Basic Short Pastry Dough Recipe by Mangia

This rich shortbread crust serves as the base for our Espresso Bars. The dough is simple to put together and even easier to handle: You roll it out between sheets of wax paper, then use the paper to transfer it to the baking pan. You need to make the dough at least 1 day in advance of finishing the bars because it needs to freeze overnight extra step, but a necessary one that prevents shrinking. And unlike most other pastry doughs, this one you bake while still frozen solid. If you are baking for a party or the holidays and want to avoid as much last-minute preparation as possible, you can make this dough up to 3 days ahead.