It’s about time we hit on my favorite pie crust recipe, and just in time for pie season. I’m going to be sharing some of my favorite pies in the next few weeks as well, but today we’re going to the basics with a great crust that works for all your holiday pies!
My pie crust recipe is a bit non-traditional, but I think it works really really well for home-baking. Let’s get to it!
We’re starting out by tossing together our dry ingredients in a large bowl- in this case we’re working with all-purpose flour, sugar, and salt. A lot of people don’t put sugar in their pie crust, but I think it tastes better and it helps with even browning.
It’s time to get the butter ready. You want to work quickly so that your butter stays super cold- straight from the fridge you can quickly cut the butter into small chunks. They don’t have to be a perfect size, just about 1/2 tbs. in size (ish). Then we’re taking either a pastry cutter if you have one, or just clean hands, and smashing the butter into the dry ingredients until it looks crumbly, with chunks of butter running throughout. It should look like this:
Now, again with all your ingredients as cold as possible, we’re going to work in the dry ingredients. We’re using egg, vanilla extract, and a little bit of water. The egg and vanilla extract both add to flavor, but they also help to make the dough much more workable and tender, which I really appreciate when rolling out a dough.
Use a fork to work in the wet ingredients in the bowl. Then, use your hands to gently press it together. You may have some dry pockets that don’t quite work into the dough- you can add just a small splash more water to those bits to help them come together. Then turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
The next step is to pat and fold the dough a few times. Just gently press the dough together, and pat it into a rectangle that is about 8-10 inches long. Use a bench scrapper to then fold the dough in half on top of itself. We want to repeat this process 3-4 times, and as you continue, you’ll notice the dough start to come together more. Once you’re done, it should look like this:
Then it’s off to the fridge to chill for at least an hour to let the butter harden again. When you’re ready to roll, use a generously floured surface- you can dust off any excess flour before baking, but you really don’t want the dough to stick to your surface so don’t be afraid of the flour!
Then you can simple transfer it to your pie plate, and crimp the dough any way you’d like! I like this recipe because it’s not too hard to roll out, even after chilling, plus it makes a big enough batch to fill even a large deep-dish pie plate. Once the dough is all pretty in your pan, I recommend popping the whole thing in the freezer for 30 minutes before baking. This helps everything stay in place, and stay flakey!
Here’s my tips to make sure you end up with the perfect crust every time!
Enjoy!
Hello and welcome! My name is Nicole, and Dough-eyed is a food blog for people who want to bake for their family and friends in high-altitude areas. Think of me as a friendly voice there with you in the kitchen, here to give you confidence when you’re baking, and to help you with the struggles of baking at high-altitude. Come back every week for new recipes, tips, and advice on high-altitude baking!
Hello and welcome! My name is Nicole, and Dough-eyed is a food blog for people who want to bake for their family and friends in high-altitude areas. Think of me as a friendly voice there with you in the kitchen, here to give you confidence when you’re baking, and to help you with the struggles of baking at high-altitude. Come back every week for new recipes, tips, and advice on high-altitude baking!
2020, Dough-Eyed
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Laurie Van Court
November 6, 2021 at 12:06 pmI’ve become spoiled by my food processor. Can this crust be put together by processor rather than by hand?
BTW, I’m so glad you’re coming to talk at Douglas County Libraries later this month. Finding your high-altitude white bread recipe was a game-changer for me last winter and I’ve been bragging about it ever since. It’ll be great to meet you!
Dough-Eyed
November 15, 2021 at 4:27 pmHi there! Thank you for coming to the library event!! You can make this crust in the food processor, but because you'll end up with smaller butter chunks, you may find that it is slightly less flakey. It should still be lovely though!
AnneS
November 13, 2021 at 1:31 pmI'm giving the pie crust a try tomorrow for an apple, pear tart, hand pie or dumpling. Not sure which because I'm trying to use up fruit. Not sure how much filling I'll have.
Which library and when will you be presenting?
Dough-Eyed
November 15, 2021 at 4:31 pmHi there! So sorry I missed you before the Douglas County Library event last weekend! But I hope you loved the crust recipe!
Julie
November 22, 2021 at 5:45 pmDo you think I could make this the day before, cover it and refrigerate it until I’m ready to bake?
Dough-Eyed
November 28, 2021 at 3:23 pmHi there- yes you can shape the dough into your pie plate and cover with plastic to chill in the fridge or even the freezer before baking!
kay
June 11, 2022 at 2:36 pmother than blind bake and par bake, how long and what temp do you cook the pie at?? doesn't say!
Dough-Eyed
July 8, 2022 at 6:56 pmHi Kay- Other than blind and par baking, you'll need to follow the recipe of whatever actual pie recipe you are using. This is just for the crust, and all pies bake at different temps and lengths based on the filling!
nina
October 16, 2022 at 11:17 amwill this recipe be enough crust for a 9.5” pie pan? and will your pumpkin pie recipe also but enough for a 9.5” pie pan?
Dough-Eyed
October 29, 2022 at 8:01 amThe pie crust is perfect for a larger pie plate for sure. The pumpkin pie should be about right, but it won't look quite as full as what I've got shown here.