Foolproof Pie Crust

4 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups vegetable shortening
1 TBSP sugar
2 tsp salt
1 TBSP vinegar
1 egg
1/2 cup water

Mix flour, shortening, sugar, and salt with a pastry blender or your fingers. In a separate bowl, beat the vinegar, egg and water together. When the pastry crumbs are fine, gradually pour the liquid on top. Stir or toss the crumbs with a fork until all the ingredients are moist.

Form the dough into a ball. Chill in the refrigerator, covered, for at least 15 minutes before rolling out.

Divide into 5 balls. Roll each ball  on a floured board or between sheets of waxed paper. Place in pie pans and crimp the edges. These freeze well if wrapped in plastic wrap.

To bake - place in a preheated 425 degree oven for  8 - 10 minutes until golden.

Nana Mae's Vinegar Pie Crust

This pie dough rolls out perfectly, and the crust bakes beautifully - it's been passed down from one generation to the next for years. It does not have a vinegar flavor.



3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups shortening 1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar

4 tablespoons water


 In large bowl mix flour and salt. Cut in shortening with two butter knifes.

 In separate bowl, mix together egg, vinegar, and water. Drizzle wet mixture into dry mixture, cutting it in.

 Roll out dough, and fit into two 9 inch pie pans.

Bake at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for 12 minute

Pioneer Woman's P-P-Perfect Pie Crust

This is one of my favorite sites and her step by step photos are wonderful!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/12/p-p-p-pie_crust_and_its_p-p-p-perfect/

Ina's Perfect Pie Crust

As Ina suggests, if you are willing to follow a few, basic instructions, you’ll soon be on your way to creating delicious pie crusts of your very own. And whether you are baking at home or for guests of a bed & breakfast inn, this recipe makes a great addition to your collection, as there there just may be some opportunities to put it to use in the near future (hint, hint).

FYI – I am always on the lookout for terrific pie crust recipes. If you have a pie crust recipe you absolutely swear by (and one that’s nearly foolproof,) you are invited to share it (or provide a link) in the comment section of this post.

10 Easy Steps to Perfect Pie Crust

(recipe from Ina Garten)

• 12 tablespoons (1 & 1/2 sticks) very cold unsalted butter
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup very cold vegetable shortening (Ina suggests Crisco)
• 6 to 8 tablespoons (about 1/2 cup) ice water

This recipe produces two 10-inch pie crusts.

Assembly

(1) Dice the butter and shortening and return it to the refrigerator while preparing the flour mixture. It’s extremely important that the cold ingredients remain cold.

(2) Place the flour, salt and sugar into the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse a few times to mix.

(3) Using the pre-diced and chilled butter and shortening, add it to the flour mixture and pulse 8 to 12 times, until the butter is the size of peas.

(4) With the food processor running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and continue pulsing until the dough begins to form a ball.

(5) Dump the dough onto a floured surface and finish by rolling gently into a ball.

(6) Next, wrap the entire ball of dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes (this relaxes the dough and is an important step before rolling.)

(7) When 30 minutes have elapsed, remove the ball of dough from the refrigerator and cut in equal halves.

(8) Roll each half onto a well-floured surface and form into a circle, rolling from the center of the dough to its edge.

(9) Turn and flour the dough often to make sure it isn’t sticking to your work surface.

(10) When the dough is rolled out to your required diameter, fold it in half and transfer to your pie pan or dish. Unfold gently, pressing and fitting the crust into the pan without stretching the dough.

Repeat as needed with the second crust.

Note – If you don’t need a second pie crust at the moment, you have two options: (1) halve the recipe above and prepare only one crust at a time, or (2) go ahead and prepare two crusts, only wrapping, folding and storing the second crust in your freezer until you need it next.

Freezing the second crust is a great way to plan ahead because you only make a one mess and you’ll have a homemade crust awaiting you next time you need a single-crust for pie.

To prepare a pie crust for freezing, simply layer it between two sheets of parchment paper (to prevent sticking) and begin by gently folding it in half, and then in half again, ultimately creating a crust that is folded into quarters. Next, wrap the folded crust in plastic wrap and place it inside a freezer-safe bag.

Be sure to write the date on the bag and use before the crust expires, approximately 6 months or longer.

A Pie Crust You Can Trust

Your wish is our command: an easy, homemade piecrust -- without all the fat.
Want a piecrust as good as Mom's, but with far less fat? Your search is over. This goof-proof, freezer-friendly homemade crust will impress your family and friends with its taste and texture, and knock their socks off when they find out it's light. The typical piecrust (homemade and store-bought alike) contributes 70% of the fat and more than half the calories in a slice of apple pie. Ours is only a fraction of that.

How'd we do it? The key to this tender piecrust is a slurry -- a mixture of flour and liquid (water and vinegar, in this case), which displaces much of the fat.

We said this crust is easy, but to make it even easier, check out our step-by-steps as a reference while you're putting it together. And once you've got the crust down, fill it with one of our wonderful fillings for holidays -- or any day.

Pastry Crust Step-By-Steps
1. Stir together 1/4 cup flour, ice water, and vinegar to make a slurry.
2. Combine remaining flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Then cut in shortening until the mixture looks like coarse meal.
3. Add slurry, and toss with a fork until flour mixture is moist.
4. Gently press dough into a circle on heavy-duty plastic wrap.
5. Place additional plastic wrap over the dough, and roll into a 12-inch circle. Freeze for 10 minutes.
6. Remove top sheet of plastic wrap, and let the dough rest for about 1 minute or until it is easy to work with.
7. Fit dough, plastic-wrap side up, into a 9-inch pie plate or a 9-inch round removable-bottom tart pan. Remove plastic wrap. Fold the edges of the dough under, and flute.
8. Line the dough with aluminum foil, and fill with pie weights or uncooked dried beans. (Pie weights can be found for $5.95 at cooking.com.)
9. Remove pie weights and foil. Cool on a wire rack.