- Do not believe the old
adage “Pies are like promises, easily made and easily broken.” A pie crust is not easy to make, and if
you don’t do it right they are not easy to break!
- Cold, Cold, Cold! When making the dough think cold. You want everything freezing cold;
flour, shortening, water, vinegar, your hands… everything! A very cold dough going into a very hot
oven is what makes the crust flaky.
- You will make a mess,
so if you are a neat freak. Get
over it!
Here
is my favorite recipe from the book Mormon Cooking Authentic Recipes,
I’ve taken the liberty of translating the instructions from Molly Mormonese
into Don’t-Know-What-I’m-Doing English for you.
No-Fail Pie Crust
2 ½ cups sifted flour
1 cup shortening
¼ cup cold water
1 T. vinegar
1 t. salt
1 large egg, beaten
- Before you do anything
else turn on the oven to 400 degrees.
You want to be able to put the pie crust in the oven at the full
temperature as soon as you are done making it. If the oven isn’t fully heated, put the
pie crust in the fridge until it is.
- Next get some ice cubes
and put them in a cup of water.
This will make your water really cold.
- Sift the flour and salt
together.
- Cut in shortening until
mixture resembles small peas. In
English this means, put your shortening in to the flour mixture and using
either two knives or a pastry cutter, start chopping up the shortening
until the shortening is in small pieces, about the size of small peas, or
for you scientists about 7-9 mm in diameter.
- In another small bowl,
mix the cold water, vinegar and egg.
- Sprinkle the water
mixture into the flour mixing as you go.
- When the flour is
moistened, stick your hand in there and clump it together so that it forms
a ball. Divide the ball into 3
smaller balls.
- Using a little flour
and wax paper, roll out the dough with a rolling pin. Try to roll it out evenly and into a circle,
this takes years of practice, at least that’s what I keep telling
myself.
- Roll the dough onto your rolling pin and
then unroll it over a pie tin.
- Cut the edges with a
knife, flute the edges (make the edges pretty with your fingers) then
prick the crust with a fork.
- Bake in your HOT
preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes.
If you smell something burning, you’ve cooked it too long.
- Let cool then fill with
pudding. Top with cool whip so
nobody can see the fluted edges.
Below
I’ve add another favorite recipe of mine that is great for when you need to
make all the pies for the Four-generation Thanksgiving Dinner, or you just want
to get the flour sifting and shortening measuring done all at once, reducing
the time and mess each time you make a pie crust. Do not attempt until you own a mini-van!
Homemade Pie Crust 401
(For when your family and friends consider you to be THE
source for homemade pies)
I have a cookbook that’s as old as I am; the cover is
missing, the edges are ripped, years of cooking have stained the pages and
sadly it’s out of print. I will sell you
one of my own children before I will sell you this book. It’s that great. It’s called Make-A-Mix Cookery. The whole concept of the book is to make a
mix ahead of time, so that actual meal preparation is easier. To that I say, AMEN! Here’s the pie crust recipe from that book.
Flaky Pie Crust Mix
12 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2 T. salt
5 cups shortening
Combine flour and salt in a large bowl, a very large
bowl. You will want room to work. Mix well.
With a pastry blender, cut in shortening until it is evenly
distributed. Mixture will resemble
cornmeal in texture. Put about 2 ½ cups
mixture each into 6 freezer bags. Seal
and label bags. Freeze. Use within 12 months. Makes enough for 12 single-crust pies.
Flaky Pie Crust
2 ½ cups Flaky Pie Crust Mix
(recipe above)
¼ cup ice water
1 egg, beaten
1 T. white vinegar
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Crumble Flaky Pie Crust Mix if frozen. Put mix in medium bowl. In a small bowl, combine ice water, egg and
vinegar. Sprinkle a spoonful of water
mixture at a time over the Flaky Pie Crust Mix and toss with a fork until the
dough barely clings together in the bowl.
Roll out dough to desired thickness between 2 sheets of lightly floured
wax paper. Place dough in a 9-inch pie
plate without stretching. Flute
edges. If filling recipe calls for a
baked pie crust, bake 10 to 15 minutes, until very lightly browned. Cool.
Fill and bake according to directions for filling. For double-crust pie, place top crust over
filling, press and flute edges, and cut slits in top crust. Makes enough crust for one 9-inch double
crust pie or two 9-inch single-crust pies.
Here’s
a recipe that is a favorite in our family just for kicks.
Bisquick’s Ham
N’Swiss Pie
(Or what I like to call
How-to-Trick-Your-Family-Into-Thinking-You’ve-Worked-Hard-in-the-Kitchen)
1 c. frozen chopped broccoli
2 c. smoke ham, cut up fully
cooked (I just buy a thick slice at the deli)
1 c. (4 oz.) Swiss cheese,
shredded (again deli)
2 c. milk
4 eggs
1 c. Bisquick
¼ tsp. Salt
1/8 tsp. Pepper (yeah, like
I really measure my pepper)
Heat
oven to 400 degrees. Grease pie
plate. Or in the real world spray with
Pam. Sprinkle ham, cheese, and broccoli
in plate. Beat remaining ingredients
until smooth; pour into plate. Bake
35-40 minutes; cool 5 minutes. I’m not
kidding you, this pie forms it’s own crust while baking. It comes out looking like a real pie with a
golden crust on top.
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