Patent ID: 8029844

Claim:
A method for making a pastry shell, the method comprising: providing an annular baking ring having one or more vertical side walls and opposite upper and lower ends that are open and parallel to each other; providing a lower support plate having a substantially horizontal upper surface; locating the baking ring at a selected position on the upper surface of the lower support plate such that the baking ring and the lower support plate together define an upward-facing female die having a flat, horizontal floor and vertical interior side wall surfaces that intersect the floor at a right angle; disposing a gasket between the lower end of the baking ring and the upper surface of the lower support plate; providing an upper support plate having a horizontal lower surface disposed above and parallel to the lower support plate and a male die extending downward from the lower surface, the male die having a lower face and vertical side walls that are respectively complementary to the floor and interior side wall surfaces of the baking ring and configured to be inserted concentrically downward into the female die with a complementary clearance fit defining a die space between the two dies; positioning the upper and lower support plates relative to each other such that, when the two plates are urged toward each other, the male die is inserted concentrically into the female die; resiliently supporting an annular sealing collar on the lower surface of the upper support plate and concentrically about the male die such that, when the upper and lower support plates are urged toward each other, the collar simultaneously sealingly engages the upper end of the baking ring and sealingly compresses the gasket between the lower end of the baking ring and the upper surface of the lower support plate so as to substantially seal the die space between the male and the female dies; loading a selected volume of pastry dough into the upward-facing female die; urging the upper and lower support plates toward each other such that the pastry dough is formed into an unbaked pastry shell having a floor and vertical side walls substantially conforming to the die space between the male and female dies; urging the upper and lower support plates away from each other such that the baking ring, the gasket and the unbaked pastry shell define a removable assembly disposed on the upper surface of the lower support plate; removing the baking ring, gasket and unbaked pastry shell assembly from the upper surface of the support plate and conveying the assembly to a separate oven; and, baking the baking ring, gasket and unbaked pastry shell assembly in the separate oven such that the baking ring supports the side walls of the pastry shell during the conveying and the baking of the shell.