Perfect Pie Crust Recipe

No neet to be intimidated anymore by making homemade pie crust. This sweet and butter crust will pair perfectly with any sweet pie.

Can we talk about pie for a moment? I am a sucker for any kind of berry pie. Or chocolate pie. Or any type of pie, if we are being honest. Whether you are making a sweet or savory pie, if you invite me over, I'll be there in the blink of an eye. Props to you if you made a homemade pie crust.

Homemade pie dough can be super daunting though. It's finicky and sensitive and could make a grown woman cry. I'm serious! I'm here to tell you that you no longer need to be afraid of making dough. After many years of making both sweet and savory pie crust, I've learned a few tricks along the way. Follow along with this recipe for the perfect pie crust for your next sweet pie and at the end I'll share some secrets.

This particular recipe is perfect for making a pie with a double crust or lattice topping. However, if you are only interested in making the base crust, half the entire recipe.

Starting with sifted flour, add in the salt, sugar, and vanilla extract. Good pure vanilla extract will really stand out if you are looking to impress those that will be eating the pie. I highly recommend not skimping on this very important ingredient.

After all of the dry ingredients have been added to the bowl, you will just need to mix them all together.

Here comes the fun part - BUTTER! And lots of it. Feel free to whip up your best Paula Deen impression and cube your very cold butter - three sticks of it. Yes, that says three entire sticks of butter. Just throw your scale out the window for a few days while you savor every bit of this pie.

Adding one stick of butter at a time, mix the butter into the flour mixture until it is combined. It will be lumpy, but we'll take care of that in a minute.

This last part could make or break your pie crust. I highly recommend using the coldest water you can get your hands on and mix the water into the mixture very slowly. I use one tablespoon at a time until the dough has come together.

When your pie dough is well combined, remove from your mixing bowl and roll into a ball. You'll then want to cut the dough into two pieces (one slightly larger than the other) and wrap in plastic wrap, then place into the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Perfect Pie Crust

Recipe by a traveling Wife

Yield: double crust

Ingredients

3 cups All Purpose Flour
6 tablespoons White Sugar
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3 sticks Unsalted Butter, cold and cubed
4-10 tablespoons Water, cold

Cooking Directions

In a large mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, salt, and vanilla.
Cut the butter into the flour mixture using the stand mixer, adding one stick of butter at a time.
Slowly add 1 tablespoon of water at a time until mixture forms a ball without being wet or sticky
Ball dough up and cut into two pieces (one slightly larger than the other) then wrap in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Here are some tips if you are planning on making a homemade pie crust:

- You are free to use a pastry cutter and fork, food processor, or stand mixer when making your dough. I will admit that I've had the best success with a stand mixer.

- The weather outside and temperature in your house will play a huge role on how easily your dough will come together. On humid days, your dough will be a lot more temperamental and will probably make you want to pull your hair out. Just have patience and slowly add in the coldest water you can find.

- Don't throw out your left over pie dough. Once you fill your pie pan and make your beautiful crimps, save the rest of your dough for pie fries (recipe coming later this week).

Now run off and make your dough and come back tomorrow for the tastiest frozen berry pie recipe, because it's Pie Week on a traveling Wife. #FiveDaysofPie