Homemade Pie Crust

Making pie crust from scratch might sound intimidating, but it's surprisingly simple with the right tips (and a little bit of butter).

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar (optional, but nice for sweet pies)

1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

6–8 tablespoons ice water

Directions:

1. The secret to a flaky crust? Keep your butter and water very cold. Cold butter creates little pockets of steam as it bakes, which results in that tender, flaky texture.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and sugar.
3. Add the cold butter cubes. Use a pastry cutter or your fingers to work the butter into the flour until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs — some pea-sized chunks of butter are great! Don’t overmix.
4. Drizzle in the ice water a tablespoon at a time, mixing gently with a fork until the dough just begins to come together. Stop when you can squeeze it and it holds its shape — don’t let it get sticky.
5. Split the dough into two discs (if making a double crust), wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. This helps the gluten relax and the butter firm up — both important for a tender crust.
6. Lightly flour your surface and rolling pin. Roll from the center outward, turning the dough occasionally to keep it even. Aim for about ⅛-inch thickness.
7. Gently lay the crust into your pie pan, letting it settle without stretching. Trim and crimp the edges, fill with your favorite filling, and bake according to your recipe.

Tips for pie success:

• Don’t overwork the dough. Less handling = more tenderness.
• Keep everything cold. Warm dough = tough crust.
• Blind bake for custard or cream pies. Prick the crust with a fork, line with parchment, and use pie weights before baking.
• Freeze extra dough. Pie dough freezes beautifully for up to 3 months.