Baking Basics: The Perfect Homemade Pie Crust

Servings/Yield: 1 pie crust
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Ready In: 10 minutes
Make Sure You Have: Stand mixer with paddle attachment

Ingredients:
2¾ cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
8 oz (16 tbsp) cold unsalted butter
5-6 tbsp ice-cold water

Directions:
1. Cut up butter into small, uniform cubes and add to a stand mixer bowl along with the flour, sugar, and salt. Using a paddle attachment, turn the mixer on low speed.

2. Periodically stop the mixer to check the mixture and mix gently with your hand, breaking up any large chunks. You want the butter chunks to be pea-sized. Don't over mix.

3. Add in 5-6 tablespoons of cold water and mix again. After mixing it for a couple of seconds check again to see if the dough is coming together. When making it into a ball in your hand if there are no floury crumbles left on your hands, then you have added enough water. If it does break up and the consistency is floury, add another tablespoon of cold water.

4. Turn on the mixer again and mix the dough until right before it has completely come together, then stop the mixer and complete the final mixing together with your hands. Form the dough into 2 flat disks - one disc 2/3 of the dough (bottom) and the other 1/3 (top) - and wrap each separately with plastic wrap.

5. Place the disks in the refrigerator for at least an hour. The dough can be in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If you leave the dough in the refrigerator for an extended period of time, take it out of the refrigerator approximately 30 minutes before rolling it out.

Baking Pie Crust:

6. Preheat oven to 425°F. Place dough gently in pie pan and trim edges off preferably using kitchen scissors. Use a fork to lightly prick the flat surface of the pie pastry. Take a sheet of aluminum foil or parchment paper and press it into the pie plate, gently pushing it right up against the pastry. Fill the sheet of foil or parchment paper with pie weights, dried beans or even uncooked rice to hold it in place. This weight helps the pie dough hold its shape.

7. Bake crust for 20 minutes, then remove it from the oven and take out the pie weights and the foil or parchment liner.

8. Lower the oven temperature to 375°F. Return the pie to the oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before using.

Next - check out Emily's Grokker Premium video for - https://grokker.com/cooking/video/tips-on-rolling-out-and-using-pie-crust/5125a3151847616419000367