Tag Archives: pie crust

food, Recipes

Butter and Shortening Pie Crust


Prep Time: 60 minutes
Yield: 1 pie crust 9″ or 10″ inch
Skill Level: Easy beginner
Kitchen Appliance: Food Processor

Best Pie Crust buttery flakey

This pie crust can be used for sweet or savory pies. Its light and flakey.

Butter and Shortening Crust

Ingredients for one double-crust 9 inch or 10 inch pie:

  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 Tablespoons sugar
  • 3/4 cup (a stick and a half) unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
  • 1/2 cup of all-vegetable shortening (8 Tbsp)
  • 6-8 Tablespoons ice water

Make the dough: Combine flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor; pulse to mix. Add the butter and pulse 4 times.

Add shortening in tablespoon sized chunks, and pulse 4 more times. The mixture should resemble coarse cornmeal, with butter bits no bigger than peas.

Sprinkle 6 tablespoons of ice water over flour mixture. Pulse a couple times. If you pinch some of the crumbly dough and it holds together, it’s ready.

If the dough doesn’t hold together, keep adding water, a teaspoon at a time, pulsing once after each addition, until the mixture just begins to clump together.

Form disks: Remove dough from machine and place in a mound on a clean surface.

Divide the dough into 2 balls and flatten each into 4 inch wide disks.

Do not over-knead the dough!

Dust the disks lightly with flour, wrap each in plastic, and refrigerate for at least an hour, or up to 2 days before rolling out.

Roll out the dough: After the dough has chilled in the refrigerator for an hour, you can take it out to roll. If it is too stiff, you may need to let it sit for 5-10 minutes at room temperature before rolling.

Sprinkle a little flour on a flat, clean work surface and on top of the disk of dough you intend to roll out.

Using a rolling pin, apply light pressure while rolling outwards from the center of the dough.

Every once in a while you may need to gently lift under the dough (a pastry scraper works great for this) to make sure it is not sticking.

You have a big enough piece of dough when you place the pie tin or pie dish upside down on the dough and the dough extends by at least 2 inches all around.

Place into pie dish: When the dough has reached the right size, gently fold it in half. Lift up the dough and place it so that the folded edge is along the center line of the pie dish. Gently unfold. Do not stretch the dough.

Trim edges: If you are only making a single crust pie, use a pair of kitchen scissors to trim the dough to within 1/2 inch of the lip of the dish. Tuck the overhang underneath itself along the edge of the pie dish. Use your fingers in a pinching motion, or the tines of a fork to crimple the edge of the pie crust.

If you are making a double crust pie, roll out the second disk of dough. Gently place onto the top of the filling in the pie. Use a kitchen scissors to trim the overhang to an inch over. Fold the edge of the top piece of dough over and under the edge of the bottom piece of dough, pressing together. Finish the double crust by pressing against the edges of the pie with your finger tips or with a fork.

Make vents in top: Use a sharp knife to cut vents into the top of the pie crust, so the steam has a place to escape while the pie is cooking.

Optional Before scoring, you may want to paint the top of your crust with an egg wash (this will make a nice finish).

Egg Wash

A lovely coating for a pie can be achieved with a simple egg wash.

  • 1 Tbsp heavy cream, half and half, or milk
  • 1 large egg yolk

Beat egg yolk with cream and brush on the surface of the pie with a pastry brush.

food, Recipes

APPLE CINNAMON EMPANADAS BAKED


  • Prep Time: 90 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 100 minutes
  • Yield: 20 servings +

Yummy Sweet Empanadas filled with apples and cinnamon. Great to make for party appetizers or regular snack size for ice cream ala mode.

