200g butter
140g potato starch
120g rice flour
160g fine cornmeal (fine polenta)
110g Chelsea Caster Sugar
2 tsps guar or xanthan gum (a mix of both works best)
2 eggs
2–4 Tbsps cold water
extra rice flour

Cut butter into cubes and place in the bowl of a food processor. Add all dry ingredients and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs. Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl and add the eggs and 1 tablespoon of the water. Using a wooden spoon, mix together very slowly, adding drops of water until the mixture forms into large lumps.

With dry hands, squeeze the dough together to form a ball. If it still seems very crumbly, add a bit more water; however, be careful not to add too much – the dough will bind together once kneaded. The amount of water required will be determined by the size of the eggs, the temperature and humidity.

Using a small amount of rice flour, lightly flour a clean, dry work surface. Empty the dough onto the floured surface and knead together. Wrap in cling film and store in the refrigerator until required, or freeze the day it is made.

Allow pastry to reach room temperature before rolling out and using. It can be defrosted in the microwave on low, but be careful not to melt it. Use it to replace sweet short pastry for a gluten-free alternative.

Tip: This makes quite a large batch of dough; however, it freezes very well. For dairy-free, replace the butter with the same quantity of coconut oil; the pastry will be a little more fragile to work with.

Extracted with permission from The Family Friendly Gluten-free Cookbook, by Sarah King, with photography by Devin Hart.