Blind Baking Made Easy, perfect results every time.

Blind baking made easy, this is not an overly arduous process but following a few basic steps will ensure perfect results every time. We will show you how to create a blind baked tart shell ready to be used with a variety of fillings. This is quite a long explanation but it’s worth the effort in reading all the way through.

Tips,

I would always recommend baking using metal tins and rings for blind baking. Silicone containers can also a be used for general baking. But I think the robustness of metal give a more reliable result for tarts and flans. I’m not a fan of ceramic quiche or flan dishes. The material is too thick for fast heat transfer and it’s very difficult to remove the finish article from the dish.

For deeper robust tarts I like to use a 23cm x 3cm loose bottomed tart shell. The ones made by masterclass are excellent quality and will last for years.

Baking sheets should be robust enough not to bend or warp in the oven. An increasing number of chefs are using perforated baking sheets or baking mats which allow the hot air to circulate around the pastry more efficiently.

As to the baking-

Remember all ovens are different, some run a little hotter some cooler. Some ovens they will have one side hotter than the other. This requires you to turn the food around to even things out half way through cooking. Trust yourself, you know your oven better that anybody. Don’t be a slave to a recipe – even mine! If you find your food over colouring turn the oven down a little. And if you need to turn the food around, do it quickly without leaving the oven door open for ages.

Now if you haven’t already done so, look up our post Getting to Grips with Pastry to discover how easy it is to make your own pastry.

Lining a loose bottomed tart shell.

Now we have our pastry well chilled, but if you’re trying to use any pastry in a hot kitchen or at home on a warm summer’s day it’s a great help to chill anything in contact with the pastry.

Work surfaces can be cooled by placing a baking tray where to plan to roll out and throwing some ice cubes into the tray. As they melt it will cool the work surface for you. Make sure you dry off the surface before you begin.

While the surface is cooling pop the rolling pin into the fridge to cool down. I prefer to use a polypropylene pin that is easy to keep clean but also will stay chilled for ages it left in the fridge overnight.

I would always recommend baking using metal tins and rings for blind baking. Silicone is also a great material for general baking, but I think the robustness of metal gives a more reliable result for tarts and flans.

I’m not a fan of ceramic quiche or flan dishes, the material is too thick for fast heat transfer and it’s very difficult to remove the finish article from the dish.

Down to work. Lightly flour the work surface and place your pastry in the centre. Begin to roll gently with the pin, turning around the pastry as you go to even out the stress. Keep rolling and turning dusting with a pinch of flour if needed but don’t use handfuls of it.

Once you have a circle of pastry large enough to fill the tart shell and about 5mm thick roll the pastry around the pin. Bring up the tart tin then carefully unroll the pastry allowing it to drop into the shell taking care not to cut the pastry off on the edges of the tin.

Now for the clever bit!

Take a small piece of spare dough and wrap it in cling film. Use this to press the dough down into the corners of the shell and around the fluted edges. Using your fingers will cut through the pastry. But the soft ball of dough will gently form the pastry to the shape of the shell. If the tart is to be filled with a custard base like a lemon tart don’t remove the excess pastry from the top. Carefully fold it over the rim on the outside. This will stop the pastry shrinking down inside the rim during baking. And prevent any liquid seeping down between the cooked shall and the tin when the tart is filled for its second bake.

If the shell is to be filled with a firmer filling after baking. Trim off the excess pastry and pinch up the rim with the fingertips to fix it to the top of the tin. As soon as the tart is completed place it into the fridge to rest for at least an hour before baking.

Baking the shell.

Its fairly frequent practice in commercial kitchens to use several layers of cling film to line the shell before adding weight to hold the pastry down. It works very well and produces very neat straight sides as the film moulds to the shape of the shell. This keeps pressure on the pastry preventing it from lifting or swelling while in the oven. If your pastry shell is to have a dry or thick filling added you can lightly prick the base with a fork to release steam.

If, however if you’re using a thin custard like filling, I would avoid this as the filling may leak though to the meatal shell and weld the pastry to the shell.

However, the court is out relating to the possibility of plasticiser leaching into the pastry with the heat of the oven. The film won’t melt it, needs a bit over 200˚c to do that, and we are generally baking at about 175˚c – 180˚c. Commercial film is stronger and thicker than the type to use at home. And with the possible plasticiser problem I recommend using greaseproof paper at home.

Using greaseproof paper

Cut off a square of greaseproof at least 6cm larger than the diameter of the tart shell. Fold it in half then turn 90º and fold in half again to form a square. Find the corner of the square that was the centre of the sheet. Hold the corner between finger and thumb then fold the opposite end of the paper over a little like making a paper plane. Keep repeating the folds until you have a thick wedge shape. Now using scissors trim the open end of the paper wedge in a curve to remove all the loose sections. Open out the paper and with any luck you will have a circle of greaseproof large that the pastry shell.

Before using the paper to line the shell scrunch it up in your hands. In fact, it’s best to squash and crush it two or three times before use. The idea is to make the paper a forgiving as possible and mould itself to the pastry without forming gaps or cutting through the pastry.

Getting ready to bake.

Before we get to the next steps turn on the oven to, we are going to bake at 170ºc -180º (fan) 185˚c – 200˚c conventional but I want you to turn the oven up another 20˚c. then place your baking sheet into the oven to heat up.

Take the lined tart shell and carefully place the paper on top of the pastry. Press the paper into the corners of the shell and add some weight into the paper to hold the pastry down.

Using dried peas as weight.

Personal preference here is simply to use dried peas. They are cheap, work well and can be re-used many times. Ceramic baking beans don’t do a better job and cost a fortune and please don’t use rice! Some people advocate rice, but I think it’s a nightmare. Its difficult to remove the rice neatly with the paper after baking, it falls all over the place. Also, and more importantly it can find its way between the paper and the pastry during filling. If that happens the rice sinks into the pastry during baking and is exceedingly difficult to remove. Fine if you like crunchy pastry!

Clever baking.

When you are ready to bake open the oven and slide the tart shell onto the pre-heated baking sheet. Turn the oven down to the correct baking temperature and set a timer for 12 minutes.

The idea is quite simple, the act of opening the door and putting in the tart cools the oven down this means the pastry begins to cook at the correct temperature, not sitting in too cool an oven and melting before beginning to set.

 If we put the tart into the oven on a cold tray it will take ages for the base of the tart to heat though and again it will be soft, and none of want a soggy bottom, do we….

After the 12 minutes remove the tray from the oven and SHUT THE OVEN DOOR! I don’t know how many times I have watched somebody checking their baking with the oven door wide open. Then they can’t understand why they get poor results.

Carefully lift one edge of the paper and have a look at the base of the shell. If it looks uncooked return the tray to the oven for 3-4 minutes more. If the pastry looks cooked but moist lift the paper and beans out of the tart the return it to the oven for another 3 minutes to dry the base.

And bingo… you should have a blind baked tart shell to fill or use as you wish. This process is the same for large or small individual tarts, give it a go. Check out our post on a Pear and Blueberry Frangipane Tart to test out your new skills.

There is of course an alternative option of using bottomless tart rings. these are often perforated to allow moisture to escape the pastry during baking and give a crisper finish. Once you have had a chance to practice the basics have a look at our post on how to use perforated tart rings.

Enjoy Life!

John.

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©John Webber. 2023