FRANK | FOOD

All Butter Pie Crust – “Pâte Brisée”

This makes one pâte brisée crust, enough for one tart. If you are making a pie with a bottom and top crust, double this recipe and form two discs of dough instead of one.

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
8 Tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar (increase to 1 1/2 teaspoons if for a sweet recipe)
2 to 4 Tbsp ice water, very cold

Cut the sticks of butter into 1/2-inch cubes and put in the freezer for at least ten minutes so that they become good and chilled. In a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar, pulse to mix. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with pea size pieces of butter. Add water one Tablespoon at a time, pulsing until mixture just begins to clump together. If you pinch some together and it holds then it’s ready, if not, add a little more water and pulse again.

Dump dough from machine and place on a clean lightly floured surface. Carefully shape into a disc. Do not over work the dough! Just knead enough to make the disc. You should still be able to see little bits of butter in the dough and these bits are what will make you a flaky crust! Sprinkle the disc with a little flour on all sides and wrap the disc in plastic wrap and toss in the freezer for 12 minutes to firm up.

When you are ready to roll it out, if it is too stiff, let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Sprinkle some flour on top of the disk. Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to a 12-13 inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. Be careful  and gentle as you roll out the dough, and use a metal spatula to check if the dough is sticking to the surface below. Add a few sprinkles of flour if necessary to keep from sticking.

Gently fold in half. Place on to a 9-inch pie plate, lining up the fold with the center of the pan. Gently unfold and press down to line the pie dish with the dough.