Perfect Pie Crust

So, I got a really good arm workout today…………..making pie crust.  I don’t have one of those fancy shmancy food processors, so I had to cut in the butter and shortening by hand.  It does make me feel better about eating the pie later, knowing that I’ve already worked off some calories!

Who knew that baking could be a workout?  All the more reason to stay in the kitchen and avoid the gym, ha!

Here’s what your ingredients should look like once it’s all incorporated.

Press the dough together with your fingers, then dump it out onto a sheet of plastic wrap.

Form the shape of a circle.

Wrap the dough up with the plastic wrap and flatten it.  You should see bits of butter and shortening in the dough like this.

They’re like little goldmines of flavor and flakiness.

After letting the dough rest in the fridge a bit, roll it out between two sheets of plastic wrap.  This is the most ingenious way to roll out the dough.  There’s no mess on your counter top, your rolling pin or on you!

Gone are the days of flour everywhere and then having to use a spatula to get the dough off your counter top.  Love it!

Here you can see the before and after rolling out the pie crust.

Remove one side of plastic wrap and take the dough in your had and flip it onto a glass pie dish.  If it’s not centered, it’s okay.  Because the other sheet of plastic wrap is still attached, just pick it up and move it where you want it.

Tuck the excess dough under itself and crimp the edges with your fingers.

My pie crust is ready for its pumpkin pie filling!

Perfect Pie Crust

From Paula Deen

Makes: 2 (9-inch) pie crusts

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

3 tablespoons granulated white sugar

1/4 cup vegetable shortening, cold

12 tablespoons butter, cold and cubed

1/4 cup to 1/2 cup ice water

In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, salt and sugar. Add the shortening and break it up with your hands as you start to coat it all up with the flour. Add the cold butter cubes and work it into the flour with your hands or a pastry cutter. Work it quickly, so the butter doesn’t get too soft, until the mixture is crumbly, like very coarse cornmeal. Add the ice water, a little at a time, until the mixture comes together forming a dough. Bring the dough together into a ball.

When it comes together stop working it otherwise the dough will get over-worked and tough. Divide the dough in half and flatten it slightly to form a disk shape. Wrap each disk in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. On a floured surface roll each disk out into a 10 to 11-inch circle to make a 9-inch pie.