Homemade Pie Crust
User Reviews
5
Homemade Pie Crust
Description
The Homemade Pie Crust recipe uses all-purpose flour combined with sugar and kosher salt to add a slight sweetness and seasoning. Cold unsalted butter is grated into the dry ingredients, creating small pea-sized pieces of fat throughout the dough. This contributes to a flaky texture in the finished crust. The dough is gently brought together by adding very cold water in increments, ensuring it does not become too wet.
After kneading the dough briefly, it is divided into two discs and wrapped in plastic wrap to chill for at least one hour. The chilling step helps relax the gluten and solidify the butter pieces, making the dough easier to roll out and reducing shrinkage during baking. Flour is used liberally when rolling to prevent sticking.
This versatile pie crust can be used for sweet or savory pies. Following proper chilling and rolling techniques will yield a tender, flaky crust with a subtle sweetness from the added sugar.
Weigh flour for accuracy or fluff, scoop, and level if using cups.Use cold butter directly from the fridge and keep the water very cold, adding it slowly to control dough moisture.Don’t worry if the dough looks shaggy before chilling; resting in the fridge helps evenly distribute moisture.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 (312) cups/grams all-purpose flour
- 2 (28g) tablespoons granulated sugar white
- 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 (226g) cup butter cold, straight from the fridge, unsalted
- 3/4 cups water divided, very cold
- 1 egg beaten (for egg wash, large
- 1 tablespoon demerara sugar for topping
Instructions
To Mix the Dough:
- In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar and salt. Using a box grater, grate the cold butter atop the flour mixture. Transfer to the freezer to chill for 10 minutes. Working quickly, and using your hands, break the butter bits into the flour until they’re evenly distributed and resemble the size of teeny, small peas. Add a 50% of the recommended water and mix.
- The mixture will be shaggy at this point. From here, add about 1/4 cup of water and mix. Add an additional tablespoon of water at a time until the dough comes together. (I used all of the 3/4 of water but you may not need to.)
- Flour your counter and dump the dough onto it. Knead a few times more until it comes together into one cohesive mass. Divide the dough into two and wrap each disc in plastic wrap for at least 1 hour, ideally overnight.
- Remove the first disc of dough from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature for 10 minutes. Liberally flour your work surface and rolling pin. Begin to roll the dough, being sure to rotate it every so often to avoid sticking, to a 13-inch round. Wrap the dough around the rolling pin and unroll it over the pie tin. Gently fit the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the pie tin. Trim the dough around the pie tin, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Add your filling and transfer the pie to freezer while you roll out the second disc of dough.
- Remove the second disc of dough from the refrigerator and repeat the rolling process as you did with the first disc. You have a couple of options, you could simply lay the second rolled out sheet of dough on top, making a few slits with a knife so steam can escape. You can do a lattice. You could even punch out holes or any sort of shape and place it on top. Crimp the edges and brush with the egg wash.
Notes
- Weigh flour for best results or fluff and level when measuring by cup.
- Keep all ingredients cold: cold butter from the fridge and ice-cold water to maintain dough texture.
- Add water gradually to avoid an overly wet dough; dough can be shaggy before resting.
- Chilling the dough allows moisture to distribute, improving workability and final crust texture.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 2pie crusts
Amount Per Serving
Calories 233 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 233kcal | 12% |
| Carbohydrates | 14g | 5% |
| Protein | 2g | 4% |
| Fat | 12g | 18% |
| Saturated Fat | 3g | 15% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 3g | 18% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 22g | 110% |
| Cholesterol | 12mg | 4% |
| Sodium | 2mg | 0% |
| Potassium | 34mg | 1% |
| Fiber | 4g | 16% |
| Sugar | 12g | 24% |
| Vitamin A | 35IU | 1% |
| Calcium | 33mg | 3% |
| Iron | 13mg | 72% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.