Basic Pie Dough Recipes

HOMEMADE PIE DOUGH

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the butter and pinch with your fingers or use a to cut the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse crumbs or until most of the big chunks of butter are flattened or broken up and there is no remaining dry flour sections.
• Mix in enough of the cold water into the the dough until it comes together and forms a rough ball. If necessary, barely knead the dough just until the can come together nicely in a ball, dusting the surface with flour as you work to keep things from sticking. Don't overwork the dough or else it will become tough.
• Divide the dough ball in half and then roll each half into a ball, and then flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes (can be chilled overnight or frozen for future use).Use as directed in your pie recipes. Make sure to butter the base of your pie pans before adding the dough and brush with egg wash or heavy cream before baking.

BASIC PIE DOUGH FOR SPINACH AND GRUYERE QUICHES

Steps:

• In a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar; pulse to combine. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining.
• Sprinkle with 1/4 cup ice water. Pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed (if necessary, add up to cup more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time). Do not overmix.
• Transfer half of dough (still crumbly) onto a piece of plastic wrap. Form dough into a disk 3/4 inch thick; wrap tightly in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour (and up to 3 days). Repeat with remaining dough.
• Place one disk of dough on a lightly floured piece of waxed paper. Rolling from center outward, form into a 14-inch round. Using paper, lift and wrap dough around a floured rolling pin; carefully unroll (discarding paper) over a 9-inch pie plate.
• Gently fit dough into bottom and sides of plate. Avoid stretching or tearing dough. Using kitchen shears, trim overhang to 1 inch; fold under to form a rim. Crimp with fingertips and knuckle. Repeat with remaining disk of dough.

BASIC PIE DOUGH

Steps:

• In a large bowl or in the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour and salt. Add the butter and cut in or pulse until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. (To "cut in" means to mix cold fat such as butter with dry ingredients to form small pieces.) Pour in the milk. Combine just until the dough holds together in a ball.
• Turn the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap and lift the sides toward the middle to press them together. Cut the dough in half. Form each piece into a disk and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes. If the dough has been refrigerated in advance, remove 15 minutes before using.

EASY PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Place all ingredients in 9 inch pie pan. Stir together with fork. Pat mixture into bottom and up the sides of the pan. Poke holes in bottom and side of crust.
• Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until light brown. Use as directed in favorite pie recipe.

EASY PIE CRUST

Steps:

• To make the dough for the pie crust, mix 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour and 1 teaspoon each salt and sugar in a medium-size bowl. Cut 2 sticks chilled unsalted butter into pieces. With a pastry blender, cut in butter, working until mixture resembles coarse meal.
• Add 4 tablespoons ice water; work with hands until dough comes together. If dough is still crumbly, add more ice water a tablespoon at a time (up to 4 more tablespoons). Do not overwork.
• Divide dough in half, and flatten halves into disks. Wrap disks separately in plastic; refrigerate at least 1 hour.
• To form the pie shell, roll the dough on a floured surface into a 14-inch round. Wrap around rolling pin and carefully unroll over a 9-inch pie plate.
• Fit gently into bottom and side of plate. Use kitchen shears to trim dough to a 1-inch overhang; fold under, and seal to form a rim.
• Crimp rim with fingertips and knuckle. Repeat with remaining dough; wrap each with plastic, stack, and freeze.

BASIC FLAKY PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Whisk the flour and salt together in a medium size bowl. With a pastry blender, cut in the cold shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Drizzle 2 to 3 tablespoons ice water over flour. Toss mixture with a fork to moisten, adding more water a few drops at a time until the dough comes together.
• Gently gather dough particles together into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 30 minutes before rolling.
• Roll out dough, and put in a pie plate. Fill with desired filling and bake.

