Pasta Frolla Recipe – Italian Shortcrust Pastry

Guido Pedrelli
Guido Pedrelli
Italian Cuisine Expert and Food Blogger
Guido Pedrelli
Guido Pedrelli, the mastermind behind Nonna Box, has honed his culinary expertise for decades, inspired by family feasts in Emilia-Romagna. Mentored by his restaurateur nonna, he mastered Italian classics and furthered his skills with professional culinary studies in desserts and gelato making from Mec3. Today, he shares this rich legacy and authentic recipes through Nonna Box.
Expertise: Italian cuisine, Pasta, Pizza, Pastry, Dessert

The art of making the perfect crumbly crostata or Italian sweet shortcrust pastry for cookies starts with this easy and quick pasta frolla recipe. Pasta frolla is the Italian term for sweet shortcrust pastry made from a base of flour, butter, egg and sugar.

pasta frolla dough cut into star shapes

In just a few steps, you can prepare this dessert base pasta frolla recipe and make shortcrust pastry cookies with icing sugar to serve along with coffee or tea. Or perhaps you are in the mood for a nutella crostata, simply follow this pasta frolla recipe, then blind bake the tart case or shell and top with a generous layer of nutella chocolate hazelnut spread. So yummy!

Equipment:

  • electric beater to beat the pasta frolla at the beginning of the recipe with the mainly wet ingredients such as the eggs
  • fork or spatula to mix the dry ingredients into the sweet pastry dough
  • bowl for mixing all the ingredients together
  • rolling pin for shaping the dough
  • flat board or flat surface for rolling out dough

This Italian sweet shortcrust pastry recipe only takes about 10 minutes to mix up, then you will have to let the dough rest for 30 minutes and then it is ready to bake in whatever form you see fit, from pie crust base to Italian sweet shortcrust cookies, there are so many scrumptious desserts you can create.

Ingredients

ingredients for pasta frolla
  • All-purpose flour (2.64 cups | 330 grams + extra to flour the pastry board and rolling pin) – be sure to sift the flour so the flour particles are small and easily absorbed by the liquid portion for a smooth pastry dough.
  • Unsalted butter (11.79 tbsp | 165 grams) – cold unsalted butter should be softened to room temperature. Some recipes call for “cutting” in cold butter, but we prefer this more traditional method of using it softened.
  • Egg (1 whole egg + 2 additional egg yolks) – the eggs should be small or medium and you can set the egg whites aside to make another recipe.
  • Granulated sugar (0.65 cups | 130 grams) – this is a sweet shortcrust for dessert cuisine so you will definitely need to add white sugar to make it sweet. We don’t recommend using other types of sugar such as brown sugar or raw sugar because it changes the texture of the pastry dough too much.
  • Lemon zest (1) – zest of one rind or you can substitute with other citrus zest such as orange zest.
  • Vanilla extract (1 teaspoon or 1 packet of vanilla powder or the seeds of 1 vanilla pod) – if you prefer to just have the lemon flavor you can also choose to leave out vanilla altogether for your Italian sweet shortcrust pastry.
  • Salt (1 pinch) – a tiny amount of salt actually brings out the sweetness in this Italian pasta frolla.

How to make pasta frolla step-by-step

Whipping the first ingredients. First, leave the cold butter out at room temperature until it softens. In a large bowl use an electric beater to whip the softened butter with the sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla for at least 3 to 4 minutes until frothy and fluffy (photo 2).

pasta frolla procedure

Now add the eggs one at a time, still whipping with an electric beater until completely mixed in and frothy (photo 3). Alternatively, you can use a stand mixer with a flat beater or paddle attachment to do this type of beating/mixing.

Add dry ingredients and form a dough ball. Now pour the flour into the mixture (photo 4) and mix all the ingredients quickly with a spatula or fork (photo 5), do not over-stir. Place the dough on a flat board or work surface and compact it quickly with cold hands (photo 6). If it turns out too soft, add a little more flour, but just enough to form a smooth ball. Do not knead the mixture.

pasta frolla dough mixed with a fork and hands

Chill the sweet pastry dough. Wrap the ball tightly in cling film (photo 7), flatten slightly and place in the fridge to chill for 1-2 hours or in the freezer for 30 minutes. This classic shortbread dough with butter, no matter how you plan to use it, should be rolled out when cold.

