Easy Peasy Pie Crust

Piecrustophobia is a dirty little secret. Many suffer from it, but few admit to it, preferring instead to purchase pre-made frozen crusts and then hiding the evidence (the box) at the bottom of the garbage.

Does the rolling pin strike fear into your heart? If so, the time has come to take charge of your baking destiny and put the dough where your mouth is!

Join me in the pie crust revolution!

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To give credit where it is due, I learned this recipe from my grandmother who is the pie-making queen of our family. No family occasion is complete without her banana cream and chocolate cream pies. Thanks Gram! My mother helped me refine my technique and wasn't afraid to tell me when my crusts were akin to shoe leather. Thanks Mom!

One great feature of this recipe is that it is so easy to remember. When I am ready to make pie crust, I don't have to waste any time looking up a recipe.

This basic pie crust formula makes two 8" pie crusts. If you are going to use larger pie tins, double the recipe and use the leftovers to make cinnamon roll-ups. Your family will thank you.

The ingredients you will need are:

2 cups all purpose white/unbleached flour
1 cup shortening (I prefer Butter-Flavor Crisco)
1/2 cup cold water
dash salt

That's it! This crust, properly made, is crisp and flaky and browns up beautifully in the oven.

Wait...come back! This isn't scary science..honest!

The biggest difficulty that people seem to have with pie crust is to know when to stop handling it. This is the MOST important thing to remember when making crust. And, there is a very good reason for this. Pie crust is intended to be flaky and delicate. More handling = more tough, less flaky.

I was one of those kids that wanted to know *why* I should or shouldn't do something before I decided whether I would or would not do what I was told (and, hoo boy is payback ever fun). Once I understood what was happening with the dough, it was easier for me to learn to handle the dough less.

When flour is mixed with liquid, gluten strands are formed. These gluten strands are what give bread dough its elasticity, or stretchiness. The more you knead, the stronger the gluten becomes.

You can see how this is counter-productive and a difficult concept to overcome. When you are mixing the crust ingredients, the instinct is to mix everything evenly and end up with a nice, pretty round ball for rolling. In fact, the gluten is what keeps everything sticking together so nicely. What you want to aim for after mixing is a crumbly, slightly gooey gob of dough.

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In order to make pie crust you will need a few basic tools in addition to your ingredients.

Tools:

Medium mixing bowl, preferably metal or glass
Sifter or sieve
Pastry cutter (in a pinch, you can use your fingers or two butter knives, but this really does make it easier)
Measuring cups, both dry and wet measure
Rolling pin
Flat clean surface for rolling

First, put your 1/2 cup of cold water in the freezer to chill a bit more while you mix the flour and shortening together.

Measure the 2 cups of flour and sift it into the bowl (sifting removes any clumps that might be in the flour). Sprinkle salt over flour and stir with a fork to distribute it evenly (I don't measure the salt, but if you would like to, use 1/2 a teaspoon).

Measure 1 cup of shortening and scoop into the flour/salt mixture. Use a knife or fork to break it into several smaller clumps. Using the pastry cutter, cut shortening into the flour until it begins to resemble coarse oatmeal as shown in the photograph. It is okay if there are still some larger clumps of shortening remaining. The flakes in the crust are created when the bits of shortening are flattened between layers of dough during the rolling process so you don't want the shortening to be cut into too small of pieces.

Then, pour about 3/4 of your cold water over the flour mixture and using a fork, quickly stir around the edges, pushing the flour toward the center until the flour begins to clump together. Add more water, a teaspoon at a time, if needed, to further moisten the dough. The reason you do not add all the water at once is because the more humid the air is, the less water is needed. Basically, you want just enough water to make most of the flour stick together.

When a rough ball begins to form, divide dough in half and scoop one portion out onto a generously floured surface and *gently* pat it together into a slightly flat ball. If there are any crumbs left in the bowl, scoop them out onto the top and push them down a little. They will incorporate the rest of the way when you roll the dough out. The ball will be a little crumbly, a little sticky, and not very pretty. It is *perfect*!

The next step in the process is to roll the dough into a flat circle that is large enough to fit into your pie tin.

