Why it works: Butter and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Puff Paste
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the dough
Wash the butter in cold water.
Flatten the butter into a thin cake.
Chill the butter on ice until cold.
Mix half of the butter with the flour.
Add enough ice water to form a dough.
Laminate the dough
Roll the dough to ½ inch thickness.
Add half of the remaining butter in small pieces.
Dust the dough with flour.
Roll up the dough.
Roll it out thin again.
Add the rest of the butter.
Repeat the rolling process three to four times.
Keep the dough cool on ice until ready to use.
Shape and bake
Butter the pie plates.
Roll out the dough to cover them.
Roll a long strip for the rims.
Brush the rim with cold water.
Layer between each layer to make it puffier.
Fill the pies.
Cover with the rolled crust.
Brush the top with beaten egg white for a glossy finish.
Bake in a 400°F (200°C) oven.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Cold solid pieces trapped between dough layers melt and steam, separating them into flaky layers.
- All-purpose flour
- Forms the gluten network that gives the dough its structure and holds the layers together.
- Ice water
- Hydrates the flour to form a dough while keeping the butter cold and firm.
- Egg white
- Brushed on top, it adds a glossy sheen to the baked crust.
The step that matters
Keep the butter and dough cold during rolling. If the butter softens and blends into the dough, it cannot form separate layers. Cold butter melts in the oven, releasing steam that lifts the layers and makes the pastry flaky.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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