Use shortcrust pastry dough to make something. When you are ready to use this basic recipe for pasta frolla in one of the delicious Italian desserts it can be used for, simply dust a flat work surface with very little flour and lightly flour a rolling pin and then roll out the dough into the shape you want.

pasta frolla dough rolled thin and cut into shapes
finished pasta frolla dough

Expert tips

  • Over-crumbly dough. If your dough is too crumbly and won’t stay together in the form you are trying to make it into such as a crostata base or cookie, most likely you have overworked the dough. If this happens, add a teaspoon of cold water and mix with a fork for a very brief period and then try to form again.
  • Let it chill. Never try to work with the Italian pastry dough while it is still warm or room temperature. Always wrap in plastic wrap and let it rest for 1-2 hours in the refrigerator or 30 minutes in the freezer so the butter can compact and the dough is easier to roll out.
  • Use parchment. If you are making a crostata or pie crust, you can roll out the pasta frolla dough directly onto parchment paper and then flip it over and gently press into the desired mold.

Other recipes that uses pasta frolla:

Variations to pasta frolla

  • Skip the butter. If you prefer not to use butter to make this basic dough, then you can substitute the butter with 5.5 tbsp | 75 grams of sunflower oil. The rest of the sweet pastry dough recipe is exactly the same.
  • Add some baking powder. If you plan to use this recipe to make crostata or tart base, you can add 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder into the dough when you add the flour and you will have a slightly softer shell that puffs up ever so slightly.

FAQs

Can pasta frolla be blind baked?

Yes, you can blind bake your pasta frolla by rolling it out with a rolling pin and fitting it into the shape you want, such as a crostata or pie tin. Then bake it in the oven at 350° F | 180° C for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and let cool. Once cool you can fill it with your filling that doesn’t need to be cooked such as nutella or you can make a cannoli pie by adding a mixture made of: ricotta cheese, chocolate chips, powdered sugar and a dash of nutmeg.

Can I make pasta frolla the day ahead?

Yes, you can make pasta frolla the day ahead and then leave it overnight in the fridge. It might be a little too hard to work with straight from the fridge after so many hours so you can let it sit out at room temperature for 20 minutes, compact it again with your hands then roll it out to use in the desired recipe. The pasta frolla dough can be stored up to 4 days in the fridge tightly wrapped in saran wrap.

What thickness should pasta frolla be rolled out to?

If you are making tarts, crostata or other “shells” the pasta frolla dough should be rolled to a 5 mm thickness. If you are making cookies the dough should be rolled to a 4 mm thickness, if you are using the dough to make cookies that will be filled and paired, then roll out to a 3 mm thickness or less.

How long should I cook pasta frolla cookies?

You can bake pasta frolla cookies that are thin and only one layer at 350° F | 180°C for 10 minutes or until golden. Multiple layer cookies or with lots of filling will take longer, around 12-18 minutes depending on the size and thickness.

pasta frolla italian shortcrust

Pasta Frolla Italian Shortcrust Pastry Dough Recipe

Italian pasta frolla is used to make delicious desserts such as crostata, tarts, cookies and much more. Follow the recipe instructions below for this easy to make, quick recipe for delicious cookies or an Italian pastry such as crostata, tarts and much more.
4.67 from 21 votes
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Course: Base, Dessert
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 30 cookies
Calories: 103kcal

Ingredients

  • 330 gr (2.64 cups) all-purpose flour + extra to flour the pastry board and rolling pin
  • 165 gr (11.79 tbsp) butter softened to room temperature, or 75 grams sunflower oil
  • 1 (1) whole egg medium
  • 2 (2) egg yolks small
  • 130 gr (0.65 cups) granulated sugar
  • 1 (1) lemon zest organic only
  • 1 teaspoon (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract or 1 packet of powder or the seeds of 1 pod
  • 1 pinch (1 pinch) salt

Instructions

  • First, leave the cold butter out at room temperature until it softens.
  • In a large bowl, use an electric beater to whip the softened butter with the sugar, lemon zest and vanilla for at least 3 to 4 minutes until frothy and fluffy.
  • Now add the eggs one at a time, still whipping with an electric beater. When the first one has absorbed add the second and so on. You should get a frothy mixture.
  • Now pour the flour into the mixture and mix quickly with a spatula or fork, do not over stir.
  • Place the pastry dough on a flat board or work surface and compact it quickly with cold hands. If it turns out too soft, add a little more flour, but just enough to form a ball. Do not over mix or knead!
  • Wrap the dough ball tightly in plastic wrap, flatten slightly and place in the fridge to chill for 1-2 hours or in the freezer for 30 minutes. No matter how you plan to use it, this classic shortbread dough with butter should only be rolled out when cold.
  • When you are ready to use this pasta frolla basic recipe in another of the delicious Italian dessert recipes it can be used for, simply dust a flat work surface with a very small amount of flour and lightly flour a rolling pin and then roll out the dough into the desired shape and bake as needed.
Serving: 30g | Calories: 103kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 40mg | Potassium: 17mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 163IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 1mg
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