This is the first time I tried pie from scratch and believe me, pies are quite easy to do as compared to cakes. ( I still remember my flop shows of initial trials at cake baking).
Follow simple instructions to create flaky, buttery pie crust at home.
Pie crust can be tricky if not one is not considering some points which are quite important to keep in mind. I will make sure to add those points in note so that when you try for first time it won't be a flop show.:)
For Pie crust:
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbs. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
10 Tbs. (150 gms) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
3 Tbs. approx. very cold water
Method:
To make the dough by hand, in a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar and salt. Using a fork, cut the butter into the flour mixture until the texture becomes coarse, with butter pieces no larger than small peas. Add the water gradually while mixing just until the dough pulls together.
Transfer the dough to a kitchen counter, pat into a ball and flatten into a disk. (Although many dough recipes call for chilling the dough at this point, this dough should be rolled out immediately for the best results.)
But still if you think that butter is melting or getting too soft then don't hesitate to put it in refrigerator for some time like 5 minutes.
Then lightly flour the counter, then flatten the disk with a rolling pin.
Lightly dust the top of the dough then roll out into a round at least 12 inches in diameter and about 1/8 inch thick. Makes enough dough for one 11-inch single-crust pie.
Place a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 204°Celsius.
Take the refrigerated rolled dough out and transfer to a 11-inch pie dish and pork it with fork few times to avoid blistering. Many people line the chilled pie crust with a piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil and Fill with dried beans, uncooked rice or pie weights. But since I didn't have any of these at home so I'd covered the whole pie crust with some bread loafs (which later can be used as croutons for soup). Remove these bread loafs after 10 mins.
Bake for 10 more minutes until the crust dries out.
Reduce the heat to 176°C.
Continue to bake until the crust is lightly browned on the edges and dry-looking on the bottom, about 5 minutes more. Transfer the crust to a wire rack to cool down.
Filling:
Notes:
Follow simple instructions to create flaky, buttery pie crust at home.
Pie crust can be tricky if not one is not considering some points which are quite important to keep in mind. I will make sure to add those points in note so that when you try for first time it won't be a flop show.:)
For Pie crust:
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbs. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
10 Tbs. (150 gms) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
3 Tbs. approx. very cold water
Method:
To make the dough by hand, in a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar and salt. Using a fork, cut the butter into the flour mixture until the texture becomes coarse, with butter pieces no larger than small peas. Add the water gradually while mixing just until the dough pulls together.
Transfer the dough to a kitchen counter, pat into a ball and flatten into a disk. (Although many dough recipes call for chilling the dough at this point, this dough should be rolled out immediately for the best results.)
But still if you think that butter is melting or getting too soft then don't hesitate to put it in refrigerator for some time like 5 minutes.
Then lightly flour the counter, then flatten the disk with a rolling pin.
Lightly dust the top of the dough then roll out into a round at least 12 inches in diameter and about 1/8 inch thick. Makes enough dough for one 11-inch single-crust pie.
Place a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 204°Celsius.
Take the refrigerated rolled dough out and transfer to a 11-inch pie dish and pork it with fork few times to avoid blistering. Many people line the chilled pie crust with a piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil and Fill with dried beans, uncooked rice or pie weights. But since I didn't have any of these at home so I'd covered the whole pie crust with some bread loafs (which later can be used as croutons for soup). Remove these bread loafs after 10 mins.
Bake for 10 more minutes until the crust dries out.
Reduce the heat to 176°C.
Continue to bake until the crust is lightly browned on the edges and dry-looking on the bottom, about 5 minutes more. Transfer the crust to a wire rack to cool down.
Filling:
Here I have used fresh blueberry and raspberry to make the juicy and tangy pie filling.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup plus 5 Tbs. all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
8 Tbs. cold unsalted butter, cut into 3/4-
inch pieces
3 cups of blueberries and raspberries
In a large bowl, stir together the 3/4 cup flour, 2/3 cup granulated sugar, 1 tsp. of the cinnamon and the salt. Scatter the butter pieces on top and toss with a fork or your fingers to coat with the flour mixture. Using your fingertips or a pastry blender, work the ingredients together until the mixture forms large, coarse crumbs the size of large peas. Set the topping aside.
In another large bowl, combine the berries, the remaining 1/3 cup sugar, the remaining 1 tsp. cinnamon and 4 Tbs. of the flour. Stir gently to coat the berries evenly. Sprinkle the remaining 1 Tbs. flour and the 1 Tbs. granulated sugar over the bottom of the prebaked crust. Pour the filling into the crust, spreading it evenly.
Sprinkle the topping evenly over the berry filling. Bake the pie until the topping is golden brown and the blueberry filling just begins to bubble, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. Serve at room temperature or serve warm with rich vanilla ice cream. And if by chance some are still left then you can refrigerate for 2-3 days. :)
I have mentioned many times to keep dough cold its because the more butter is stiff and cold before baking more the crust will be flaky.
Warm water and butter will lend to hard, crunchy crust instead of a nice tender flaky crust.
Warm water and butter will lend to hard, crunchy crust instead of a nice tender flaky crust.
Got a recipe for an egg-less custard/vanilla-like cream to go with that amazing blueberry pie? :)
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