Parchment
A heavy, heat-resistant paper used in cooking.

Parfait
French for perfect, technically a parfait is a frozen custard dessert made with eggs, sugar, whipped cream and flavorings such as a puree, liqueur, coffee, or chocolate that is placed in a mold, similar to a bombe. It is served in a tall narrow glass so the layers are clearly visible.

Pâte a choux
Cream puff paste. It is a mixture of boiled water, fat and flour with whole eggs beaten in.

Pâte Brisée
A quick, basic pastry dough that can be used with both savoury and sweet recipes.

Pâte Sablée
A sweet, crisp pastry with the consistency of biscuit and a delicate texture. Added egg yolks make it rich and light.

Peaks
The mounds made in a mixture - for example egg whites that have been whipped to stiffness. Peaks are .stiff. if they stay upright or .soft. if they curl over.

Pipe
To force icing or similar through a piping bag to decorate a food . different nozzles give different effects.

Pound Cake
This is the ultimate butter cake. It gets its name (and texture) from the traditional proportions of its ingredients -- one pound each of butter, sugar, eggs and flour -- although over the years cooks have tinkered with the original formula and baking powder is sometimes added to the batter.

Purée
To put food through a fine sieve or a liquidiser to form a thick, smooth liquid.