Apple Filling Instructions

Ingredients

  • 9 medium apples, peeled, cored and sliced
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 8 tablespoons salted butter (1 Cube/ Stick)
  • 4 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
PEEL APPLES
APPLE CORER
REMOVE THE APPLE CORE
SLICE IN HALF MAKE SURE ALL SEEDS AND CORE ARE REMOVED
1/4″ SLICES FOR PIES OR SLICE FOR 1/4″ CUBES
1/4″ CUBES FOR EMPANADAS
MELT 1 STICK OF BUTTER
FRESH LEMON IS ALWAYS BEST IF YOU CAN
JUST USE THE PEELER TO MAKE A SLIT
SQUEEZE 3 TABLESPOONS OF LEMON JUICE
ADD INGREDIENTS
ADD MORE INGREDIENTS AND STIR
LET INGREDIENTS STAND FOR ABOUT 5 TO 10 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS ARE MIXED.V AT THIS POINT IF YOU ARE MAKING PIES ADD MIXTURE TO PIE SHELL
PLACE POT ON THE STOVE, BRING TO BOIL, LOWER HEAT, COOK FOR 5 MINUTES AND REMOVE AND LET COOL
  1. Peel apples and remove core. Cut in Half and slice length wise 1/4″ thick,, after cut into 1/2 inch pieces.
  2. Melt butter in saucepan remove pan from heat
  3. Add lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon, cornstarch and water. Stir together until all is mixed. I let it sit for about 10 minutes so the cornstarch and sugar have a chance to dissolve really good.
  4. Bring covered pot to a boil and turn to medium heat. Simmer for 5 minutes while stirring frequently or until apples are al dente soft. Still Firm
  5. Remove from heat and let cool. At least 2 hours, better if over night.
  6. You can make this a few days ahead and refrigerator. Great to prepare and freeze or can it.

Pie Crust

  • You can buy already made pie crust dough in your stores refrigerated section by the cookie dough if you need it quickly.
  • I prefer the HOMEMADE DOUGH listed below.

Ingredients:

Dough only makes 1 dozen handy snack size and 20 small appetizer size

  • 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) salt
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) sugar
  • 3/4 cups (185 ml) cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 egg
  • 6-8 tablespoons (90-120 ml) cold water
  • Place all you ingredients in the food processor, bread maker or in a bowl and mix till dough is completely mixed.
  • Roll dough till 1/8″ thickness. Use Large Cookie, Biscuit cutter, coffee cup for appetizer size or medium sized cereal bowl to make large hand size. Lay on cookie sheet separated with plastic wrap and leave in refrigerator for 30 minutes or until firm
  • (This dough can be made up to 2 days ahead of time, just refrigerate or freeze the circles with wax paper in between.)

Fill Dough

  • Remove your dough from refrigerator
  • Fill circles with desired filling
  • Brush edges with water, fold over in half. Press edges together and crimp with fork. This ensures that the filling will stay inside.
  • Refrigerate them before baking or frying, especially if you’re making more than a dozen. Refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

Baking Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400 F
  • Remove from refrigerator
  • Arrange on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a really good non stick pan. Brush tops with egg wash, olive oil or butter if desired.
  • Bake small appetizer empanadas for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown; larger empanadas for 18-25 minutes or until golden.
  • Watch closely so they don’t burn.
  • Convection oven may be lowered to 375 F

Bon Appetit… Enjoy

food, Recipes, Video

EGG WASH


Prep Time: 5 minutes
Yield: 2 o 6 pie crust tops
Skill Level: Easy Beginner
Kitchen Appliance: Manual Fork

Add egg wash or you get dull pastries like this

Image on left with egg wash, on the right no egg wash.

Egg products, such as egg whites or egg yolks, supply coating, gloss or finishing to foods within the baking category. Consumers expect a certain appearance on the outside of baked goods, such as color or finish. Food color overall is an indicator of quality, including the color of finished baked products. The proper coating or finish not only aids with appearance but can also help extend shelf life by sealing in moisture.

Slightly beaten liquid egg products can serve as a coating or glaze on baked goods, with different variations of the egg mixture according to the desired appearance and texture of the final product. A baker might select either egg yolk, egg white or whole eggs for varying results.

The white is the primary source of proteins in an egg. When whites alone are used as a coating the proteins coagulate and draw moisture from the product, with eventually evaporates, resulting in a crisp surface. An egg wash can also give the baked product a finished, slightly glossy look. Protein browns when exposed to heat, so the addition of an egg wash helps give baked goods a bronzed sheen, in addition to the gloss.

