Lars, I never add the water to the food processor when making pastry. That option is there because I know that many do like to use that method. I don't recommend it.

In fact I don't even use the food processor to cut in the butter/fat any more. I did at one time. Now I use a box grater to grate the butter for pastry, scones, biscuits, etc... And then add the water and mix quickly using a fork. Just long enough to start to bring the dough together. Then I tip it out on to a floured board and then finish by folding it envelope style and turning, flattening it out and repeating the process 4 or more times. Makes for a flaky pastry/biscuit.

I've never found that the dough blade was necessary in the food processor.

The idea of the plastic blade is that it doesn't heat up as much as the metal blade.

~Ann

I forgot about the frozen butter/box grater method - I will have to try that next time. I did find that the crust came out tougher when I mixed in the water in the FP, but I actually did not pulse it and only turned the blade with my hand to do the mixing. I was already considering cutting the fat in by hand using a pastry blender - I use 2 parts butter and 1 part shortening in pie crust. I wonder if I could grate the butter using the grater blade of the Cuisinart. I am a bit concerned about heating up the butter with my hand if I use a box grater.

I think my old FP did a better job of combining the fat and the flour because it had slow speed options, and the Cuisinart only has one speed - very fast - and that does not seem optimal for mixing butter and flour. It is better for pureeing beans, however, or for slicing huge quantities of vegetables, but I really don't use it enough to justify leaving it on the counter.

Lars

My Quisinart 7-cup instruction booklet says "...the dough blade mixes and kneads more efficiently than the metal blade when your recipe calls for more than 3-1/2-cups of flour. Use the metal blade when a recipe calls for less than 3-1/2 cups of flour. Because the dough blade does not extend to the outside rim of the work bowl, it cannot pick up all the flour when small amounts are processed."

I'd suggest checking your user's manual for more information for your particular model.

-Grainlady

ann_t --> How hard is your butter when you grate it? Refrigerator hard or freezer hard or somewhere in between? Do you use the large grating holes or the medium ones. I tried this but my butter stuck really badly on the grater.. it was probably too soft.

Lalitha, It is refrigerator hard. Doesn't need to be frozen. Yes, I use the large grating holes.

~Ann

I use frozen butter for grating. Works great.

I guess I won't be using my dough blade, since I never put that much flour in. Thanks for the help - I do not have my manual here, but I will check it when I get home, as I am not sure what size I have, but it does have a smaller bowl that fits on top for processing smaller quantities. However, if I am processing small quantities, I use the chopper bowl attachment to my KA stick blender, as I can control the speed on that, and it works better for me.

Lars