Pie crust

[thebarkingdog]

So I made a pie and normally I just use water in the crust but the last two times I used milk and what a difference!  It came out flaky.  I always thought it was the shortening or lard that made it flaky.  I use margarine because I never buy lard

Comments

[copper_season]

That is really great to know. I am definitely going to try and use milk the next time I make pie crust.

[hugh_mannity]

The fat you use in pastry does make a huge difference, both in texture and taste.

Lard is excellent for savory crusts - especially things like Cornish pasties which need a fairly strong crust so they don't break, or raised crust pies.

Butter is good in sweet crusts, I find it makes a flakier crust than margarine. The only time I use margarine is if I'm baking for Vegans/Vegetarians -- I personally dislike the flavour it gives the pastry.

Don't be hatin' on butter or lard -- neither of them are bad for you in small quantities and certainly no worse than margarine.

[a_boleyn]

There is some fat in milk so it's better than just using water. I use this pie crust recipe for making fruit pies and it's quite rich and tasty.

Pie Crust (enough for top and bottom or 2 bottoms)

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup shortening or butter
1/4 cup sour cream
1 egg
water as needed

Sift dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Cut in the shortening with a pastry blender.

In a 2 cup measuring cup beat together the egg and sour cream and add enough cold water to make a total of 3/4 cup liquid. Stir the liquid into the dough using a fork. If a hand full of dough holds together when squeezed, the dough is wet enough, otherwise, fork in an additional tablespoon of water and try again. Repeat.

Wrap in saran wrap and refrigerate until needed or roll to 1/4" thickness.

For an empty shell, bake 12-15 min in a 400 F oven. For a filled shell, bake 15 min at 400 F, then reduce temperature to 350 F and bake an additional 25-30 min until the contents are set.