Definition: baking a pastry or biscuit case before (or without) its filling, so the base cooks through and stays crisp.
Blind baking stops the dreaded “soggy bottom.” You line the raw case with paper and fill it with baking beans (or rice, or dried pulses) so the sides don’t slump and the base doesn’t puff, then bake — sometimes removing the beans partway to crisp the base. A press-in biscuit crust, like the one on our meringue tart, gets a short blind bake to set it before the filling goes in.
In practice: chill the case first, and don’t skip the beans — they hold the shape while it sets.
Related:curd,French meringue.