Homemade Pie Crust

I love pie crust! Oh, the yummy goodness of a good flaky, crusty pie crust. YUM! I usually buy the store-bought kind. You know the kind that is rolled up and all you have to do is roll them out, press, fill, and bake? I do have to say, they are pretty delicious, and easy. But lately, I've been on the "I'm going to make it from scratch" kick. So yesterday, I tried my hand at making my very first pie crust. It really wasn't that difficult to make, but it definitely wasn't as pretty as the store bought kind. Maybe I'll get better as I make more. I will say, it was very yummy. I even added some whole wheat flour to it so it would be healthier! I got the original recipe from The Pioneer Woman Cooks cookbook, but changed a couple of things. Below is what I ended up doing. This recipe makes 3 thin crusts, or two thick crusts. The trick to this crust is that it is frozen prior to baking, so you'll need to make it ahead of time. I did however do all of this in the same day. It doesn't take long for the crust to freeze, and defrost for use. Happy crust making!

Homemade Pie Crust

adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp salt

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 1/2 cups butter, cut into chunks

1 TBSP distilled vinegar

5 TBSP cold water

2-3 gallon sized Ziploc bags

Directions:

Mix flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Cut butter with two knives or pastry cutter into flour mixture until it resembles small peas. This process should take 3-4 minutes. Add egg, vinegar, and water to mixture, and stir until just combined. Separate the mixture into 2 or 3 sections and place each section into a Ziploc bag, do not seal. Slightly roll the crust flat and seal the Ziploc bag. Repeat for each bag. Place crust in freezer until ready to use.

When ready to use crust, take out of the freezer, and place on counter top for 20 minutes. Once slightly thawed, remove from bag and place on a lightly floured surface. (I used parchment paper.) Roll from the middle out until it gets to the desired thickness you prefer. I had a hard time keeping my crust from cracking. I just kept pushing it back together, after all, it is only for my family, and they could care less what it looked like. I then put my pie plate over the dough, picked up my parchment paper and pie plate and flipped them over so the crust was now in the pie plate. Press the crust into the dish and then fill with what your baking, or with beans wrapped in foil. If you're doing a 2 crust pie, such as a pot pie, roll out your second crust and place on top of your crust and filling, pinching the sides to prevent oozing.

Bake according to pie recipe's directions, or for unfilled crust bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, or until golden.

Mix flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Cut butter with two knives or pastry cutter into flour mixture until it resembles small peas. This process should take 3-4 minutes.

Add egg, vinegar, and water to mixture.

Stir until just combined.

Separate the mixture into 2 or 3 sections and place each section into a Ziploc bag, do not seal. Slightly roll the crust flat and seal the Ziploc bag. Repeat for each bag.

Place crust in freezer until ready to use.