To get a really short pastry, you could swap out half the butter for lard. And to achieve a flakier ... The key to a crumbly shortcrust is to inhibit the development of stringy, elastic gluten.

Shortcrust pastry is the base for many baked goods ... used a trick where they replaced part of the butter with lard. Instead of classic sugar, powdered sugar is worth using.

There is an old cooks' saying that people with cold hands are good at making pastry. Shortcrust, puff pastry and their relatives need to be kept cool for best results. This means chilling the ...