We all know that oil will freeze at a much lower temperature than water, consequently the minute particles of oil become partially solid. Now take the paste, roll it out, and give it three turns; roll it out again, give it three more turns, and put it back in the ice; let it stand ten minutes or a quarter of an hour, and repeat this process three times. Be careful to flour the pastry each time before it is turned. By this means we get the pastry in thin layers, with minute air bubbles between them, and this will cause the pastry to rise. If you are making a pie, roll out the pastry the last time, cover the pie, and put it in the oven immediately, while the pastry is cold. Do not let the pastry stand, unless it be in a very cold place.

This pastry we have just described, made with oil, can also be utilised for puddings, in which latter case we would recommend the addition of a little more baking-powder, and to every pound of flour add two tablespoonfuls of very fine bread-crumbs. These must be dry, and rubbed through a fine sieve.

Pastry with Butter.—Good puff paste is made by taking equal quantities of butter and flour—say a pound of each—the yolk of one egg, a pinch of salt, while the water used is acidulated with lemon-juice. For the manipulation of this pastry we must refer those who do not know how to make it to other cookery books, or to the shilling one above mentioned. In making ordinary paste we must use less butter; and when we use considerably less butter, if we wish the pastry light, we shall require baking-powder. The quantity depends very much upon the quality. Many persons make their own baking-powder, and we cannot recommend any better than the recipe given in the last chapter, viz., an ounce of tartaric acid, an ounce and a half of bicarbonate of soda, and an ounce and a half of arrowroot. A great deal, too, depends upon the quality of the flour. Vienna flour is much more expensive than ordinary flour, but incomparably superior. What limit we can assign to the quantity of butter used it is impossible to say. A quarter of a pound of butter to a pound of flour, and a teaspoonful of baking-powder, will make a fair crust. When less butter is used the result is not altogether satisfactory.