How To Bake Blind Pastry | Lovefoodies

Jump to Recipe

Here you will learn how to bake blind pastry and discover why you sometimes need to blind bake pastry. An easy step-by-step guide for preparing a pastry crust for filling.

Baking blind (sometimes called pre-baking) is the term used to describe the process of baking a pie, tart  or flan base with pastry, usually shortcrust pastry, without the filling.

The technique of blind baking a pastry base is necessary if you are going to fill the case with raw or 'wet' fillings, such as the egg mixture for a quiche, or a cake mixture, such as in a Cherry Frangipane.

As a rough guide, if the filling has a shorter cooking time than the pastry, then you will need to blind bake first. Failing to use this method will most likely result in a raw and soggy bottom to your pastry case as the filling will soak into the pastry.

This site contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission for purchases made through these links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more information, check Privacy Policy.

The idea is to roll out the pastry and line your flan dish, then using a sheet of grease proof or foil, line the surface and then place some weight on the covered surface, such as dried pasta, rice, clay balls.

The weight will stop the pastry forming huge air bubbles (I have an old ice cream box with dried pasta which I keep and use over and over again for this process.

I also keep the grease proof paper folded in the box too for the size of my flan dish so I don't have to mess around cutting a new piece each time I need to blind bake.

Table of Contents 📋 hide 1) What You Will Need 2) Instructions 3) Recipe Card 4) How To ‘Bake Blind’ Pastry 5) Baking Techniques and Hacks

What You Will Need

Greaseproof / Parchment paper or Aluminium foilweights, such as pasta, rice, baking weights

Instructions

1. Turn your oven to 180 C, 375 F,Gas 5.

2. Place your rolled out pastry into your chosen dish.

Make sure you gently push the sides around the dish

and trim any excess pastry.

3. If you see any cracks or missing bits of pastry, use the excess from your trimming to patch these areas.

4. Using a fork, prick holes in the base and also the sides of your flan case

5. Line the flan dish with greaseproof or aluminum foil, make sure there is enough to cover up the sides.

6. Place enough weights to fill the dish and distribute evenly, paying particular attention to the sides as these areas will form big bubbles if not weighted down.

7. Place in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes (for a 23 cm, 9-inch dish). If using smaller cases, reduce the cooking time.

8. When ready, the flan case should look like the photo on the below left. Say about 70% cooked, and ready for the filling.

*** Please note, if you want a completely cooked Pastry case, ½ way through the cook time, remove the weights and return the pastry to the oven to cook right through.

We'd love to hear from you and what you thought of our recipe. Did you make any changes or add some other ingredients? Let us know in the comments below. Thanks for reading and happy cooking!

• To go back to the frangipane recipe click here
• To go back to the Quiche recipe click here
• To go back to the Egg Custard Tart recipe

Recipe Card

Continue to Content

Ingredients

• Greaseproof / Parchment paper or Aluminium foil
• weights, such as pasta, rice, baking weights

Instructions

1. Turn your oven to 180C, 375F,Gas 5.
2. Place your rolled out pastry in to your chosen dish. Make sure you gently push the sides around the dish and trim any excess pastry.
3. If you see any cracks or missing bits of pastry, use the excess from your trimming to patch these areas.
4. Using a fork, prick holes in the base and also the sides of your flan case
5. Line the flan dish with grease proof or aluminium foil, make sure there is enough to cover up the sides.
6. Place enough weights to fill the dish and distribute evenly, paying particular attention to the sides as these areas will form big bubbles if not weighted down.
7. Place in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes (for a 23 cm, 9 inch dish). If using smaller cases, reduce the cooking time.
8. When ready, the flan case should look like the photo on the below left. Say about 70% cooked, and ready for the filling.
9. *** Please note, if you want a completely cooked Pastry case, ½ way through the cook time, remove the weights and return the pastry to the oven to cook right through.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 9 Serving Size: 1 crust Amount Per Serving: Calories: 45Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 0mgCarbohydrates: 9gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 1g

Nutrition information isn’t always accurate

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

How To Avoid Cheesecake Cracking

How To Avoid Surface Cracking on Baked Cheesecakes

Continue Reading

How To Make French Pastry (Pâte Sablée)

How To Make French Pastry (Pâte Sablée), easy step by step guide on making this sweet, buttery crisp tart shell. A classic famous sweet pastry dough recipe

Continue Reading

The Easiest Basic Meringue Recipe

How to make meringues using sugar and egg whites. Crisp on the outside and chewy inside. Perfect for making pavlova. Eton Mess, meringue kisses and much more.

