Processor Pie Crust

PROCESSOR PIE CRUST

Have ready ¼ cup of ice water, or at least very cold
Put into the processor

1 ½ cups of flour
1 stick cold butter or oleo, cut into half inch or so pieces
1 teaspoon of salt
1 Tablespoon of sugar

Run the processor very briefly. The mixture should have lumps about the size of small peas. Turn off the machine and grasp the ice water cup.

Turn the machine on, with the cover in place, and pour the ice water slowly but steadily into the flour mix. Watch closely. The second that the dough forms a ball and rides around on the cutter blade, turn the machine off. The longer you let it spin in a ball the tougher the dough will be.

This makes dough for one crust. Just repeat for the top crust. For a shell, bake 10 minutes at 450°. For a two crust pie each recipe should tell baking time. In an effort to create an un-soggy bottom crust, one friend bakes the bottom shell separately, then adds the filling and bakes again.

Before food processors, we made pie crust by holding a knife in each hand and cutting through the dough so the knife blades cut the dough against the bowl and against each other, as they met each other mid-bowl. This was a rather satisfying motion. The results were about the same as with the processor but not quite so dependable. To add the ice water we changed from 2 knives to 1 fork. At this point you could add an egg, or, as one friend does, add a little tomato sauce, because making it manually you can tell how much water to add when you are using other liquid or moist additions.

To roll pie crust I use a knit tube on the rolling pin and a canvas cloth on the table. The more flour you dredge onto the cloth the more easily you can roll the dough as thin as you want it. The less flour, the better taste, and the more difficulty in rolling. I fold the crust in half, lift it onto the pie pan, open it up, and trim the edges, leaving enough to turn up and crimp between thumb and fingers. If you are making an empty shell to fill later, pierce the bottom a few times to let air out instead of making big bubbles of crust, or pour in some dry beans saved for this purpose. Baking won't hurt them and you can reuse them indefinitely.

The edge trimmings go on a foil pan, sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon, baked 10 minutes, maybe less, and eaten immediately. Pies are not sensitive like cakes. You can safely open the oven to take out your trimmings.