Before making your piecrust, put some lard into a bowl, on this lay a good-sized piece of ice and cover with water. Set on the ice, or in some very cold place, for twenty min- utes or half an hour. At the end of that time put into a pan a slightly heaping teaspoon of salt and one small pint cup of sifted flour. To this add two heaping tablespoons of the lard you have in the ice water. Cut this lard through the flour with a knife, or mix quickly with the tips of the fingers. Pour over enough of the ice water to roll easily✪ Piecrust (which you can ascertain by pressing your finger on the pastry), mix with a spoon, turning over and over until all is mixed. Then sprinkle the pan you have mixed it in with flour, lay your paste back in it, and set on the ice, or in some very cold place, twenty minutes. Have your pie-plate ready, grease very lightly, then sprinkle flour over it. Then sprinkle flour rather thickly on the pastry board, flour the rolling-pin, cut a piece of dough and lay on the board. Sprinkle flour over the dough, give it one roll out flat, beat it once, fold over the four cor- ners, sprinkle with flour and roll again quite thin. Double the piece you have rolled just in the middle, lay it double on the pie-plate, then turn the folded half back, fit it to the pie- plate, giving plenty of room for it to fall into place. Trim the edges with a knife that has been dipped into the flour. Put the fruit on the pastry. Now roll the upper crust in the same way. Fold, flour, roll, and beat twice. Roll the upper crust thicker than the under [crust. Double it exactly half over PIES AND PASTRIES 335 and cut several gashes in the centre. Lay this in the same position on the pie, turn over the upper half, giving room for it to fit, and trim the edge as before. Handle the pie- crust as little as possible, as the heat of the hand will make it heavy. In rolling, roll from you — and roll only one way. The baking is the most important. Heat the oven hot. Judge of the heat by trying a small piece of the dough. If the crust is baking too fast, set a pan of cold water in the upper oven to cool it at once. Turn the pie around two or three times that it may bake evenly. When done, and perfectly cold, sprinkle powdered sugar over the upper crust. The quantity directed will make one large pie. PUFF PASTE To make pufif paste that is light and flaky requires, be- sides the knowledge hozv, an infinite amount of patience and a certain adroitness or, one might say, sleight of hand, which only comes with experience. The secret lies in securing the greatest number of alter- nate layers of butter and dough. To accomplish this there must be sufficient butter to form these layers before it is ab- sorbed into the dough. If too much butter is used it will not be absorbed ; consequently the paste will be heavy, greasy, and unpalatable- Many cooks allow equal weights of flour and butter for puff paste. Experience has proved that equally good results may be had by using three-fourths of a pound of butter to one pound of flour. The butter, which must be fresh and sweet, should harden in ice water before it is used, and then be divided into four equal parts.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

Before making your piecrust, put some lard into a bowl, on this lay a good-sized piece of ice and cover with water. Set on the ice, or in some very cold place, for twenty minutes or half an hour. At the end of that time put into a pan a slightly heaping teaspoon of salt and one small pint cup of sifted flour. To this add two heaping tablespoons of the lard you have in the ice water. Cut this lard through the flour with a knife, or mix quickly with the tips of the fingers. Pour over enough of the ice water to roll easily (which you can ascertain by pressing your finger on the pastry), mix with a spoon, turning over and over until all is mixed. Then sprinkle the pan you have mixed it in with flour, lay your paste back in it, and set on the ice, or in some very cold place, twenty minutes. Have your pie-plate ready, grease very lightly, then sprinkle flour over it. Then sprinkle flour rather thickly on the pastry board, flour the rolling-pin, cut a piece of dough and lay on the board. Sprinkle flour over the dough, give it one roll out flat, beat it once, fold over the four corners, sprinkle with flour and roll again quite thin. Double the piece you have rolled just in the middle, lay it double on the pie-plate, then turn the folded half back, fit it to the pieplate, giving plenty of room for it to fall into place. Trim the edges with a knife that has been dipped into the flour. Put the fruit on the pastry. Now roll the upper crust in the same way. Fold, flour, roll, and beat twice. Roll the upper crust thicker than the under [crust. Double it exactly half over and cut several gashes in the centre. Lay this in the same position on the pie, turn over the upper half, giving room for it to fit, and trim the edge as before. Handle the piecrust as little as possible, as the heat of the hand will make it heavy. In rolling, roll from you—and roll only one way. The baking is the most important. Heat the oven hot. Judge of the heat by trying a small piece of the dough. If the crust is baking too fast, set a pan of cold water in the upper oven to cool it at once. Turn the pie around two or three times that it may bake evenly. When done, and perfectly cold, sprinkle powdered sugar over the upper crust. The quantity directed will make one large pie. PUFF PASTE To make puff paste that is light and flaky requires, besides the knowledge how, an infinite amount of patience and a certain adroitness or, one might say, sleight of hand, which only comes with experience. The secret lies in securing the greatest number of alternate layers of butter and dough. To accomplish this there must be sufficient butter to form these layers before it is absorbed into the dough. If too much butter is used it will not be absorbed ; consequently the paste will be heavy, greasy, and unpalatable. Many cooks allow equal weights of flour and butter for puff paste. Experience has proved that equally good results may be had by using three-fourths of a pound of butter to one pound of flour. The butter, which must be fresh and sweet, should harden in ice water before it is used, and then be divided into four equal parts.

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Piecrust

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