Sister Pie All-Butter Pie Dough
by Cindi Sutter, Founder & Editor Spirited Table®—Content provided by Lisa Ludwinski - Food & Wine-November 2021.
This versatile, all-butter pie dough has a delicate flake from higher-fat European-style butter. Developed by Sister Pie owner Lisa Ludwinski to pass directly to the hands of eager customers, these pies are intended to be baked in 9-inch disposable aluminum pie pans. If using slightly larger glass or ceramic pans, roll the pie dough a little wider, and increase the blind-baking time by a few minutes to ensure a crispy-bottom crust. Try the Cheddar Rye and Toasted Pecan variations for added depth of flavor (see Notes).
CREDIT: GERARD + BELEVENDER
Active: 20 mins
Chill: 8 hrs
Total: 8 hrs 20 mins
Yield: 2 (9-inch) pie crusts
Ingredients
Ingredient Checklist
Ice cubes
Cold water
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (about 10 5/8 ounces), plus more for rolling
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup European-style unsalted butter (8 ounces), chilled
Softened butter, for greasing
Instructions
Step 1
Fill a 1-cup liquid measuring cup with ice cubes. Add cold water to fill (at least 1/2 cup). Stir in apple cider vinegar. Set aside.
Step 2
Stir together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add butter, and toss to coat in flour mixture. Using a bench scraper, cut butter into roughly 1/2-inch cubes. Using your hands, quickly separate butter cubes, and toss to coat in flour mixture. Using bench scraper, cut butter pieces in half to form 1/4-inch pieces. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter, rotating bowl after each cut, until mixture is crumbly with a few larger pea-size pieces of butter, stopping to clean pastry blender as needed.
Step 3
Add 6 tablespoons vinegar mixture. Using a bench scraper, pull flour mixture from one side of bowl to the other until there are no longer visible pools of liquid. Using your hands, scoop up a large handful of dough mixture and press firmly down into bowl. If dough doesn't begin to stick together, add an additional 2 tablespoons vinegar mixture, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, mixing well after each addition. Rotate bowl a quarter turn, and repeat scooping and pressing until a rough ball of dough forms.
Step 4
Divide dough in half. Pat each half into a 1-inch-thick disk. Tightly wrap each dough disk in plastic wrap. Chill dough disks at least 8 hours.
To Roll Pie Dough:
Step 5
Place 1 dough disk on a lightly-floured surface. Pound dough disk about 4 times with a rolling pin to begin flattening. Rotate dough 180 degrees; repeat pounding once.
Step 6
Using tapered end of a wooden French rolling pin, press and roll along edge of dough to enlarge dough disk, flouring surface as needed to prevent sticking. Rotate dough disk, and repeat rolling until dough forms an 8-inch circle. (Dough will be thicker in center.)
Step 7
Place rolling pin in center of dough circle, and press firmly as you roll away from yourself, stopping about 1 inch from edge to avoid over-rolling. Repeat rolling procedure, rotating dough 45 degrees after each pass, until dough forms a 13-inch circle (about 1/8-inch thick), flouring surface as needed to prevent dough from sticking. If top of dough starts to stick to the rolling pin, flip dough over and roll other side. Run rolling pin over dough circle once more to ensure even thickness.
Step 8
Using a knife, trim any jagged edges to form an even 13-inch circle. Lightly grease a 9-inch disposable aluminum pie pan with softened butter. Fold dough in half, and transfer to prepared pie pan. Unfold dough, and gently press into bottom and up sides of pan. Proceed with crimping instructions, or, if making a lattice-topped pie, chill pie shell while preparing filling and rolling top pie dough.
To Make a Lattice:
Step 9
Roll both dough disks into 13-inch circles according to instructions above. Arrange one dough circle in prepared pie pan as instructed. Cut remaining dough circle into 6 (2-inch-wide) strips. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and chill until ready to assemble pie.
Step 10
Place one dough strip across center of filled pie. Place a second strip across center perpendicular to the first, creating a cross. Arrange next two strips parallel to first strip, placing on either side. Working with original strip, fold back both ends toward center. Place last two lattice strips on either side of the second (perpendicular) strip. Fold original strip back down so that it lies across and on top of newly-placed strips. Trim overhanging lattice strips flush with edge of pie pan. Proceed with crimping instructions.
To Crimp:
Step 11
Using your fingers, tightly roll dough overhang toward center of pie, creating a ring of dough that rests on lip of pie pan. Using your thumb and index finger, form a "C," and position that hand in the very center of the pie pan. Position your opposite thumb on outside of pan. Use "C" fingers to push and press rim of dough up and away from pan, simultaneously pressing the thumb of your other hand into the opening of the "C" to make a crimp. Continue until entire ring of dough is crimped. Freeze crust until hardened, at least 15 minutes or up to 8 hours. Proceed to baking, or wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze up to 1 year.
To Blind Bake:
Step 12
Preheat oven to 450°F with rack in lowest position. Line frozen piecrust with a piece of aluminum foil that fully covers crust and edges. Fill crust to bottom of crimps with dried beans (about 1 1/2 pounds), and place pie pan on a baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven until edges are light golden brown, 25 to 27 minutes. Remove baking sheet from oven, and transfer to a cooling rack. Leaving beans in crust, let cool 6 minutes. Carefully remove foil and beans. Set pie shell aside on wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
Make Ahead
Dough can be refrigerated up to 3 days and frozen up to 1 month. Thaw in refrigerator overnight.