Easy No Roll Pastry Made With Canola Oil

After fifty plus years I can make super easy pastry.  It's a revelation, I'm set free from rolling pastry out in a small kitchen with a tile counter.  So now I'm going round all my friends telling them about this.  I'm totally converted to simplicity of No Roll Pastry using Canola Oil.

I was cleaning the kitchen on Saturday morning and listening to a cooking show, where they mentioned how people go out and buy pastry crusts for their Thanksgiving Pies, because nobody likes to make them and that these ones should make a No Roll Pie Crust, one you just mix and pat-in-the-pan.  And I thought let me look one up on the computer as I have these two giant Fuji apples to make apple pie.

I came across this recipe using Canola Oil.

1 1/2 Cups of Plain Flour
1/2 Cup Canola Oil (can use peanut oil)
1/4 Cup Cold Water
1/2 tea sp of Salt

Put all ingredients in a bowl and I just mixed them with a spatula, it takes no time at all.

With the oil instead of a hard shortening it mixes quickly and evenly, wants to form a ball and does not stick to the sides.  Plus canola oil is better for you.

I made another batch for the top, this I did roll out a bit, but I was not trying to be perfect, you can roll this pastry out as well.  Next time I will be neater, I have plum jam and grape jelly to use up.  So now I can make little tarts and lots of other pastry goodies.  I'm so converted to this way of making pastry.

Here is the finished result, not fancy, but delicious.  I used cinamon, cardamon and brown sugar in the filling.

Do try it.

Here is another version using a little sugar in the pastry and adding a little baking powder, neither of which did I use.  Although I might have a go at adding the baking powder next time, it is not necessary as pastry is nice and flaky.  Savoury dishes might be nice with pastry made with olive oil, like quiches.

• 1-1/2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
• ⅓ cup oil (canola or light olive oil)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons cold water
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Christy