Flaky, Buttery Homemade Pie Crust Recipe
This Flaky, Buttery Homemade Pie Crust recipe delivers a tender, crisp crust perfect for both sweet and savory pies. Using cold unsalted butter and ice water keeps the dough flaky and light, making it ideal for any pie filling. The easy-to-follow steps allow home bakers to create professional-quality crust from scratch with simple ingredients.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12-15 minutes (par-baking, if required)
- Total Time: 15 minutes prep plus optional baking time
- Yield: Two 9-inch pie crusts 1x
- Category: Baking
- Method: Mixing, Cutting in Butter, Rolling, Blind Baking (optional)
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 2 & ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter (cold, cut into small cubes)
- 8–10 tablespoons ice water
Instructions
- Combine Dry Ingredients: Measure the all-purpose flour and salt into a mixing bowl and whisk them together thoroughly to ensure even distribution of salt throughout the flour.
- Add Butter: Remove the cold unsalted butter from the refrigerator and cut it into small cubes. Add the butter cubes to the dry flour and salt mixture.
- Cut in Butter: Using a pastry cutter or two forks, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized chunks remaining to ensure flakiness.
- Add Ice Water: Gradually add ice water, one tablespoon at a time, stirring with a spatula after each addition. Continue until the dough holds together with little to no dry flour remaining, forming a shaggy dough.
- Form Dough Balls: Turn the dough out onto a clean, dry surface or pastry mat and gently press it into a ball. Cut the dough ball in half with a knife or bench scraper to form two smaller balls. Each ball will make one 9-inch pie crust.
- Roll Out Dough: Roll each ball of dough out into a circle large enough to fit your pie dish. Transfer the rolled dough to the pie dish. If not using immediately, wrap the dough balls tightly in cellophane.
- Storage: Store wrapped dough in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or freeze for up to 3 months for later use.
- Baking Instructions: Follow your pie recipe’s instructions for baking. Some recipes may require par-baking or blind baking. To blind bake, line the raw crust with parchment paper and fill it with dry rice, beans, or pie weights to prevent shrinking and puffing. Optional: poke small holes in the crust to further prevent puffing.
Notes
- Butter Temperature: Keep your butter cold by storing it in the refrigerator right up until use to ensure a flaky crust.
- Use Ice Water: Ice water helps keep the fat solid in the dough which creates flakiness when baked.
- Par or Blind Baking: If your pie recipe requires, line the crust with parchment paper and fill with dry rice or beans to avoid shrinking and bubbling.
- Storage Tips: Dough can be refrigerated for 2-3 days or frozen for up to 3 months wrapped tightly in plastic wrap.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/8 of one 9-inch pie crust
- Calories: 180
- Sugar: 0.1 g
- Sodium: 110 mg
- Fat: 14 g
- Saturated Fat: 8.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 12 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 40 mg
Keywords: pie crust, homemade pie dough, flaky pie crust, buttery pie crust, baking, pastry dough, blind baking, par-baking, pie shell
Find it online: https://lucabites.com/flaky-buttery-homemade-pie-crust-recipe/