Continue Reading

Quick and Easy Flaky Pastry

How To Make Quick and Easy Flaky Pastry. Simple to follow instructions, great for pies, strudels, turnovers and freezer friendly too!

Continue Reading

How To Line a Loaf or Pound Tin

How To Line a Loaf or Pound Tin, step by step instructions

Continue Reading Photo Credit: newbieinthekitchen.com

How to Line A Square Baking Pan With Parchment Paper

Easy instructions for how to quickly line a pan with parchment paper. Easy to remove baked cakes avoiding sticking to the pan

Continue Reading

How to Make Shortcrust Pastry

How To Make A Quick Basic Pie Crust, Shortcrust Pastry. Sweet or savory. Suitable for freezing before or after baking.

Get the Recipe Photo Credit: newbieinthekitchen.com

The Easy Way To Cook Rice Perfectly.

Learn how to cook rice on the stove perfectly, giving you perfectly fluffy rice every time. Easy to follow recipe

Continue Reading

How to Freeze Soft Berries

Easy guide to freezing soft fruits so you can enjoy them all year round

Continue Reading

How to Prepare a Pineapple With Minimum Waste

Step by step instructions to show you the best way to prepare a pineapple without too much waste

Continue Reading

How to Knead, Rise and Shape Dough

How to Knead, Rise and Shape Bread Dough By Hand. Easy to follow tutorial to show you how to get perfect bread every time without using a stand mixer.

Continue Reading Photo Credit: newbieinthekitchen.com

How To Make Perfect Mashed Potatoes

Learn how to make perfect creamy mashed potatoes, great tasting, fluffy, and so easy. Here's our simple homemade recipe.

Continue Reading Photo Credit: newbieinthekitchen.com

How To Make Perfect Scrambled Eggs.

How To Make Perfect Scrambled Eggs. Learn how to make perfect scrambled eggs with this easy recipe, simple to make, taking just minutes. Fluffy, soft, and creamy, this makes for a quick breakfast or brunch

Continue Reading

How To Make A Basic Cheese Sauce

How To Make A Basic Cheese Sauce.Easy step by step recipe to show you how to make a rich creamy classic cheese sauce with no lumps. Perfect results everytime for this classic roux sauce

Continue Reading

How to make Homemade Yogurt

How to make Homemade Yogurt. A very easy guide to making your own yogurt and flexible with so many uses, from breakfasts, baking, desserts, marinades and many savory recipes. Or simply enjoy on it's own with some fresh fruit!

Continue Reading

How To Make Home Made Ground Meat

Here's a very easy guide for how to make your own home made ground meat. This way you know exactly what goes in your ground meat!

Continue Reading

How to Poach Chicken

How to Poach Chicken with easy recipe, and the trick to keeping the meat juicy and never dry! Great for using in salads, sandwiches, lunch boxes etc and also a very healthy way to enjoy chicken!

Continue Reading

How to Season and Protect Your Cast Iron Skillet

How to Season and Protect Your Cast Iron Skillet

Continue Reading

How to Peel a Whole Head of Garlic Fast

How to peel a whole clove of garlic in under 10 seconds. Once you know the trick you won't do it any other way!

Continue Reading

How To Make Dulce De Leche (caramel)

How To Make Dulce De Leche. An easy recipe to making your own Dulce De Leche. Super easy, using a can of sweetened condensed milk & no other ingredients to give you sweet, sticky caramel.

Continue Reading

How to Make a Basic Creamy Soup

How to Make a Basic Creamy Soup - Use this basic recipe and create your favourite soups. Always easy to swap and add extras such as bacon bits or different veggies etc. Try it!

Continue Reading