How to blind bake pastry
Skill level
Equipment you will need for this technique
Scissors
Baking parchment
Baking beans/dried beans/uncooked rice
Baking blind is a method of cooking a pastry case before adding the filling, in order to prevent the bottom from becoming soggy. The pastry is lined with a cartouche that's weighted down.
-Cut a square sheet of baking parchment. Fold it in half and then into quarters.
-Place your thumb at the corner of the square where all of the folds meet (this would be the centre point of the paper if you unfolded it). Fold the square diagonally from the corner your thumb is marking to form a triangle shape.
-Fold the paper in half again to form a dart shape.
-With the pointed end of the dart at the centre of the tart, mark where the edge of the tart is on the dart. Cut the dart just beyond this mark.
-Open out the paper disc - it should be circular and just large enough to line the bottom and sides of the pastry case.
