Butter Crust Recipes

BUTTERCRUST PASTRY DOUGH

Steps:

• Place blade insert into bowl of food processor. Add 1 cup flour. Sprinkle frozen butter cubes over flour. Add remaining 1 cup flour, sugar, and salt. Cover. Pulse in short bursts on and off until butter is broken into small pieces and looks crumbly, about 1 minute. Drizzle in ice water. Pulse with longer pulses, on and off, until mixture turns pale yellow and looks like crumbs, about 10 to 12 seconds. Scrape down sides with spatula. Pulse once or twice more.
• Transfer mixture onto a work surface. Bring pieces together to form a tight round ball of dough. Flatten slightly and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight before rolling out.

CLASSIC BUTTER PIE PASTRY

Steps:

• Combine flour and salt; cut in butter until crumbly. Gradually add ice water, tossing with a fork until dough holds together when pressed., Shape dough into a disk for a single-crust pie; for a double-crust pie, divide dough in 2 with 1 piece slightly larger than the other. Shape into 2 disks. Wrap and refrigerate 1 hour or overnight., On a lightly floured surface, roll 1 disk of dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; transfer to a 9-in. pie plate. , For a single-crust pie: Trim crust to 1/2 in. beyond rim of plate; flute edge. Fill or bake according to recipe directions., For a double-crust pie: Add filling to pie. Roll remaining dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle. Place over filling. Trim, seal and flute edge. Cut slits in top. Bake according to recipe directions.

BUTTER PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Combine flour and salt in bowl; cut in butter with pastry blender or fork until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in enough water with fork just until flour is moistened.
• Divide dough in half; shape each half into ball. Flatten slightly. Wrap 1 ball in plastic food wrap; refrigerate.
• 1-crust pie: Roll out 1 ball of dough on lightly floured surface into 12-inch circle. Fold into quarters. Place dough into 9-inch pie pan; unfold dough, pressing firmly against bottom and sides. Trim crust to 1/2 inch from edge of pan. Crimp or flute edge. Fill and bake according to pie recipe directions.2-crust pie: Roll out remaining ball of dough on lightly floured surface into 12-inch circle. Fold dough into quarters. Place dough over filling; unfold. Trim, seal and crimp or flute edge. Cut 5 or 6 large slits in crust. Bake according to pie recipe directions.Baked unfilled pie shell: Prepare dough as directed above for 1-crust pie. Prick crust all over with fork before baking. Bake at 475°F, 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned.

BUTTER CRUST

Steps:

• Crumble mixture together just until dough forms.
• Reserve and crumble 1/4 to 1/3 dough.
• Press remaining dough in 9" pie pan.
• Bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes.
• Bake crumbs 10-12 minutes on cookie sheet.
• Fill with desired filling.
• Sprinkle crumbs over top.

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.

BUTTER PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Pulse the flour, salt and sugar in a food processor. Add about one-third of the butter; process until the butter is combined. Pulse in the remaining butter in 5 or 6 pulses to form coarse crumbs. Add the vinegar; pulse quickly a few times while adding 1/3 cup ice water. Squeeze some dough between your fingers. It should just hold its shape; if it's still crumbly, quickly pulse in more ice water by the tablespoonful. (Do not overwork the dough.)
• Turn the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap the dough, then press and flatten into a thin round. Refrigerate 1 hour.
• Roll out the dough into an 11-to-12-inch round, about 1/8 inch thick, on a lightly floured surface. Center over a 9-inch pie plate. Fold in the edges and crimp as desired. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before using.

BUTTER CRUST

Steps:

• 1 In a large bowl or mixer, combine the flour, salt, and sugar. Add the butter pieces and cut them into the flour mixture, working until you have big crumbs (see Tip). Add ice cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and mix in until the dough holds together.
• 2 Divide the dough into 2 mounds. Wrap each mound in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 45 minutes to overnight. Let the dough stand for at least 15 minutes before rolling it out.
• 3 Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface or between 2 pieces of parchment or wax paper, then place the rolled-out dough in the pie pan and press into place.
• 4 For pies with tops, brush a little water on the edges of the bottom crust before adding the top crust and crimp the edges of the top and bottom crusts together with your fingers to seal them all around the pie. You can use your fingers, thumb, fork, or the back of a teaspoon to add a design along the ridges. Also, gently lift the edges from the pan a bit (it helps make it easier to cut and serve slices of the baked pie later on). Make little slits in the top crust to allow steam to escape (and add a decorative charm!). Another fun flourish is to add to the top crust little pieces of scrap dough cut out in shapes such as flowers or leaves. Brush the top crust with an egg wash, place on the decorative bits, and sprinkle with sanding sugar (or regular sugar) for a sparkly top.
• Tip: What's best to use to cut the butter into the flour?
• You can use two butter knives or a fork, or pulse gently with your mixer, or use your fingers. If you want to get a fun and fancy tool, get a pastry blender, also called a pastry cutter. It's a handheld tool, kind of like a potato masher for pastry dough! Whatever you use, I recommend chilling the utensil in the freezer first, so it's nice and cold! It is important that the butter stays as cold as possible, so if you use your fingers, be careful not to warm the butter too much with your hands.