Pie Crust

Most people I know give me major praise for making my own pie crust, but I am here to tell you that really, its very easy! Anyone can do it. To prove it, I will take you step by step through my crust-making journey.

First, mix 2 1/2 cups flour, 1 tbsp. sugar and 1 tsp. salt together in a bowl. Next you need to cut in one cup of some sort of shortening. Personally I think 1/2 cup shortening and 1/2 cup REAL butter works the best. However, 1 cup of pure shortening works too, or 1 cup of real butter, OR you can throw some margarine in the mix, too.


Whatever you use, cut it in until you get pea sized crumbs. If you don't have a handy-dandy pastry blender, you can use a fork or a couple of knives.


Next, add 1/3 cup of ICE water. Here is a little trick I've discovered - the colder the water, the better - this helps the dough stay stiff and easy to work with. Mix this together with a spoon of some type (or your hands, which is what I usually do) until the dough sticks together to form one large ball. You may want to add up to a tbsp more water if the dough is too crumbly.

Cut your ball of dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap. Let the dough rest in the fridge for at least a half hour. I think a lot of people skip this step, which makes the dough soft and hard to work with - hence the myth that making your own crust is hard.


Now, on to making the pie! In my experience, 2 main tricks really make the rolling process easier: using chilled dough, and using enough flour on the rolling surface. Flour your surface AND rolling pin, and roll your first ball out. When you have rolled the dough out thin and you are ready to transfer it, fold it into a triangle - this will help you transfer the dough without ripping it. Unfold it, cut off all but about an inch of overhang, and fill that baby with some fruit!


Follow the same steps for the top crust. Roll the edges of the dough under and together, then crimp the edges by pinching the dough between your fingers. Make sure to finish it off by cutting a vent hole in the top crust to allow some steam to escape.


THERE YOU HAVE IT - a pie crust. I hope you can see how truly uncomplicated it is. Try it out and let me know how it goes OR share your own pie crust experiences and tricks. For truly, there are as many pie crust recipes and methods as there are stars in the sky. :-)