You Are My Cherry Pie

When I skip breakfast and have a light lunch ( by light lunch, I mean a few frosted mini wheat's right outta the box)...I find myself with an unrelenting desire to make a pie.  A big pie.  With ice cream on top.  I wanna eat an entire pie with lotsa ice cream on top.  So that's what I did last Thursday.  (you'll soon learn that when I get something in my head...I make it happen...whether it's good for me or not.)

To me...the most important part of a pie is the crust.  In fact, I generally could care less about the filling.  I just want the crust.  So make sure that part is good.  Amazing...And I'll tell you how.

For a printable recipe, click here.

What You'll Need:

Crust:

1/2 cup very cold butter flavored shortening (Crisco makes it in sticks now, like butter..So one stick)

2 cups all purpose flour

4 teaspoons powdered sugar

1/4 cup unsalted butter, very cold

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons distilled vinegar

1/4 cup ice cold water

You will also need an egg and 1 tablespoon of water for the egg wash.
And 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar and a pinch of kosher salt.

To make your crust...first, put your butter flavored shortening and butter into the freezer for about 5 minutes.  Then go ahead and make a glass of ice water.

In a large mixing bowl, sift together your flour, sugar, and kosher salt.  Then add your cold shortening and butter.

 With a pastry cutter, begin to 'cut" in the butter and shortening.

 

'Cut' the flour/butter mixture until it resembles coarse meal.

Now get your wet ingredients...

Add them to the bowl and mix together with a fork.
Mix until a dough begins to form.

Now, get your hands nice and dusty with flour.  Dig into the bowl and form that dough into a disk.

Make sure to keep your hands dusty or the dough will start to stick to you.

Once it's in a disk, cut it in half.

Wrap each half in Saran Wrap and chill in the fridge for at least an hour.

Go ahead and butter a pie dish. Whatever kind you like.
Then preheat your oven to 425 F.

Take out your chilled forms of dough and flour a surface very, very well.  Go ahead...add a little more flour even still.

Lay on this floured surface your first form of dough.  Now flour the top of the dough and flour your rolling pin. 

Start to gently roll out your dough and make sure to move your dough every few strokes to make sure it's not sticking.

Do you see all these little specks of butter and shortening?

Do you know what that equals?  Light, flaky melt in your mouth goodness.  Mmmm.

Now gently lift your dough (A good trick is to roll it onto your rolling pin) and transfer it to the buttered pie dish.

Now take whatever filling you like...I chose a canned cherry pie filling because, like I said before, I wanted crust.  The filling mattered nothing to me.  (But I have to admit, it was really good)

Fill your pie

Repeat the rolling out process with the other disk of dough and gently lie it on top of the filled pie.  Make sure there is extra dough hanging over the edges of the pie dish.

Crimp the edges.  Cut three slits down the middle of the pie.  Take one egg, a tablespoon of water and whisk slightly.  Then with a pastry brush, brush your egg wash mixture over the top of the dough.  On top of that, sprinkle about 1/2 a teaspoon of sugar and a pinch of kosher salt.

Bake for 15 minutes at 425, then turn down temp to 350 and bake for an additional 45 minutes.


See now why it's important to leave a little dough hanging over the dish?  It will shrink.  No matter...it tastes the same.

Most recipes say to serve pie warm.  I, however, like my pie at room temperature if not chilled a bit.  Like, say, for breakfast:)

Enjoy!
Laura