I can cook anything. Nothing intimidates me. Risotto? Sure, what kind would you like – mushroom, seafood, green pea? I once made 30-minute scrambled eggs over a double boiler that turned out so yummy I have never made eggs for myself any other way. My souffles have never fallen. I have kicked phyllo dough’s ass on many occasions. I’ve made homemade croissants. Homemade croissants, people.
The one thing that eludes me is pie crust. I’ve tried several recipes utilizing various methods (by hand, food processor, forks, pastry blenders). I can create a tasty pie crust, but it’s never pretty. Some look better than others, but that’s about as good as it gets.
It makes no sense. Grandmothers who have never used fresh herbs, who don’t know the difference between a clove of garlic and a head of garlic can make perfect pie crusts. I watched my own mother make dozens – no! hundreds – of pie crusts in my childhood. I learned what to do but there was no magical bestowing of skills.
When I first read about this method of making pie crust, it sounded unorthodox enough that it just might work for me. It’s made in a mixer, and the dough is rolled out before chilling, which makes an easier-to-handle dough. Kinda. Let’s say that by using this method, I can produce a good enough pie crust.
I first saw this pie crust in Fine Cooking magazine, which is one of my favorite food mags. It’s very big on technique. You won’t find many literary food narratives in the style of M.F.K. Fisher or Amanda Hesser in Fine Cooking, but you will get nuts-and-bolts explanations of how to make everything from brioche to pots du creme to Thanksgiving turkeys. And you get THE best method and recipe, unlike Cooks Illustrated, which can be useful, but who needs to read about the four previous attempts that did NOT produce the best pasta carbonara?
Here’s what you’ll need:
Standup mixer with paddle
Rolling pin
Spatula
Pastry mat, if you have one
Pastry blender, if you want to make the pie crust by hand
Butter knife or bench scraper
Measuring cups, measuring spoons
12-inch pot lid
Two 9-inch pie plates
Fork
Parchment paper
Dried beans or ceramic pie weights
Baked Pie Crust for Fresh Fruit Pies (adapted from Carolyn Weil in Fine Cooking and “The Best American Recipes 2002-2003″)
Makes two 9-inch pie crusts
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter
2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour, plus extra for rolling
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cold water
Cut the butter into cubes 1/2 inch in size or smaller. Put the butter cubes in a bowl and place in the freezer.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl if you prefer to mix the dough by hand), combine the flour, sugar and salt. Mix for a few seconds on low speed. Add the butter and, on low speed (or by hand with a pastry blender), work the dough until it’s crumbly and the largest pieces of butter are no bigger than a pea (about 1/4 inch). The butter should remain cold and firm. If your kitchen is hot or you can see the butter is softening, put the bowl in the refrigerator to firm up for 15 minutes or so.
Sprinkle 1/4 cup cold water over the dough and mix on low speed until it just pulls together into a shaggy mass.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Turn the messy dough out onto a well-floured counter or table top, or onto a floured pastry mat. Cut the dough in half and shape each half into a thick disk. Tap and flatten one of the dough disks with a floured rolling pin. Begin rolling from the center of the dough outward. Stop the pressure 1/4 inch from the edge of the dough. Lift the dough and turn by a quarter – checking underneath to make sure the dough is not sticking to the surface; throw some more flour under there if it is – and repeat the rolling of the dough until it is at least 12 inches in diameter. I sometimes use a metal spatula to lift the dough if the dough is sticking to the surface. (I apologize for not taking pictures during the rolling-out process, but it’s so fraught with anxiety for me that it’s all I can do to keep from crying.)
If at any time the dough starts to feel greasy, slide it onto a baking sheet and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Using a pot lid as a template, trim the dough to form a 12-inch circle. CAREFULLY fold the dough in half, gently lift it and transfer to a pie pan. Unfold and ease the dough into the bottom of the pie pan without stretching it. Turn under and crimp the edges decoratively.
Pop pie pan in the freezer and proceed to roll out the second disk of dough. Since it’s been sitting out, if that dough feels slippery, greasy or oily, place into the refrigerator, but do not let it fully chill.
If you were making a double-crust pie, this is where you would fill the base crust with fruit and/or filling and then top the pie with the second rolled-out dough. Then you’d crimp the edges and cut a few steam vents in the top. But we’re baking two empty pie crusts to be used for fresh strawberry pie.
After you roll out the second pie crust and transfer it to the pie pan, poke steam holes into the bottom of both pie crusts with a fork. Cut two sheets of parchment paper big enough to place inside the pie crust. Fill the empty pie crusts with beans or pie weights so the pie crusts don’t bubble up when baked.
Bake the pie crusts for about 20 minutes, until the crusts are lightly golden. Let cool fully before filling. When crusts are cool, dump out beans (which can be reused) and throw away parchment paper.
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Trance Music Download 05.26.10 at 3:46 am
Wow, this was a really high quality post. In theory I’d like to write like this too – taking time and actual effort to make a good post… but what can I say… I procrastinate alot and in no way seem to get something done.