Let me first say that I have never baked a pie in my life till I came across  this pie crust recipe. And if you give credit to beginner’s luck that my pie crust turned out unexpectedly well first time round, it has been well if not excellent (hmm..not so modest eh?) ever since. So trust me when I tell you I am not going to re-invent the wheel. In fact I will point you the way to Smitten Kitchen’s kitchen. She has done such a great job with the step-by-step photos that I have to say, go take a look if you need those pics because I definitely found them handy on my first attempt. Oh wait…I think it came in handy for the second and third as well, and fourth and….hmmm..a couple more..I mean many  many couple more. Since those couples, I have weaned myself off the pics. I was beginning to find it absolutely ridiculous that I was compelled to load my laptop with the pics before every pie baking endeavor even though I could remember the steps perfectly and know how to get on with it like clock work. Shame on myself! Those pics were like my security blanket. So be warned when you check those pics out. You never know what they’ll do to you. Here’s my own humble pie crust pics and the recipe, needless to say, came from Smitten Kitchen!

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
1/2 cup ice cold water (take it out of the fridge only when you need it)
1/4 cup ice cold water (to be used 1 tbsp at a time, only if nec)

It’s not rocket science and there’s no magic nor secret ingredient to the pie crust. It’s all about technique. So before you begin, these tips are crucial to a fuss-free, worry-less pie crust baking experience and it will be a folly to disregard this bit of wisdom.

Tips:

1. EVERYTHING must be very very very cold. The list of things include -

• butter - cut into cubes and place it back in the fridge. Take it out only when you are about to dump it into the flour
• bowl - leave it in the fridge for a few minutes just to make it cool
• water - either have cold water ready and remove from fridge only when you need to use it
• hands - if you are using your fingers to rub-in the butter, remember to wash it in cold water first and dry completely.

2. PATIENCE pays.

• When adding water from the reserve amount, 1 tbsp at a time goes a looooonnnnggggg way.
• You have to leave the dough in the freezer for at least 2 hours.
• When rolling the dough, be gentle. From the center out. You’ll need quite a few strokes to get the dough moving in any particular direction at the beginning. But once it starts to feel your gentle nudges, it’ll start to cooperate.
• Handle the dough gently.

3. Flour the dough. It’s the stuff that won’t make it stick!

• You’ll need to get your flour ready to sprinkle on the working surface before you begin rolling and while you are rolling.
• Sprinkle flour on the surface of the dough as you roll it so that it won’t stick.
• Remember this while rolling. “Roll-lift-flour-turn.”

4. And a little prayer before, during and after can’t hurt.

Here we go…

Method:

1. Mix flour, sugar and salt in a bowl.
2. Cut the butter into the flour with a butter knife until the butter pieces are as big as walnuts.
3. Then rub-in the butter into the flour until it resembles cornmeal. If there are still a few small pieces of butter around, it’s okay.

Here’s a video to show how to rub in the butter into the flour using fingers.

4. Add the 1/2 cup of water and use a spatula to combine the flour and water. When it starts to come together, use your hand.
5. If the mixture is still to dry, add 1 tbsp of water at a time from the reserve amount. You are looking for the dough to just come together. As long as it can all stick together, it’s ready.
6. Gently put all the dough pieces together and knead the dough in your hand once or twice so that it becomes one clump.



7. Divide the dough in half. Weigh on a scale so that the dough are almost equal.



8. Wrap the dough in clingwrap and shape and flatten it  slightly into a disc. This makes rolling it out easier. Pop it into the freezer for at least 2 hours. Then take it out and leave it on the counter for at least 10min.
9. Flour your working surface, remove the dough from the clingwrap, and roll it out on the working surface. Begin from the center and roll it outwards.
10. Roll the dough out, then lift it, flour your surface if its flour-less, turn the dough 15 minutes/90degrees clockwise and continue the steps until the desired size.

Nothing like a video to illustrate but concentrate only on the portion on how the dough should be rolled.


11. The dough should be rolled out at least 1.5 inch wider than the size of the pan. Don’t worry if it doesn’t roll out into a beautiful circle.



12. Transfer the dough to the pie pan, give a 1 inch allowance and cut away the excess. You don’t need to worry about unwholesome looking edges when you’re cutting away the excess. It’s going to be tucked away.



13. Prick the pie crust all over with a fork, add in the filling or as per your recipe.



14. For a latticed top, cut the second layer in strips.



15. Then place it over the first.



16. Tuck all the excess dough under the first crust. If baking a covered pie, cut slits on the top layer to allow the hot air to escape.



17. Either pinch with your fingers to make the pretty V-shape rim design, or if you’re tired out from all that rolling and turning and flouring and you want to get on with it, use a fork and lightly press to seal the two layers and get the IIII design.



18. Brush it with some milk or egg glaze.



19. Pop it into the oven at the desired temperature and rest those arms. If you don’t want overly dark rims on your pie, take the pie out when the rim reaches a desired brown color (usually after 1/2 hour), cover the rim with foil and pop it back in the oven to continue cooking for the required time.



20. Good luck and enjoy!