The Perfect Pie Crust

Shortening is not an ingredient that I keep in my house; in general, I feel strange about any food where I’m uncertain about its processing and how it came to be. Hydrogenated vegetable oil? No, thanks. So naturally, I was enthusiastic to discover this amazing all-butter pie crust recipe. This recipe yields a flaky and flavorful crust that has worked well in every pie I’ve made.

The Perfect Pie Crust (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
Yield: top and bottom crust for one 8 – 9 inch pie

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 sticks (1 cup) very cold butter, diced
• 1 cup very cold water*

*It helps to drop a couple ice cubes in when setting up your ingredients to ensure your water is at the perfect temperature.

Method:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together 2 1/2 cups flour, 1 Tbsp sugar, and 1 tsp salt.
2. Sprinkle 2 sticks (1 cup) very cold butter, diced over the flour mixture, and work in using a pastry blender, two knives, or your hands, until the pieces of butter are approximately the size of tiny peas. Be careful not to overwork.
3. Drizzle about half of 1 cup very cold water over the dough and gently pull the dough together using a spatula, adding more water a tablespoon at a time until the dough starts to form large clumps.
4. With your hands, gather the large clumps of dough together and knead gently a couple times to combine.
5. Separate the dough into two disks; wrap each in saran wrap and put in the refrigerator for at least an hour and up to a week.
6. When it comes time to make your pie, roll out one disk for the bottom (flouring liberally to prevent sticking), place gently in the bottom of your pie plate, and refrigerate while you prepare the filling and roll out the top. Proceed according to the pie recipe.

Pie dough out of the refrigerator, ready to be rolled out.