Slightly beaten yolk or eggs, brushed onto surface of unbaked good helps prevent crust from drying out and lends a glossy look. Added at a certain stage in the baking process, the egg wash can help prevent overbrowning. However in order to seal in moisture, yolks must be used in the egg wash.

An egg wash application is common not just for bread, but also different types of pastries or pies, to promote browning, create a glossy shine or both. A variety of other ingredients added in different proportions to the selected egg product (whole egg, egg white or egg yolk), will supply different levels of browning, shine and even texture to the crust surface

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 Tbsp heavy cream, half and half, milk or water
  • 1 large egg yolk or egg white

Beat egg yolk with cream and brush on the surface of the pie with a pastry brush.

food, Recipes

BEST PIE CRUST (Butter)

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  • Prep Time: 30 – 45 minutes
  • Yield: 2 pie crusts
  • Skill Level: Easy Beginner
  • Kitchen Appliance: Food Processor
Best Pie Crust buttery flakey

Buttery Pie Crust

This pie crust can be used for sweet or savory pies. Its light and flakey.

  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
  • 1 cup (2 sticks or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 6 to 8 tablespoons ice water

Mix flour, sugar, and salt: Put flour, sugar, and salt into the bowl of a food processor and pulse a couple times to mix.

Add butter, half at a time, pulsing several times after each addition: Add about half of the butter to the food processor and pulse several times. Then add the rest of the butter and pulse 6 to 8 times until the largest pieces of butter are about the size of large peas.

Slowly add ice water: Sprinkle the mixture with about 1/4 cup of ice water (make sure there are no ice cubes in the water!) and pulse again. Then add more ice water, a tablespoon at a time, pulsing once or twice after each addition until the dough just barely begins to hold together.

You know that the mixture is ready if when you pinch some of the crumbly dough together with your fingers, it holds together. Be cautious with the amount of water you add, too much and the crust will be tough.

Make two dough disks: Carefully empty the crumbly dough mixture from the food processor on to a clean, dry, flat surface. Gather the mixture in a mound.

Divide the dough mixture into two even-sized mounds. Use your hands and knead each mound just enough to form each one into a disk. Do not over-knead! Kneading develops gluten which will toughen the dough, not something you want in a pastry crust. You should just knead enough so that the dough holds together without cracks.

If you started with cold butter you should be able to see small chunks of butter speckling the dough. This is a good thing. These small bits of butter will spread out into layers as the crust cooks so you have a flaky crust!

Sprinkle each disk with a little flour, wrap each one in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for one hour or up to 2 days.

4 Remove dough from refrigerator and let sit for a few minutes: Remove one crust disk from the refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes in order to soften just enough to make rolling out a bit easier.

5 Roll out dough, place in pie dish: Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. As you roll out the dough, check if the dough is sticking to the surface below. If necessary, add a few sprinkles of flour under the dough to keep the dough from sticking.

Carefully place onto a 9-inch pie plate. Gently press the pie dough down so that it lines the bottom and sides of the pie plate.

Use a pair of kitchen scissors to trim the dough to within 1/2 inch of the edge of the pie dish.

Preheat oven to: See chart below

6 Add filling to the pie.

7 Roll out second disk, place on top of filling: Roll out second disk of dough, as before. Gently place onto the top of the filling in the pie.

Trim excess dough with kitchen shears, leaving a 3/4 inch overhang. Fold the edge of the top piece of dough over and under the edge of the bottom piece of dough, pressing together.

Flute edges using thumb and forefinger or press with a fork.

Score the top of the pie with four 2-inch long cuts, so that steam from the cooking pie can escape. You can be creative and cut small slit designs such as leaves or stars from a couple of spots or a circle.

When you are all finished make sure you always egg wash the top crust. Gives it a nice sheen and golden brown to the pies.

BAKING

Baking instructions for different types of fillings is very important. It can range depending on the type, depth of the pie, is it single or double crust? You will have to look up the directions for each one.

  • Fruit Pies 425F 45-55 minutes
  • Savory Pies 375F – 400F 25 – 40 minutes (Meat, Poultry, Cheese Pies)