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Single-Crust Food Processor Pie Dough

Overhead shot of pie dough being made in a food processor.
Photo by Emulsion Studio

This single-crust food processor pie dough is wonderfully versatile: I use it for at least 75% of the sweet and savory pies I make. It has great flavor and a flaky texture; it’s easy to handle; and it freezes well.

Ingredients

Makes one 9- to 9½-inch standard or deep-dish pie shell

1½ cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. cornstarch
½ tsp. salt
10 Tbsp. (1¼ sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
2 tsp. white vinegar
Scant ⅓ cup cold water
  1. Step 1

    Combine the flour, cornstarch, and salt in a large bowl. Scatter the fat on a large flour-dusted plate. Measure the vinegar into a 1-cup glass measuring cup. Add just enough cold water to equal a scant ⅓ cup. Refrigerate everything for 10 to 15 minutes.

    Step 2

    Transfer the dry ingredients to a food processor. Add all of the fat, then pulse the machine six or seven times, until the pieces of fat are roughly the size of small peas.

    Step 3

    Pour the vinegar-water mixture through the feed tube in a 7- or 8-second stream, pulsing the machine as you add it. Stop pulsing when the mixture is just starting to form larger clumps.

    Step 4

    Turn the dough out onto your work surface and pack it into a ball. Put the dough on a sheet of plastic wrap and flatten it into a 3/4-inch-thick disk. Wrap the disk and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before rolling.

Cooks' Note:

Once you’re comfortable making this dough with all butter, I encourage you to try this variation using shortening or lard, which will make the dough more tender and less prone to shrinkage. Instead of 10 tablespoons (1¼ stick) butter, use 8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold, cubed unsalted butter plus 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening or lard in small pieces.

FromPie Academy© 2020 by Ken Haedrich. Reprinted with permission from Storey Publishing. Buy the full book fromAmazonorBookshop.
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  • Simple and delicious!

    • Anonymous

    • Reno, NV

    • 1/7/2022

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