Need a good pie crust recipe

Puggles

Puggles

"I don't like things I hate"
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I want to bake a pie and I've always been hesitant because pie crust to me is always bland and very dry, and I've done some research and every post says that either it's "supposed to taste like that", or it's just there to serve as a "vehicle" for the other ingredients. The latter really pisses me off as that is against my beliefs and also refuse to accept that. Does anyone here have a pie crust recipe that actually has flavor to it? It bugs me when I read a recipe and they just "phone" in the bread, or buns, etc.. It's so much wasted potential for more flavor.
 
I’ll dig around, so give me until tomorrow, but I remember an apple pie recipe that had a bit of cheddar worked into the dough…a spin on the apple pie and cheese pairing that can be popular.
 
I use this recipe. He used to be a very well known baker and was friends with Julia. I first saw him on 1 of her shows, probably Baking with Julia. He's written several books and I have 1 of them that is like an encyclopedia of baking recipes.

Weiterleitungshinweis

You can always use a nut flour as part of the flour, just a small percentage though or the pastry might not turn out right. Sprinkle the dough with cinnamon sugar, brown sugar, grated chocolate or shavings, something that will go with your filling.

I've used dried mushroom powder in pasta to build layers of flavor and similar could be done with pastry dough.

However, unfortunately, whether you like it or not, pastry was created to use as a "vehicle" for fillings, with the first pie pastries being hand pies.
 
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Puggles said:
I want to bake a pie
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What sort of pie do you want to bake?
I'm a lousy baker in general, but my mum's (and my brother's) recipe (he was a pro chef for 35 years) always works for me, be it sweet or savoury. I use this same recipe for quiche and for things like apple pie.
For 240 gms ( sorry - 2 cups :D) of flour, add 100 gms (a little less than 1 cup) of real, honest, unsalted butter and 20 gms ( 1 1/3 tbsps) vegetable shortening or lard. Mix together with your fingertips (yes, literally) until the butter is incorporated into the flour, then add just enough ice cold water to bring it together. No mixer, no food processor, no spatula - just fingertips. It's really quick, so don't overdo it. As soon as it's come together, stick it in the freezer for 20 minutes or so, then remove and roll out. No kneading or anything like that.
I can remember my mum showing me how to do that. Less than 5 minutes and it always turned out soft, flaky and delicious.
If she'd known lard came from a pig, she'd have had a fit (she was vegetarian), but we never told her that.
 
A thing I've noticed making dough over the years Puggles is there is a dough temperature that works for rolling it out. If it's cracking at the edges it's too cold and if it sticks everywhere it's too warm. You'll get a feel for it over time.

It appears the recipes presented will make a dough that when rolled out will work for the bottom of a pie pan. For a dough that will also make a top layer I'd increase the flour to 2 1/2 cups and add another 1/4 stick of butter, or lard.

Butter, or margarine, and lard do different things in crust and you might want to read up a bit on that. Each one has specific elements it either adds or detracts from in the finished crust.
 
TastyReuben said:
This is the pie dough I was referencing:

Apple Pie with Cheddar Cheese Crust

It’s from ATK via that person’s blog. Of course, it’s specifically meant for an apple pie, given the tradition of serving apple pie with cheese, but it may be something that works for you.
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Oh my god, I got assaulted by 13 ads, I had to redirect through my browser. Thanks for this, it sounds tasty.
 
karadekoolaid said:
First time I've heard of that.
Where does that tradition come from?
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I have heard of some fruits pairing well with certain cheese and I have heard of cheddar pairing well with apple. I have t tried that in a long time thought. Something about the salty was and cheddar flavor with the subtle sweetness of the apple.
 
You can’t mention apple pie and cheddar without mentioning the well-worn saying, “Apple pie without the cheese is like a kiss without the squeeze,” which I’ve heard both here in the US and in the UK.
 
medtran49 said:
Read down in this thread.

Recipe - Cheddar Apple Pie Ice Cream
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That looks absolutely divine. That's now officially on my list of things to make, because I've got an ice cream maker in the cupboard, has been there for 3 years, and I've never used it!
However, Tasty said it was a "tradition"and I'm curious to know where the tradition came from.
 
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