Once you have the dough ball mostly stuck together and on your floured surface, you can begin the rolling process. Again, you want this to be done fairly quickly. It can be frustrating in the beginning, but once you learn a few tricks, it will come easily to you.

Also, another thing to remember here is that 90% of the crust is hidden under the pie ingredients, so it doesn't have to be perfect. Take that, Martha. If your crust cracks when you put it in the tin, just push it back together and it will bake up just fine.

What to remember when rolling:
Dust with flour often and generously
Turn and flip dough frequently, especially in the beginning stages
Alternate direction of rolling

Step-by-step:

• Rub flour on rolling pin, being sure to dust all sides.


• Press down gently on ball with hands to flatten slightly and sprinkle flour over top.


• Flip slab over, re-flouring board before replacing dough, sprinkle more flour on top of dough.


• Press rolling pin on top of dough slab a few times to further flatten it.


• Turn dough 1/4 turn and roll 2-3 times from the center first toward the top then from the center toward the bottom. Do not press too hard.


• Flip dough over, sprinkle board with flour, turn dough again 1/4 turn


• Repeat rolling process as explained above until circle reaches desired size, flouring as needed

The reason for picking the dough up and flipping it over in the early stages is to prevent it from sticking. As you are rolling the dough out, the parts underneath where you have sprinkled flour spread out and begin sticking to the board or rolling surface. By turning and flipping the dough as you roll it, you can distribute flour to those sticky areas. I essentially use the rolling process to complete the mixing process and have found that it makes for a very tender, flaky dough.

Take a few seconds to admire your beautifully rolled crust. Now the time has come to move it from your rolling surface to your pie pan. Carefully grab one edge and gently fold the slab in half, matching the edges. Pick up the edge opposite and fold in half again so the piece now resembles a quarter circle. Pick up entire bundle and place into pie pan with the corner in the middle of the pan. Gently unfold crust into pan. There may be some slight cracking. This is okay. If your dough happens to tear, just overlap the edges of the tear slightly and press them together.

Another method is to roll the crust up on the rolling pin and then unroll it again over the tin. I prefer the other procedure only because I am spatially challenged and have trouble centering the crust this way. Don't laugh, we all have our weaknesses. Do what works for you.

Once your crust is laid into the pan, make sure that it fits completely into the corners at the bottom. Do this by lifting the edge and scooting the crust into the corner. You will end up with a few small folds at the bottom. Again, this is okay. What you *don't* want to do is poke the crust and try to stretch it into the corner. When you bake the crust, it will stretch back and become misshapen. Or so I hear. *cough*

If you are making empty pie shells:

Trim crust around upper edge so that it overhangs by about 1 inch. Fold this under so that you have a nice edge for crimping. Flute edge with fingers or use fork to press design into edge. Prick raw crust along bottom and sides with a fork. Bake shell at 425 degrees until golden, about 12-15 minutes. To prevent the crust from puffing or slumping during baking, you can either use dried beans or pie weights in the bottom. Another method that works great if you have two identical pans is to put an empty pan inside the pan with the shell and then carefully flip the pans over onto a cookie sheet so that they bake upside down.

If you are making a filled, two crust pie:

Note: When I make two-crust pies, I make one batch of dough slightly larger than the other and roll it into a larger circle for the top.

Put first crust from the smaller batch of dough into the pie tin, fitting it into the bottom as explained above. Using a sharp knife, trim the crust away so it extends just past the edge of the pie pan. Fill the crust with your ingredients and place the top crust over filling. Trim top crust so that it extends over edge of pie tin by 1 inch. Fold this excess over the bottom crust so that it encases the edge of the bottom crust. Press the edges together to seal. Finish edge as desired. Bake following pie directions.

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This is one of my favorite parts of pie-making!

Round up all of the raw scraps left over from trimming the crusts and push them together into a ball. Roll the dough into a rectangle. Dab with butter and sprinkle cinnamon sugar over rectangle, leaving one long edge bare for sealing up. Roll dough up along the long edge toward the clean edge. Moisten the edge and seal it closed. Using a sharp knife, cut the roll into 1 inch wide pieces. Place cut side up on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until done.

We used to fight over these when we were kids. Now, as an adult, sometimes I share. If I have to.