I’ve never been able to master the perfect pie crust – one that’s flaky, tender, crisp and crunchy, no matter how hard I try. For years, I’ve used Julia Child’s classic recipe: just flour, butter, sugar, salt and water. I’ve followed every tip – freezing the butter, chilling the water, and even the flour. Yet, for reasons still unknown (perhaps the moon phase?), my dough was always stiff and uncooperative, like rolling out cardboard.
I marvel when I go to a pie contest and see perfect crusts. So I was thrilled to get Carla Hornbrook’s recipe for a foolproof pie crust. I first tasted this amazing crust at the community lunch in Fossil, where she served a pumpkin pie she had made. She too had past problems with butter pie crusts, especially when important guests were coming for dinner. She’s used this recipe for decades and it’s never let her down, not even once.
I have never seen a pie crust recipe that called for an egg and apple cider vinegar but there’s a first time for everything. I bought some Crisco and followed Carla’s instructions to the letter. The dough was much easier to work with than a butter crust. It was pliable, soft, elastic, springy to the touch and . . . fun! Blending in the shortening was easy and so was rolling it out. I made a pumpkin pie, and the crust was heavenly.
Perfect Pie Crust
4 cups all-purpose flour
1¾ cup shortening
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
1 egg
½ cup cold water
1 tbsp vinegar (Carla uses cider vinegar)
Mix the dry ingredients together. Then use a pastry blender to blend in the shortening. In a separate bowl, mix the liquid ingredients then add them to the flour mixture. Combine (I used my hands), form into a ball, and chill for 15 minutes before rolling out. Store in the fridge for up to three days or freeze. Makes enough for two nine-inch pies.
I weighed the dough and it was just over 36 ounces. I divided it into four equal portions of nine ounces each. The dough was a bit too thin, so next time, I’ll divide it into three 12 ounce portions. That should be perfect for one pumpkin pie and a cherry or berry pie with a nicely fluted crust. I’m planning to try butter-flavored Crisco and experiment to see what happens when I use softened butter, or lard. For a savory pie, you can omit the sugar and add a pinch of dried thyme or cracked pepper to the flour mixture. It’s a great base for quiche or pot pie.
Thank you, Carla for sharing your dependable pie crust recipe with all of us!