is the most delicate. Some cooks cut the suet in pieces, and melt it in water, then, when cold, press out the water, pound the suet in a mortar, with a very little oil, till it becomes the consistence of butter, and use it for pie crust; but I prefer fresh suet very finely shred, not chopped. For this purpose it must be quite sweet.—Lard varies much in quality; and if not good, the paste will not be light. Sweet marrow is very good.
A marble slab is very useful for making pastry, particularly in hot weather. Pastry is never good made in a warm room, neither will it bear being exposed to a draught of air. The sooner it is baked, the lighter it will be. There is ample room for display of taste in ornamenting pastry, both for meat pies and sweets. Paste cutters are not expensive, and if kept in good order, will last a long time; but, if not delicately clean, the paste will be spoiled.
For very common meat pies, a crust may be made of mashed potatoes, spread thickly over the top. For more delicate pies, rice may be boiled in milk and water till it
