It is that time of year when we whip out the flour and butter and all the fruit fillings and make some pie! Nothing is better than homemade pies, especially when the crust is homemade. With a few simple ingredients, and following the below steps, you will be impressing all of your Thanksgiving guests with your homemade pie crust!

Ingredients and Substitutions:

  • All purpose flour – this is simply the best for pie crust, and yall know I hate saying that as someone who has celiac disease. I will be making another recipe for gluten free pie crust, but the ratios are different than this recipe, so check out that recipe if you are gluten free!
  • Salt – only need a pinch! But definitely don’t omit it or you will have a bland crust.
  • Sugar – only add this if you are wanting a sweet crust for a sweet pie, granulated white sugar is best.
  • Butter – the best crusts use butter and only butter, in my opinion. You want the butter to by COLD and cubed. The reason you want it cold is because you want almost small pebbles throughout, this creates “lamination” and gives the flakiness to pie crust.
  • Ice cold water – the reason we want ice cold water is because it helps keep the butter cold, you dont want it to melt, this will lead to a flat and not flaky pie crust.

Key Steps to Making a Pie Crust:

  • Ideally you use a food processor, however you can mix with your hands as well! Hands are harder obviously because they are higher temperature, so it can melt the butter, which we want to keep cold!
  • First mix / pulse the flour and salt to combine.
  • Add the cold butter and pulse until the butter is the size of peas, or do this with your hands.
  • Add, 1 tbsp at a time, cold water until dough forms.
  • Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes before rolling out. You need to do this to keep the butter COLD, cold butter = better flaky crust! You can also make and store up to 3 days ahead, or even freeze!
@kellyscleankitchen

How to make a traditonal pie crust #piecrust #pie #cooking #baking

♬ Wes Anderson-esque Cute Acoustic – Kenji Ueda
  • SERVINGS:  1 crust (just bottom)
  • PREP TIME: 10 Mins
  • COOK TIME: 25 Mins
  • TOTAL TIME: 35 Min

 

Ingredients:

  • 1.25 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp sugar (if making a sweet pie)
  • 10 tbsp cold butter, cubed
  • 2-4 tbsp ice cold water

Preparation:

STEP 1.

In a food processor, add the flour and salt and pulse a few times to combine. Add the cold butter and pulse until combined and butter is in small pieces the size of small beans. Turn on the food processor and add 2-4 tbsp of cold water until a dough forms, adding 1 tbsp at a time. Stop once a dough is formed.

STEP 2.

Flour your counter and turn the dough out on the counter. Using your hands, form the dough into a disk, then wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before rolling out, and up to two days in advance. If refrigerating longer than 30 minutes, let it sit at room temp for 5-10 minutes before rolling out.

STEP 3.

On parchment paper, or the counter dusted with flour, roll the dough out to pie thickness. Measure with a pie tin and make sure you have two inches past the pie tin. Roll onto a buttered pie tin, cut away excess hanging off the end, and crimp the edges.

STEP 4.

If filling the pie and you wish to bake first, heat the oven to 400*F. Line your pie crust with parchment and dried beans or pie weights and bake the crust for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and remove the beans and parchment, then bake for another 10 minutes until golden brown. Remove and finish the pie with fillings of choice.

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