Puff Pastry

So for those of you who like to bake here's a recipe from "The Godey's Ladys Book Receipts and Household Hints" ©1870

Note that they refer to it as paste not pastry

Puff-paste.—This paste is nearly the same as what we have called flaky crust, and of course made upon the same principles. If eggs are desired, allow three yelks to a pound of butter or lard. Rub a fourth part of the fat to a cream, then mix the eggs with it, and afterwards the flour. A very little water will suffice to wet it. Beat it with the pin to make it flaky; roll it out thin three times, putting in a portion of the fat each time, and roll it from you; after each rolling beat it well.

Superior Puff-paste.—One pound of flour, one pound of good butter, the yelk of an egg well beaten, and the juice of half a lemon. The paste must be made with cool hands, and in a cool place. Put the flour into a pan, make a hole in the middle, and put in the egg and lemon-juice, then cold water—enough, together, to make a tolerably stiff, but not too stiff, paste. Roll it out, and put a layer of butter over it in patches, sprinkle some dry flour over this (not that of the pound first weighed; that should all be wetted), fold over the paste, flour your paste-board and rolling-pin, and roll lightly on one side until butter and paste are amalgamated. In this manner continue to put on the butter, and roll out the paste until all the butter is used. The paste should be put on to the dishes in about three layers, and should be put into a quick oven to bake. 1

Sweet Paste.—This is suitable to fruit tarts generally, apples, perhaps, excepted, for which we recommend a puff paste. To three-quarters of a pound of butter put a pound and a half of flour, three or four ounces of sifted loaf sugar, the yolks of two eggs, and half a pint of new milk. Bake it ip a moderate oven.