Perfect Pie Crust
Why use frozen pie crusts when the perfect scratch pie crust is so easy!
Table of Contents
If you want to look into the origin of the pie crust, you would have to look (as always) to the ancients! As far back as the 5th century BC, Greek playwright Aristophanes mentions the pastry dough and pies both. Interestingly, at the time one could make money as a pastry chef (which was distinguishably different from being a baker) even then – but it makes you wonder just how simple it is to make a pie crust if they were doing it in ancient Greece!
Greek pies consist of a variety of kinds like galettes (a folded pie with honey and fillings tucked into a flat crepe-like platter) and spiral spanakopita (a spiral-shaped pie consisting of a tube of spinach and feta), a distant cry from the sweet pies we’re used to making these days; but, dishes like quiche are a friendly reminder that pie crusts aren’t just for desserts! Pies may not look like they once did but we revel when we smell a freshly baked pie sitting on a windowsill to rest!
So why make your own pie crust?
Making your own pie crust means you can make your choice of pie, from keto to paleo to vegan, and venture into new territories! My mother used to make cheesecakes with pie crusts to give that decadent, rich flavor a light, crispy foundation and my spouse uses scratch-made pie crusts to return to the Mediterranean classics with baklava-inspired flavors!
You might look at our recipe (and the number of steps – whew!) and say that it’s an old and lost art that’s best left to the pastry chefs both old and new. Don’t get intimidated! Everyone can (and should) make their own pie crusts from scratch for perfect quiches, cheesecakes, and pies! Once you know how it’s done, the mystery surrounding the perfect pie crust can be lifted while still bringing magic to your kitchen table!
Is Pie Crust Healthy?
Making your own pie crust gives you a lot more flexibility with what goes into it! If you’re keto or paleo, you can make precisely the kind of pie crust you need for any recipe by swapping your flour for almond flour! Just check out our recommended low-carb variant of our perfect pie crust! You can make your pie crust perfectly vegan just by switching out butter for margarine, too!
When you know what goes into your pie crust, you can sleep soundly knowing no preservatives or chemicals went into keeping it “fresh” in a store freezer! But that shouldn’t stop you from refrigerating your pie dough – the resistant starches made in the fridge (especially in gluten-free variants of pie crust) may actually benefit you if you’re hypoglycemic!
What, exactly, makes a pie a pie?
You heard me earlier! Greek pies are sometimes totally flat and folded over, others are spirals, and some of our favorite pies don’t share anything with what once qualified a pie as a pie at all! You’ve likely heard the debate between what makes a hot dog a sandwich or if tacos are technically pizza (my problematic opinion? both are true!) – we as a people like to divide and taxonomize groups, especially our food! What, then, is the signature trait that makes a dish a pie? Well, there’s a reason you’re reading the recipe for the perfect pie crust! IT’S THE CRUST!!!
It might seem like any food with the word “pie” in the name must qualify but there’s a distinct feature that all true pies share, spiral or otherwise! Whether it be a chicken pot pie (with it’s signature crust on the top) or a classic pizza pie (with it’s foundational crust on the bottom), whether it’s a pumpkin pie for the holiday or a fancifully lattice-topped cherry pie, every pie has a crust!
INGREDIENTS
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup vegetable shortening (chilled)
- 1/2 cup ice water
INSTRUCTIONS
Combine
Whisk flour and salt in a bowl and prepare ice water.
Cut in Fats
Add butter and shortening to the flour mixture and blend until crumbly.
Moisten
Slowly mix in ice water until the dough comes together.
Chill
Form dough into disks, wrap, and refrigerate.
Roll
Roll out dough on a floured parchment paper to fit pie dish.
Shape
Fit dough into pie dish, trim, and crimp edges. Poke your pie bottom with a fork to allow steam to escape!
Fill or Bake
Add filling or blind bake as needed.
Serve
Allow your pie to rest for at least 20 minutes (preferably, for a couple of hours!) before cutting into!
Devour!
FAQs & Tips
Once your pie dough is made, you’d be right to put it in the fridge to let the flour relax! However, if you’re looking to keep it in there for longer, you’re in luck! Pie crust should last properly stored in the fridge for almost 2 weeks! Perfect for if you have a lot of head’s up for your next picnic and want to stage your pie bake across some time!
The fat from butter and oil mix with flour and warm quickly, and you want layers of fat and flour to get that fantastically flakey crust! By using ice water and refrigerating your dough, you get to keep your fats cooled and those layers preserved!
It’s understandable not to want to damage your delicate pie crust after all the hard work that went into making it, but if you don’t poke holes into the bottom of your pie crust with a fork before baking, you’ll get puffing pockets of air and an uneven surface for your filling. I know it hurts to, but you must! Give it a couple quick stabs throughout the entire bottom of your pie to keep your pie bottom level and evenly cooked.
Serving Suggestions
Perfect pie crust serves as a beautiful bottom for the best banana cream pie and is quintessential for quality quiches! Perfect for pumpkin pie or, if you’re feeling really adventurous, make your own homemade pop tarts with this recipe or any of our recommended variants! It’s your pie crust and your freedom to do with it whatever comes to mind (and that’s not just some pie in the sky, you really can do anything you want with the perfect pie crust!)
Perfect Pie Crust
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup vegetable shortening chilled
- 1/2 cup ice water
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour and kosher salt.
- Prepare ice water by adding ice cubes to a measuring cup and filling with 1/2 cup cold water. Set aside.
- Grate the cold unsalted butter into the flour mixture or cut it into small pieces. Add the chilled vegetable shortening. Using a pastry blender or fork, cut the fats into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Gradually add ice water, a spoonful at a time, mixing just until the dough starts to come together. Take care not to overwork the dough and only use as much water as needed.
- Form the dough into a ball, then divide it into two equal parts. Flatten each part into a disk shape.
- Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or freeze for 30 minutes if you’re short on time.
- To roll out the crust, dampen a towel and lay it on your countertop. Place parchment paper over the towel. Lightly flour both sides of the dough disk and place it on the parchment. Roll out from the center to the edges into a circle slightly larger than your pie dish.
- Transfer the dough to your pie dish, remove the parchment paper, and smooth the dough into the bottom and sides of the dish. Trim and crimp the edges as desired.
- Fill with your chosen pie filling or proceed to blind bake if your recipe requires a pre-baked crust.
- DEVOUR!
Nutrition
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