18Tbspunsalted butter1 cup + 2 Tbsp, cut into cubes (frozen or chilled in freezer for 15 minutes)
6Tbspice cold water6-8 Tbsp
Instructions
Place flour and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine.
Add chilled pieces of butter to the flour mixture and pulse until the mixture resembles crumbs with pea-sized bits of butter distributed throughout.
With the food processor running, drizzle ice water in through the top lid on the food processor. Add water just until the mixture pulls together and begins to clump.
Transfer dough to a floured surface (working on a sheet of parchment paper or plastic wrap works well).
Use your hands to gently press the dough together to form a ball. Cut the ball in half for each of the single pastry crusts. (Do not overwork the dough with your hands; we want the maintain a cold dough with chilled chunks of butter).
Place a second sheet of parchment or plastic wrap over the top of one section of dough and roll it out, working from the center and pushing the dough evenly to the outsides to form a round sheet about 1⁄8” thick.
Place your pie plate over the rolled out crust to make sure it is large enough (it should be about 1” larger in diameter than the pie plate.
Transfer the crust into the pie plate. Lift around the edges to help nestle the crust down into and up the sides of the pie plate.
Continue with pie recipe instructions to fill and top the pie with the second pie crust.
Blind Baking a Single Pie Crust
Fold the excess pie crust under itself going all the way around the edge to form a thick edge.
Use a finger/thumb of one hand and press the edge of the crust from the inside of the pie plate while simultaneously pressing the opposite direction with your thumb and forefinger of the other hand.
Continue to crimp the crust in this manner all the way around the pie plate.
Chill prepared crust in the freezer for approximately 30 minutes before blind baking.
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Prick the crust all over with a fork to allow steam to escape and minimize puffing on the crust.
Place a sheet of aluminum foil or parchment paper into the bottom of the crust and fill with pie weights or dried beans/rice.
Bake for 15 min. until sides and edge of crust are beginning to look dried.
Remove pie weights and parchment and continue cooking the crust until it is golden brown.
Notes
For the ultimate flakey, buttery crust, you want to keep all ingredients as cold as possible at all times. Prepare a large cup of ice water several minutes before mixing up the dough so that the water has time to chill.
I like to keep my butter stored in the freezer so that it is always nice and cold. You can cut it into cubes for the pie crust straight out of the freezer. If your butter softens before you can make the dough, go ahead and place the pieces of butter into the freezer for about 15 minutes.
Handle crust as little as possible to prevent heat from your hands transferring to the dough and also to maintain a tender crust.
To make by hand: whisk together flour and salt. Add butter pieces and use two forks or a pastry blender to “cut in” the butter until the butter is in pieces the size of peas. Sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons of ice water over the dough mixture at a time, stirring until the dough comes together.