BASIC PIE DOUGH

Steps:

• To prepare the dough by hand, combine the flour and salt in a stainless steel bowl, using a pastry knife mix well.
• Add the cold butter cubes to the flour and mix in until the mixture begins to resemble a mealy mixture where the butter forms pea sized nuggets plainly visible in the flour. Add only enough ice water to pull the dough together. The water should be added to the flour slowly to ensure that only the minimum amount of water is used. Do not over mix the dough. When the dough has been mixed just sufficiently to combine the ingredients, form it into a ball and wrap in a piece of plastic and refrigerate for several hours.
• When ready to use, lightly flour a pastry board and a rolling pin, and unwrap the dough. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces and begin to roll out the first piece into the bottom crust.
• Tamp down the dough with the pin and gently begin to roll out into a circular pie shape by rolling evenly outward from the center and turning the dough in small 1/8th turns to keep the rolling even. When the dough is rolled out to an even thickness and is about 12 inches and is about 1/8th-inch thick it is ready to be transferred to a 10-inch pie tin.
• Lightly butter the tin, lift the dough with the rolling pin by partially rolling the dough up on the pin, center the dough in the tin and unroll. Pierce it in several places with the tines of a fork.
• Roll the second half of the pie dough into a round shape slightly larger than the pie pan. Fill the bottom crust with your chosen fruit filling. Cover the filling, such as apple, with the top half of the pie dough. Using both hands, crimp the edges of the two crusts together to seal. With a sharp knife, make several crosshatch slits in the top crust. Brush with the egg wash and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 20 minutes.

BASIC PIE DOUGH

Steps:

• In a food processor, pulse the flour, sugar and salt. Add the butter and shortening and pulse until a course crumbly texture forms. Add the apple cider vinegar/cold water mixture 1 tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency. Pinch the dough between your fingers and if it doesn't stick together, add 1 tablespoon of ice water at a time, pulsing between additions until the dough comes together. Do not overmix or the dough will become tough.
• Divide the dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and pat each into a disk. Wrap tightly and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or preferably overnight, or freeze for up to 2 months. Roll out the dough and use as desired.

ALL-BUTTER EASY PIE DOUGH

Steps:

• In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, pulse together the flour, salt, sugar and butter until the mixture resembles cornmeal with some pea-size pieces of butter remaining.
• In a small bowl, stir together the ice water and the lemon juice. Slowly add the liquid to the flour mixture, pulsing, until the dough just comes together. Squeeze a small piece of dough between your thumb and index finger to make sure it holds its shape.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide it in half. Gently turn over each piece of dough a few times so that any dry bits are incorporated. Form each piece into a loose disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

BASIC PIE DOUGH

Steps:

• Pulse the flour, shortening, sugar, vinegar and salt in a food processor until it looks like fine meal. Add the butter and pulse until it is in pea-size pieces. Sprinkle in 1/4 cup ice water and pulse until the dough begins to come together. Pinch the dough with your fingers; if it doesn't hold together, add up to 4 more tablespoons ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse again.
• Divide the dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and pat each into a disk. Wrap tightly and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or preferably overnight, or freeze up to 2 months.

EASIEST PIE CRUST EVER!

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, mix flour and salt.
• Add oil and water all at once to flour.
• With a fork, stir until mixture holds together.
• Shape dough into a ball and flatten.
• Roll between two pieces of wax paper to a 12" diameter.
• Peel off one piece of wax paper and invert dough, paper side up, into a 9" pie plate.
• Peel off second piece of paper. Ease an fit pastry into plate. Trim and flute edges.
• NOTE: DO NOT pierce pie crust. Fill as desired and bake according to pie recipe.
• Can be doubled for a 2 crust pie.

BASIC PIE DOUGH FOR APPLE PIE

Steps:

• In a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar; pulse to combine. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with just a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining.
• Sprinkle with 1/4 cup ice water. Pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed with fingers (if necessary, add up to 1/4 cup more water, 1 tablespoon at a time). To help ensure a flaky crust, do not overprocess.
• Transfer half of dough (still crumbly) onto a piece of plastic wrap. Form dough into a disk 3/4 inch thick; wrap tightly in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour (and up to 3 days). Repeat with remaining dough. Makes 2 disks.

BUTTER FLAKY PIE CRUST

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in water, a tablespoon at a time, until mixture forms a ball. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
• Roll dough out to fit a 9 inch pie plate. Place crust in pie plate. Press the dough evenly into the bottom and sides of the pie plate.