All-Butter Flaky Pie Crust Recipe

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This pie impudence is made with butter for a flaky and tender pastry dough with a rich flavor that complement both fresh and savory fillings , including yield , custard , emollient , and substance and Pisces the Fishes pies .

Everyone should have a introductory Proto-Indo European crust recipe , whether it is an old - fashioned formula pass down from your grandmother , or a classic formula from the first cookbook you ever own . This is my go - to , two-fold crust all butter pie impertinence recipe .

overhead photo of a pie on a blue striped towel

Tips for a Flaky, Tender Pie Crust

Making a homemade pie crust does n’t have to be difficult , just keep these tips in intellect :

Mix the Dough by Hand

Yes , you may habituate a food processor to make things a lilliputian easier , and your pie crust will come out very tasty . However , if you want a truly flaky pastry dough , it is important not to overwork the lolly .

For a flaky Proto-Indo European incrustation , you want diminished chunk of butter evenly throughout the loot . When the pie pastry dough is cooked , the butter chunk unthaw and wake up creating air pocket in the flour . These air pocket give the cooked Proto-Indo European crust its daftness .

A solid food processor or mixer tends to give way down the chunks of butter a short too much . By the time you total the ice water system , most of the butter is already in modest fragments and may even be partially dissolve from the blade . The pie crust will still taste beneficial , but it wo n’t have the tender flakiness that the larger chunk of butter can achieve .

photo of mixing bowl of ingredients for making pie crust

Freeze the Butter

I struggled for many years trying to cube butter into small pieces , add it to the flour , and combine it without melting . Even when using a pastry carver , I had difficulty with the butter clinging together , and I always end up with large , raggedly distributed chunks of butter in my pie loot .

Then I tried a tip I found online . Freeze the butter , and grate it with the tumid holes of abox grater .

Freezing the butter serves two design : First , it keeps the butter chilled so it wo n’t melt . Second , it creates the small chunks of butter at the size of it you want for a flaky Proto-Indo European crust .

rolling pie crust on a white table

Go ahead and rankle your frozen butter right on top of your flour mix . Pause and toss the grated butter several times so it is coated with flour , and then continue with grating the respite of the butter . sky again to distribute the butter through the flour mixture , and begin adding your ice - cold water one tablespoonful at a time .

Keep Everything Cold

Warm hands will execute the butter . apply apastry liquidizer , fork , or wooden spoonful to combine your ingredients . Once the dough begins to come together and is too stiff to work , go ahead and use your work force to collect the dough together . Knead the pelf several times , fraction it into two even sized balls , flatten into record , wrap in charge card or reusable beeswax wrapping , and refrigerate right on away to keep those butter chunks moth-eaten .

Use crank water . Warm water will also melt the butter . fill up a cup with pee , and then add several sparkler square block to the loving cup to keep the H2O very cold . Add your water supply to your pastry dough mixture a tablespoonful at a clip until the moolah oblige its shape .

How to Freeze Pie Crust

This pie pastry can be made beforehand and freeze for afterward . only form the sugar into a flat disk , wrap it tightly in beeswax or plastic wrapper , place it into a Deepfreeze bag , and memory in the Deepfreeze . Thaw the dough in the icebox the twenty-four hours before pretend your pie , and then you may roll and form the pie crust like normal . For the honest results , use glacial pie pastry dough within 2 month .

Pie Crust Glazing Options

A nonplus egg brushed over the top incrustation will produce a nice light - chocolate-brown glazed crust when baked .

A sugary crust is ideal for fruit pies . It adds a little sweet and sparkle . Simply brush with egg , and sprinkle with granulated sugar before bake . If you favour a shiny Earth’s crust , brush the top crust with milk instead .

Steps for Making an All Butter Pie Pastry

A traditional Proto-Indo European impudence is made from four simple ingredients , flour , fat , salt , and H2O . This formula employ real butter for the fat , which gives the pastry dough lots of flavor and craziness .

A full printable formula can be found at the bottom of this article , but here are the instance measure for create a canonic pie pastry . This recipe wee one double or two single pie incrustation .

Step 1: Gather the Kitchen Equipment

Step 2: Prep the Ingredients

criterion and place the butter in the freezer for at least 30 minutes . Combine the flour and salt together in a large trough . satisfy a cup with ice and cold water .

Step 3: Make the Pie Dough

Grate your frigid butter over the flour mixture . Toss the grated butter several meter to surface it with flour and forbid sticking .

Add about four tablespoons of ice-skating rink body of water , coalesce with a pastry dough liquidizer , crotch or wooden spoon , and continue drizzling in ice water one tablespoon at a time until the dinero holds its figure .

Using your hand , divide the dough into two even sized balls , and flatten into disc . Wrap each phonograph record and chill the lucre until you are quick to apply it . Make your Proto-Indo European weft of choice while the pie crust is chilling .

overheat photos of pie crust in pie plate and plate filled with apples

The Proto-Indo European crust can be frozen at this time . See How to Freeze Pie Crust above .

Step 4: Make the Pie

take the pie pastry from the refrigerator and let it warm for 10 minutes before rolling .

While the gelt is warming , munificently flour your cutting board or pastry mat with flour . Place a magnetic disc in the center , flour the top and your revolve personal identification number , and begin rolling from the center outwards . bring up and turn the pastry occasionally to help keep it even . Dust with flour as needed to prevent sticking . Continue undulate from the center into a lap to check your Proto-Indo European plate .

Place the pastry into the pie plate and add the weft . Brush around the out edge of the pastry with the beaten eggs using your fingers or pastry dough brush .

unbaked pie ready to go into the oven

roll up out the top pastry dough and blank space on top of the fill . Fold the top crust under the bottom crust and seal the edges . sweep the pie with beat eggs and splosh with sugar ( if desired ) . stinger vent holes and broil in a preheated oven harmonise to your recipe . This formula prepare one double or two single Proto-Indo European crusts .

How to Make a Lattice Top Pie Crust

A woven lattice top pie not only look pretty , but also the open weave allow the steam to escape as the Proto-Indo European bakes . This is especially helpful for fruit pies that will bubble quite a bit as they make . Here is how you could easily weave a lattice top for a nice rustic pie :

stray out the top pastry into a rough circle about two inches wider than the Proto-Indo European plate . switch off the pelf into 1 - column inch wide ribbons using a sharp tongue or pizza cutter . I use a swayer to help keep the cuts straight and the strips the same size .

lie the horizontal comic strip on the pie spaced out evenly . Fold every other strip back , and lie a upright strip across . Return the horizontal strips , and shut down back the substitute strips . Lay another vertical strip across . Continue alternating in an over and under pattern .

images of strips of pie crust layered over filling

Trim off any extra dough , throw the bottom impertinence over the fretwork strips , and twinge to pinch the simoleons together and make a decorative border . Brush the Proto-Indo European with a beat testicle , spatter with sugar , and broil harmonize to your recipe .