SC - Payne Puff

[Decker, Terry D.]

Bear's educational errors time.  Being curious and in one of my baking fits,
I produced an egg and flour dough last night.  

I mixed two eggs into one heaping cup of cake flour, stirred the mix until
it became crumbs, then worked the dough by hand until it balled properly. 

I rolled out a pie shell on a lightly floured surface.  Too lightly floured.
The dough is stickier than I expected.

The pie shell was pre-baked at 400 degrees F for about 12 minutes.  The pie
shell really needed pie beans to keep it from buckling.  I also think that
reduced heat and an extended time might improve the quality of the crust.

I used the pie shell to bake a cream custard tart.  The dough in contact
with the liquid became rubbery.  The exposed crust assumed some of the
characteristics of hardtack.  The end product wasn't bad, but I think it can
be made better.

Using the left over dough and a frying pan with olive oil, I turned out some
small Cruste Rolles.  

The rolle needs to be fried until the dough turns golden brown.  The texture
and taste are similar to a water cracker.  The flavor and texture would have
been better had I fried the rolles in lard.  I think they would have been
best fried in bacon drippings.

So, what did I learn?

The dough needs salt.  The cream custard tart would taste better with
cinnamon and nutmeg added.  I want to try this dough using three egg yolks
and a little water for the liquor.  The soft flour does make a difference in
the texture of the dough.

Some questions I need to answer:

How does the dough act with a meat filling when baked, boiled, or fried?
Would a soft, whole wheat flour improve the dough?  Would dressing the dough
with oil have a beneficial effect?

Ah well, that is for another time.

Bear

PS.  I was making bread while I experimented.  I let it go through the
second rise overnight in the refrigerator and baked it from a cold oven this
morning for my petit de june.  I'm of the opinion it was slightly
underbaked, but my co-workers haven't noticed, so I won't argue with
success.   
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