SC - Cool cooking event and e-"seige"cooking challenge

[Philip & Susan Troy]

Cedrin remarks:
>>>>With that in mind, I'll agree that lard makes wonderfully flaky pastry.
It,
however, makes a terrible crust for a free standing tall coffin shape. You
look
at it funny and you have a pile of flakes. Don't even think about trying to
cut
through it. <<<<
Whoa!!!  You must be doing sonething wrong.  The
English have been using lard to make tall coffin pyes
like Melton Mowbrays for 500 years!  Lard is the ONLY
good period ingredient for making tall coffins. Are you
using a high gluten flour and pouring in the lard boiling.
I have no trouble making 8" or so high coffins.  I can
even do high relief sculpture on the lids with it.  The pyes
are very free standing.   Did you prebake your crust
shell slightly to set it before filled it?  That is often
nescessary with very large and tall coffins. "Setting"
the shell properly depends on the right procedures
in mixing dough and having correct oven temperature
control.  In modern gas ovens I find I have to protect
the top crust though as the top clearances are less
than traditional dome ovens and it will darken too
fast and burn instead of a glorious golden brown.
Incidentally, you also need to liberally paint the shell
in beaten egg yolk too for best results.

Akim Yaroslavich
"No glory comes without pain"