Writer / Amanda Gibson of @indydough
There’s so many ways to make pie, and there’s so many tips and tricks, it can become overwhelming. The thing is, pie doesn’t have to be difficult, and finding your own favorite recipes and tips and tricks just means more pie. Who can be mad at more pie? This pie crust recipe is basic, and no matter how many times I want to make it more complex, I always return back to simplicity.
Ingredients
2 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup chilled cubed butter (2 sticks)
1/2 Cup ice cold water
Instructions
•Fill a pitcher with ice and cover with water
•Mix together flour and salt in a bowl
•Add all of your chilled cubed butter and coat with flour
•In between your thumb and index finger, “smash” all your butter
•Measure ½ cup of water out of your ice pitcher and add to your bowl
•Mix around until all flour is hydrated
•Your dough will look shaggy and a little dry, but you should be able to squeeze your dough together and it’ll hold. If it doesn’t stay together, add a teaspoon of water at a time until you can squeeze your shaggy dough and it holds together.
•Create a disc-like shape and tightly wrap in plastic wrap
•Allow to sit in the fridge for at least 2 hours, but overnight is best. This time allows for all the flour to hydrate and the gluten to rest.
•Pull disc from fridge and allow it to soften a little on counter so you can roll it out easier
•With a rolling pin, roll from the center of the disc out and do a quarter turn of the dough and do it again. This allows the dough to stay in somewhat of a circular shape and it’s easier to manage. Don’t worry about the edges being “broken.”
•To create even more flaky layers, fold up your dough to roll out again. I fold the edges around and then do a tri fold and work the dough back into a disc shape.
•Using the quarter turn method, roll out 1-2 inches larger than the size of your pie dish
•Put dough into dish and tuck excess dough under all the way around
•Make a “U” shape with your index and thumb on one hand and use your index finger on your other hand to crimp the edges.
•Let your pie sit in the fridge for at least 20 minutes to allow gluten to rest and help hold its shape.
•After it sits, your pie is ready to be filled with creativity!
Tips
•Pie dough likes all ingredients to stay cold, so work quickly. If you notice your butter getting softer at all, put it in fridge for a second
•Once you add liquid, gluten forms. If gluten is worked too much, your pie might turn out tough. If you’re rolling it out and it keeps shrinking back, let it sit to rest.
•Time is really of the essence with pie dough
•Depending on what you fill your pie with, you may need to blind bake your crust before use. Make sure you read all recipes all the way through.
•Don’t throw away any excess pie dough. You can use it for a lattice on top, or bake it on its own and roll in cinnamon sugar for little pie crust sugar snacks.
