I’ve been trying my hand at making pie and other pie crust baked goods with all of our summer fruits. So far I’ve made peach and blueberry “pocket pies”, which are just pie crust wrapped around the fruit filling.
We don’t have a food processor for making the pie crust. In the past, I’ve tried using the chopping cup attachment to our immersion blender but it’s much too small for making even half of the crust recipe. This summer I’ve just been making the crust using a pastry cutter and my hands. I think it’s worked out well.
When making pie crust, it’s especially important to use cold butter and ice-cold water. I keep both in the fridge until I need to use them. You also want to work quickly so that these ingredients don’t get too much of a chance to warm up. All of this will help make sure that you get a flaky pie crust.
Here’s a brief glimpse of the different stages of making the crust:
After combining all of the dry ingredients, I cut the butter into cubes approximately 1cm in size. Next, cut the butter into the flour mixture using a pastry cutter. Stop cutting once the butter pieces are the size of a pea.
Add in the cold water 1/4 cup at first and then a tablespoon at a time. I start mixing the water in with the pastry cutter and then switch to using my hands to feel the stickiness of the dough.
Split the dough into two equal sized parts and form into discs. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours. I usually make my dough in the morning during Henry’s nap and then wait until Henry’s late afternoon nap to make the pie.
All Butter, Really Flaky Pie Dough
Recipe from Smitten Kitchen
Makes enough dough for one double-, or two single-crust pies.
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, very cold
1/2 cup ice-cold water
Combine dry ingredients in a medium to large bowl.
Cube butter and cut into the flour mixture using pastry cutter until butter pieces are about the size of a pea.
Add 1/4 cup of water and combine together by hand. Add more water as needed 1 Tablespoon at a time until dough is barely sticky.
Split dough in half and form into two discs. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
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