Leighs Basic Pie Crust Recipes

Steps:

• In a food processor, briefly pulse flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons ice water. Pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed (if necessary, add up to 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon at a time). Dont overmix.
• Turn dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Fold plastic over dough; press to shape into a 1-inch-thick disk. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour (or up to 3 days).
• On a floured piece of parchment paper, roll dough to a 14-inch round with a floured rolling pin. Wrap dough around rolling pin, discarding paper; unroll over a 9-inch pie plate (opposite). Gently fit into bottom and up sides of plate (do not stretch dough).
• Using kitchen shears, trim dough to a 1-inch overhang. Fold under itself to form a rim, and press to seal. Using thumb and forefinger, crimp rim of crust. Refrigerate until ready to use, up to 1 day.

Steps:

• Pulse the flour, shortening, sugar, salt and 4 tablespoons of the butter in a food processor until the mixture is the consistency of a fine meal. Add the remaining 8 tablespoons butter and pulse to pea-size pieces. Sprinkle the vodka and water over the mixture and pulse until the dough just comes together.
• Divide the dough between 2 pieces of plastic wrap, and gently pat each portion into a round. Wrap each round tightly and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour and up to overnight. The dough can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated, or frozen for up to 3 months.

Steps:

• To make the dough for the pie crust, mix 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour and 1 teaspoon each salt and sugar in a medium-size bowl. Cut 2 sticks chilled unsalted butter into pieces. With a pastry blender, cut in butter, working until mixture resembles coarse meal.
• Add 4 tablespoons ice water; work with hands until dough comes together. If dough is still crumbly, add more ice water a tablespoon at a time (up to 4 more tablespoons). Do not overwork.
• Divide dough in half, and flatten halves into disks. Wrap disks separately in plastic; refrigerate at least 1 hour.
• To form the pie shell, roll the dough on a floured surface into a 14-inch round. Wrap around rolling pin and carefully unroll over a 9-inch pie plate.
• Fit gently into bottom and side of plate. Use kitchen shears to trim dough to a 1-inch overhang; fold under, and seal to form a rim.
• Crimp rim with fingertips and knuckle. Repeat with remaining dough; wrap each with plastic, stack, and freeze.

Steps:

• Whisk the flour and salt together in a medium size bowl. With a pastry blender, cut in the cold shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Drizzle 2 to 3 tablespoons ice water over flour. Toss mixture with a fork to moisten, adding more water a few drops at a time until the dough comes together.
• Gently gather dough particles together into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 30 minutes before rolling.
• Roll out dough, and put in a pie plate. Fill with desired filling and bake.

Steps:

• Process the flour and salt in a food processor for 20 seconds.
• Distribute the butter evenly over the flour and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 15-20 seconds.
• With the food processor running, pour the ice water in a steady stream through the feed tube and process just until the dough comes together.
• Knead the dough for several turns on a lightly floured surface to bring it together.
• Shape the dough into a thick disks (or 2 for a double crust), wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least an hour.
• To roll out the dough, place the chilled dough between 2 pieces of waxed paper (helps tremendously in rolling out!) and roll it out to a circle 2 inches bigger than the size of the pie pan.
• Fit the dough into a 9-inch (greased) pie plate and trim the edges.
• Keep the crust in the refrigerator until ready to fill.
• If prebaking the crust, refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes or stick in the freezer before baking (I always freeze it).