It's Thanksgiving morning and I'm waiting for my turkey to thaw completely before it goes into the oven. Despite how many days before it goes from freezer to fridge, I inevitably participate in this Turkey Day AM ritual pretty much every year.
A few years ago I attempted making pie crust from scratch for an apple pie that could rival Gabrielle's, my mother-in-law's. I awed at her ability to make such a flaky crust that I thought, wow, I will NEVER be able to do that. In addition, I was always amazed at how many apples she put into the pie. Anyways, my first apple pie was a flop...crust soggy underneath, the top and edge crust so tough that it was better to soak it in whipped cream before eating it due to a chance that you might just break a tooth. What had I done to deserve such horrible luck?
After finally getting over the pie-which-shall-not-be-mentioned, I got my nerve up to try it again. Martha had said it was easy. Online bakers said it was easy. Everyone was saying it was easy....
One of the best recipe books I have discovered over 10 years of marriage is the Betty Crocker cookbook, the one with the red cover. If you were not fortunate enough to get one for a wedding and/or you're-an-adult-now-you-should-have-this-in-your-kitchen gift, GET IT. The pie crust tips and recipe are seriously some of the easiest ever.
All ingredients are local...which is great especially when you realize that it's a week to Thanksgiving and nothing you order from the states is getting here in time for Turkey Day.
***RANDOM, BUT MAYBE NOT SO RANDOM KITCHEN, APPLIANCE ALERT!****
Betty Crocker Pie Crust
I made 3 crusts, 2 for a covered apple pie and 1 for a pumpkin pie. You can adjust the amounts as necessary.
3 cups of flour
1.5 tsp salt
1 cup of cold butter (2 sticks)
6-10 TBsp of ice water (the ICE part is important and I think this was part of my problem before)
Add the flour, salt and cut up butter into the food processor. Pulse several times until you have pea sized pieces. You can also do this with a pastry cutter or 2 knives, but remember, you want to handle the ingredients as little as possible! Once butter is cut in, start processor and add water all at once. Dough should pull away from the sides of the processor when ready. Add 1 or 2 TBsp of ice water at a time until you see this effect. One tip::: you don't want the dough to form a ball in the processor.
Dump out onto plastic wrap or wax paper. Work quickly and shape into a disc. Wrap and put into fridge for 30 minutes to 1 hour to chill.
Remove dough from fridge and cut into 3 sections. Place sections you are not rolling immediately back into fridge until you are ready to roll out.
To roll out, flour the counter (I'm fortunate to have granite here which keeps cool) or one of those nifty pie rolling guides. For your rolling pin, flour it as well. Roll the dough from the center of the disc, turning every couple of rolls. Again, WORK QUICKLY. If the dough or pin starts to stick, dust lightly with flour. Once dough is a few millimeters thick, lift and place into pie plate.
A few years ago I attempted making pie crust from scratch for an apple pie that could rival Gabrielle's, my mother-in-law's. I awed at her ability to make such a flaky crust that I thought, wow, I will NEVER be able to do that. In addition, I was always amazed at how many apples she put into the pie. Anyways, my first apple pie was a flop...crust soggy underneath, the top and edge crust so tough that it was better to soak it in whipped cream before eating it due to a chance that you might just break a tooth. What had I done to deserve such horrible luck?
After finally getting over the pie-which-shall-not-be-mentioned, I got my nerve up to try it again. Martha had said it was easy. Online bakers said it was easy. Everyone was saying it was easy....
One of the best recipe books I have discovered over 10 years of marriage is the Betty Crocker cookbook, the one with the red cover. If you were not fortunate enough to get one for a wedding and/or you're-an-adult-now-you-should-have-this-in-your-kitchen gift, GET IT. The pie crust tips and recipe are seriously some of the easiest ever.
All ingredients are local...which is great especially when you realize that it's a week to Thanksgiving and nothing you order from the states is getting here in time for Turkey Day.
***RANDOM, BUT MAYBE NOT SO RANDOM KITCHEN, APPLIANCE ALERT!****
Betty Crocker Pie Crust
I made 3 crusts, 2 for a covered apple pie and 1 for a pumpkin pie. You can adjust the amounts as necessary.
3 cups of flour
1.5 tsp salt
1 cup of cold butter (2 sticks)
6-10 TBsp of ice water (the ICE part is important and I think this was part of my problem before)
Add the flour, salt and cut up butter into the food processor. Pulse several times until you have pea sized pieces. You can also do this with a pastry cutter or 2 knives, but remember, you want to handle the ingredients as little as possible! Once butter is cut in, start processor and add water all at once. Dough should pull away from the sides of the processor when ready. Add 1 or 2 TBsp of ice water at a time until you see this effect. One tip::: you don't want the dough to form a ball in the processor.
Dump out onto plastic wrap or wax paper. Work quickly and shape into a disc. Wrap and put into fridge for 30 minutes to 1 hour to chill.
Remove dough from fridge and cut into 3 sections. Place sections you are not rolling immediately back into fridge until you are ready to roll out.
To roll out, flour the counter (I'm fortunate to have granite here which keeps cool) or one of those nifty pie rolling guides. For your rolling pin, flour it as well. Roll the dough from the center of the disc, turning every couple of rolls. Again, WORK QUICKLY. If the dough or pin starts to stick, dust lightly with flour. Once dough is a few millimeters thick, lift and place into pie plate.
Bake according to your pie recipe as each one is a little different.
As you can see from the picture above, the apple pie came out fabulous!!!
For additional tips, go to Betty Crocker's website: www.bettycrocker.com/how-to/baking-basics/Pies/Pie-Crust-Tips.htm
Happy Thanksgiving, LLOR Readers!
For additional tips, go to Betty Crocker's website: www.bettycrocker.com/how-to/baking-basics/Pies/Pie-Crust-Tips.htm
Happy Thanksgiving, LLOR Readers!
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