This is a Basic Sweet Pie Crust that I use for both pies and galettes
Dorie Greenspan’s book Baking offers an excellent “Good for Almost Anything Pie Dough,” which is the origin of this recipe. If you are into home baking, this book is a “must have.” I love her recipes but also the tone of her writing, which is personable and fun. It feels like Dorie is baking right beside you!
Vegetable Shortening vs Butter
I have moved away from using vegetable shortening in my pie crusts and use more butter these days. Honestly, I never seem to use up those big blue cans of shortening. After months of forgetting about using it, many times the shortening picked up an “off” flavor as it sat on the shelf. The smaller sticks that they sell are more convenient and I can use them up quickly, keeping my ingredients fresher.
For Excellent Dessert Pies
Sometimes I want to make a pie and can’t run to town to replenish my vegetable shortening supply. I can use 100% butter in my Basic Sweet Pie Crust recipe (ie instead of I add 1.2oz/35g more of butter* instead of vegetable shortening) and the flavor is delicious. However, butter melts so quickly and easily that pie crust edges can turn out a little sloppy with a 100% butter pie crust. A little vegetable shortening keeps the pastry stable. I have had excellent results with 100% butter Basic Sweet Pie Crust when I make a flat galette. No need for a beautifully shaped pie crust edge with a galette!
I especially love this crust when it is dusted with a little bit of granulated sugar before it bakes. The sugar adds a bit of crispness to the Basic Sweet Pie Crust. This crust always gets compliments and by using a food processor, it just couldn’t be easier.
Basic Sweet Pie Crust
- Prep Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 9″/22cm pie crust 1x
Ingredients
5oz unsalted European or Irish butter, diced into small cubes (141g)
1.25oz vegetable shortening, diced into small cubes (35g)*
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (190g)
2 tbsp. sugar (25g)
¾ tsp. salt (3g)
¼ cup ice water (60ml)
Instructions
Place the cubes of butter and vegetable shortening in a small plastic container and freeze for 1 hour before use. If the cubes freeze together, break them up with a spoon before adding to the food processor.
Add the flour, sugar and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse once or twice to combine. Add about half of the butter/shortening cubes, and pulse until you have a flaky meal with large and small pieces. Add the remaining butter and pulse again.
Once the mixture is coarsely chopped, add small amounts of the ice water, pulsing between additions. Once the dough starts to gather into a ball, remove the dough from the food processor and place on a sheet of wax paper. Shape the dough into a ball and wrap well in the wax paper. Chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour before use.
Shape and use as per your pie recipe.
Notes
This recipe makes a single 9”/22cm pie crust. For double crust pie, simply double the recipe. Make sure your food processor is large enough to process all of the ingredients for a double crust recipe. If not make two batches of the single crust recipe.
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