Some people just don’t get along with pie crusts or anything rolled out. I used to be one of them. So I was always looking for recipes for pie crust that are easy to work with. I have to say, this recipe is fairly easy to work with, doesn’t tear all over the place, and is actually good tasting and super flaky when baked, and the fact that it is moister and more supple, allows me to roll out and put in the pie plate without disaster.
Vodka you say? Vodka is essential to the texture of the crust and imparts no flavor—do not substitute. This dough will be more moist and more supple than most standard pie dough and will require more flour to roll out (up to 1/4 cup).
I roll my pie crust between two sheets of parchment paper and flour. There’s nothing more aggravating than rolling your crust out perfectly, only to find out it’s stuck to the counter. Now you have to ruin it to get it off the counter. Trust me, use the parchment. And make sure there’s plenty of flour between the sheets. Add more of you need to. When it’s rolled to the right size, take one piece off, flip onto your pie plate, and peel off the other. Sometimes I just roll the dough around the rolling pin and unroll onto the pie plate. This crust was actually pleasurable to make! It’s super easy to roll out, super easy to make as the food processor does all the work, and super delicious!
Finally…a pie crust that I can make that is delicious!
It’s helpful to have the right ingredients and tools to make this pie crust or any pie crust for that matter:
Deep dish or regular sized pie plate
Pie Weights
(I use metal pie weights, but the ceramic ones are just as good and seem easier to find. You will need 4 packages for one pie shell)
The Kitchen blog has a great article on the testing of pie weights which was very helpful.
Why do the sides of my pie crust droop or shrink when baking?
There can be several reasons. If you refrigerate or freeze your pie shell before baking to get really cold, it will eliminate this. Do not skip the steps of refrigerating your dough.
I have intentions of making pie shells and freezing so they are ready to bake. This will certainly cut down on the time to make filled one crust pies like Lemon Meringue Pie or Banana Cream Pie.
Fool Proof Pie Crust
Ingredients
Single Pie Crust:
1–1/4 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. table salt
1 Tbsp sugar
6 Tbsp cold unsalted butter (3/4 stick), cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 c. chilled solid vegetable shortening , cut into 2 pieces
2 Tbsp vodka, cold
2 Tbsp cold water
Double Pie Crust:
2–1/2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp sugar
12 Tbsp cold unsalted butter (1–1/2 sticks), cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/2 c. chilled solid vegetable shortening , cut into 2 pieces
1/4 c. vodka , cold
1/4 c. cold water
Instructions
Process 3/4 cups flour (or 1-1/2 c. for double recipe), salt, and sugar together in food processor until combined, about 2 one-second pulses.
Add butter and shortening and process until homogeneous dough just starts to collect in uneven clumps, about 10 seconds (dough will resemble cottage cheese curds with some very small pieces of butter remaining, but there should be no un-coated flour).
Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl with rubber spatula and redistribute dough evenly around processor blade. Add remaining 1/2 cup flour (or 1 c. for double recipe) and pulse until mixture is evenly distributed around bowl and mass of dough has been broken up, 4 to 6 quick pulses. Sprinkle vodka and water over mixture. Give mixture a few more quick pulses to mix in. Empty mixture into medium bowl.
Flatten dough into 4-inch disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days.
Remove dough from refrigerator and roll out on generously floured (up to ¼ cup) work surface to 12-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick. Roll dough loosely around rolling pin and unroll into pie plate, leaving at least 1-inch overhang on each side. Working around circumference, ease dough into plate by gently lifting edge of dough with one hand while pressing into plate bottom with other hand. Trim overhang to 1/2″ beyond lip of pie plate. Fold overhang under itself; folded edge should be flush with edge of pie plate. Flute dough or press the tines of a fork against dough to flatten it against rim of pie plate. Refrigerate until dough is firm, about 30 minutes.
Adjust oven rack to lowest position, place rimmed baking sheet on oven rack, and heat oven to 425 degrees.
Remove pie pan from refrigerator, line crust with foil or parchment, and fill with pie weights. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and weights, rotate plate, and bake for 5 to 10 minutes additional minutes until crust is golden brown and crisp.
Notes
This dough truly is easy to work with. I have also found it on occasion to be too moist. If that happens, I just work some flour in to the dough without kneading too much to toughen.
This crust is perfect for Mom’s Apple Pie
It’s perfect for Banana Cream Pie
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