Comments on: pie crust 101

By: Sara

Sara — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 01:52:05 +0000

Oh, though not opposed to blenders, I like using the old-school hand pastry blender too for nostalgic reasons. I still pre-cut to make it easy, and stick it in the flour.

For those posters who had problems with pastry blenders – my grandma’s pastry blender was like a good solid knife. Today, good kitchen shops have good ones. You should be able to press down on dough without the tines collapsing. But the grocery store version I bought in 1990s first on my own? Useless.

The other thing that I always do is take a version of the CI recipe, make a 3-crust batch, divide in two rounds, roll out and then cut off the extra. You have extra, so you don’t sweat the perfect circle issue. Put it over the pan, cut off the extra and take the scraps and make an extra mini pie. My mom made pie-cookie scraps for us kids – sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar and toss in the oven so kids don’t poke at the pies before dinner.

By: Sara

Sara — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 01:27:58 +0000

New follower. Love your blog! And just love to see the Cooks Illustrated props as they are 1 of 5 top go to sources.

Thanks to my mom’s early instruction, pie crust has always been a breeze. I’ve never had pie phobia. But I had a hard time helping my friends replicate it because the actual recipe I was given in no way resembled what we actually did. In 2000s I got hooked on CI and finally found that someone had written down the recipe I actually use, or close to it. Today, whenever, when I’m asked, I dole out the Cooks Illustrated recipe proudly. (It’s a tiny bit better and more reliable than my tried and true)

By: Sharyl Terstage

Sharyl Terstage — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 00:01:59 +0000

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By: Lauren

Lauren — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 18:06:39 +0000

Hi there! I love your blog. I use it all the time. I am getting ready to prepare for Thanksgiving and I have to make four pies this year. I am wondering the best way to make the crust ahead of time (talking weeks here) and free it. Is it better to freeze it in the pie/tart pan or in small rounds to thaw and roll later? Thanks!

By: Dayna Burgeson

Dayna Burgeson — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 18:02:31 +0000

Great photos. The photos of the size of the fat pieces before cutting in the liquid are helpful. “Size of peas” always kind of confused me! The readers comments really add to my understanding of the potential pitfalls. I am a former pastry chef and once upon a time made 20 pies a day, but I am out of practice and the last few pies have been a dissappointment. I like the reader’s idea of using coconut oil instead of shortening, and making a tarte tatin with home grown winesap and granny smith apples is my plan for today. I think I will try brandy instead of vodka in the crust though. A little brandy taste should complement the apples I think.

By: Frieda

Frieda — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 17:52:11 +0000

Penquinlady, Bake your crust first if you are filling it with a custard or other pre-cooked filling. What is described here is called “blind baking” where you prick your pie crust with the tines of a fork, line your pie crust with parchment and fill with dry uncooked beans or pie weights. I would bake this at 425°F for 20 minutes.

If you are cooking your filling (fruit pies, pumpkin, etc), prepare your crust, pour your filling in, top it with an additional pie crust (for fruit pies), seal and bake as directed in the recipe.

Good luck!

By: Penguinlady

Penguinlady — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 14:46:47 +0000

HELLLPPP! I’ve got the crust in the pan, but you didn’t say anything about baking it before filling. Can you do that? How long? At what temp? Does it make a difference if I do or don’t? Which is preferable?

There are three things on earth that terrify me: spiders, colonoscopies, and pie crust. I need some help here!

By: Komal

Komal — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 04:57:58 +0000

I just finishes baking a peach and blueberry pie using your crust recipe and it tournes out super yummy! I did a lattice top crust which was very flaky, buttery and tender. However my bottom crust turned out too tough maybe because I didn’t time my baking and must have overbaked it. I added a teaspoon of vinegar to my dough and ended up using close to 1/2 c of water + 1\4 c vodka. Do you think maybe my crust was tough because of the extra liquid? The dough felt very dry so I had to add the extra water. For being my very first fruit pie I think it turned out outstanding so thanks a bunch for the recipe and I look forward to suggestions on making the bottom crust tender. Thanks again!

By: Rachel

Rachel — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 19:06:01 +0000

A small tip for when you are using shortening in crusts is to put it in the freezer! We buy the sticks too and only use those for crusts and other recipes that require it to be cold since it does cost a little more than the tubs of shortening. Leaving it in the freezer gets it almost as hard as cold butter.

By: deb

deb — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 02:18:18 +0000

I’ve never done a two-step process with either a food processor or by hand. I mix the flour, salt and sugar. I cut or pulse in all of the butter. I prefer the pastry blender because it gives you the most control over the size of those butter pieces. It ensures they stay visible.