Mmmmm... flaky pie crust.... the foundation of all things Pie

So what's the name of the blog?  Something pie, right?  It's been a while since I posted some pie recipes, so it's about time I get back to my roots.   I'm thinking about creating some miniature bite-size pies, and maybe some pies-on-a-stick.  But to do this properly, we have to have a good pie crust to cradle the pie filling inside some buttery flaky goodness. 

And to be completely honest, until a few years ago, this was the bane of my existence.  Yes, the Pie Guy had problems with crust.

When I was younger, I could never make a good pie crust.  The majority of my crusts came out flat, cracker-like and the polar opposite of flaky.   Finally, I figured out why...  I'm too warm blooded.

Now to have a great pie crust, you need the shortning or butter to be solid and remain that way as you mix it in.  The last thing you want it to do is melt, bind with the flour, and turn into something akin to cardboard.  And I, my friends, am a natural space heater.  I run a few degrees warmer than most people.  My hands are about 5-10 degrees warmer than normal and they NEVER get cold, even in the coldest temperatures.  No lie... when I sit in a car in winter, the windows around me fog up, and I'm not even breathing on them!   So as I was making my crusts by mixing them with my Human Torch hands, my natural residual heat has been melting the fat in the recipe. So by staying cool and keeping my shortning and butter chilly, it creates the separations between the layers of flour, so you get that nice flaky texture.  To prevent any mishap, I have established a few rules when I make pie crust.

1)  I literally chill my hands with cold water before I start cooking, just in case I touch the dough. Either I'll wash them in really cold water for a long time. Also, every time I wash my hands, I use the coldest water possible.

2) I chill the shortning and butter for the crust in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before I make it.  That way the fat doesn't get warm enough to melt and blend in with the flour. 

3)  I use my food processor to mix the dough, so I don't have to touch it myself.  The less I touch it, the better.

4)  I DO NOT OVERMIX THE DOUGH!  Over mixing will squish the shortning and butter into the flour and create a cardboard-like paste, not a crumbly flaky pastry.

5) I always let the dough rest in the fridge for at least a half hour before I roll out.  This will re-chill the fats in the crust and give you time to clean up your mess.

This recipe will work with both cooked and cream pies.  If you're making a cream pie, cook the pie crust ahead of time.  If you're working with an apple, pumpkin, or any other cooked pie, do not cook it early.  Just fill the uncooked pie crust and then place it in the oven.

Pie Crust
Makes one 9 inch pie shell

1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons butter, right out of the fridge, don't allow it to warm up
1/4 cup shortning, cold or chilled
1/4 +/- cup ice water

Pour the flour, sugar and salt into a food processor and pulse it 8 times.  Cube the butter into small 1/2 inch or less pieces, drop it around the flour so they have a little space between the pieces and then pulse it another 8 times.  Add the shortning in small bits around the flour and pulse 8 more times.  Add about 1/3 of the water and pulse three times.  Repeat until all the water is incorporated.  Pulse two more times and STOP.  No more pulsing.  Dump the crust dough into a large ziploc bag and squeeze the dough together into a ball.  Place back in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.   Then use it as you need for any recipe.  If you're pre-cooking the crust for a cream pie, roll the crust out so it will fit in a 9" pie plate, place it in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, but check often after the 13 minute mark to make sure it doesn't go beyond a slight golden brown

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Now my mom used to make a LOT of pies around Thanksgiving and she always had a lot of leftover crust.  She would take the scraps, roll them out into a pastry sheet, slather them in sugar, cinnamon and sugar, and cook up an awesome snack.  You can do the same with the leftover bits or just make an extra crust just to make this snack.

Cinnamon Crispies
Makes a big old cookiesheet of goodness

1 pie crust from above
4 tablespoons softened butter
1/4 cup sugar
Shaker of cinnamon

Roll out the dough until it's about 1/8 thick and will fit on a cookie sheet.  Slather the butter all over the crust.  Sprinkle the sugar evenly, and use more if you wish.  Shake as much cinnamon as you'd like.  Place in an 400 degree oven for 15 minutes or until it's golden brown.

So don't fear the pie crust.  You can make great pies with perfect crust.  Just keep it cold and don't mix it too much.  Make one today and revel in the pastry goodness.