GrandMa and Mama made great pies big pies. They were a major part of most summer dinners and especially Thanksgiving, and Christmas.My wife has got into the habbit for a very ling time of buying pet Ritz pie shells. I can tell the quality, the taaste have gone way down from what I rmemember but could never stand to the hihg are of pie crusta and pies of Mama's and Grand Ma's and I bet Great Graand Ma on her side. She Dutch.Somewhere we have a Betty Crocker Cookbook where everything is made from scratch from the 30s. It was mama's home ed book. Green bound in tan and about four inches thick 11x14.When I wass a teenager I baked bread and things out of it when there was no school, no one else around and schools closed. So I nned the high art of pie pasty shells and tops to perfection. Good enough won;t cut it this year.God any state fair winnders?

For My sweet Potatoe pies, Publix brand has the BEST Pie Crust. they cost less

My Mom always made her own pie crust that was wonderful. Her secret was about two table spoons of BACON grease in the mixture. Always tender and flakey.

My grandma ( and I'm 72) made the best and instead of Crisco she used lard. Its the secret of a great pie crust, but not so good for you. Also, the less you work the dough, the flakier it will be.

I just made an apple pie last week.The only crust for me is the Crisco crust!! You usually find it on the can.It is so simple, Crisco, flour, salt and water!!I have been told all kinds of liquids to use instead of the water BUT I am hooked on the original and never found the variations as good.I gave half of the pie to a friend who gave me the apples so in stead of me gaining the 5 lbs she gets half of that too!!

Making a good flaky pie crust is becoming such a lost art:(.Wish I'd paid more attention when my Nana was baking but yes it's the old story: you always think there is time.Ah well and with that thunk in mind one year I decided it was time to make a pie crust that would make her think I was related to her. 2-1/2 cups AP flour (unbleached, preferable but your choice) 1-1/2 teaspoons sugar 1 tsp salt 1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled sweet butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 1/2 cup chilled lard or frozen Spectrum vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 5 TBs (or more) ice water*Blend first 3 ingredients in processor. Add butter and lard; using on/off turns, blend until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer mixture to bowl. Add 5 TBs ice water and mix with fork until dough begins to clump together, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dry. Gather dough together. Divide dough in half; flatten each half into disk. Wrap each disk in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour. You can freeze the dough for later use by wrapping in plastic followed by foil or freezer paper. Lasts for about 3 months.*water amount depends on the humidity.

Tis The Season for good pie crusts | Good Sam Community

magnusfide
Explorer II
Feb 13, 2015
Saw on tv somewhere that a cooking show focused on pie making and they called it the Life of Pie.

There's plenty of youtuber vids on pies, bread making and specialty cooking techniques. Can almost make FoodNetwork obsolete.

?1-1/2 cup Crisco (vegetable Shortening)
?3 cups All-purpose Flour
?1 whole Egg
?5 Tablespoons Cold Water
?1 Tablespoon White Vinegar
?1 teaspoon Salt

This was Mom's recipe. She got it out of an old cookbook that belonged to Granny.
SDPat
Explorer
Feb 08, 2015
I watch the Pioneer Woman and tried this recipe. First pie crust that I have made that was really flaky.

?1-1/2 cup Crisco (vegetable Shortening)
?3 cups All-purpose Flour
?1 whole Egg
?5 Tablespoons Cold Water
?1 Tablespoon White Vinegar
?1 teaspoon Salt

Preparation Instructions

In a large bowl, with a pastry cutter, gradually work the Crisco into the flour for about 3 or 4 minutes until it resembles a coarse meal. In a small bowl, beat an egg with a fork and then pour it into the flour/shortening mixture. Add 5 tablespoons of cold water, 1 tablespoon of white vinegar and 1 teaspoon of salt. Stir together gently until all of the ingredients are incorporated.

Separate the dough into thirds. ***Note: Separating it into thirds will result in three thin crusts. If you prefer a more substantial crust, separate it in half.*** Form 3 evenly sized balls of dough and place each dough into a large Ziploc bag. Using a rolling pin, slightly flatten each ball of dough (about ½ inch thick) to make rolling easier later. Seal the bags and place them in the freezer until you need them. (If you will be using it immediately it’s still a good idea to put in the freezer for about 15 to 20 minutes to chill.)

When you are ready to use the dough to make a crust, remove from the freezer and allow to thaw for 15 minutes. On a floured surface roll the dough, starting at the center and working your way out. (Sprinkle some flour over top of the dough if it’s a bit too moist.) If the dough is sticking to the countertop use a metal spatula and carefully scrape it up and flip it over and continue rolling until it’s about ½ inch larger in diameter than your pie pan.

With a spatula, lift the dough carefully from the surface of the counter into the pie pan. Gently press the dough against the corner of the pan. Go around the pie pan pinching and tucking the dough to make a clean edge.
pianotuna
Nomad III
Feb 01, 2015
Hi mitch,

Are you really trying to derail my weight loss program? SHAME lol

mitch5252 wrote:
At home, I made a batch, divided into two rounds, and frozen them. I then made chicken pot pie filling and baggie froze it into a flat.

At camp, I rolled out one dough round in a large baggie for the bottom. Filled with the defrosted filling and repeated the other dough ball for the top.

For baking, I used a small (6"?) glass pie tin. Made a "trivet" out of heavy duty tin foil for the bottom of a dutch oven to raise the tin off the bottom. Put in the pie and baked in my #8 DO.

Turned out really good EXCEPT - I couldn't easily remove the pie from the DO and broke off the ends of the crust - the best crunchy part! :(

All-in-all, a definite keeper meal.
xzyHollyxyz
Explorer
Feb 01, 2015
I recently heard about, and started experimenting with, hot water pastry crusts for savory pies. So far, pretty good!

At home, I made a batch, divided into two rounds, and frozen them. I then made chicken pot pie filling and baggie froze it into a flat.

At camp, I rolled out one dough round in a large baggie for the bottom. Filled with the defrosted filling and repeated the other dough ball for the top.

For baking, I used a small (6"?) glass pie tin. Made a "trivet" out of heavy duty tin foil for the bottom of a dutch oven to raise the tin off the bottom. Put in the pie and baked in my #8 DO.

Turned out really good EXCEPT - I couldn't easily remove the pie from the DO and broke off the ends of the crust - the best crunchy part! :(

All-in-all, a definite keeper meal.
Steve_B_
Explorer
Nov 11, 2014
I believe Shepherds Pie only has the potatoes on top. Adding a bottom crust would make it a pot pie, in my opinion.
Super_Dave
Explorer
Nov 11, 2014
I've been contemplating a cross between pot pie and shepherds pie. Dough crust for the bottom and mashed potatoes for the top. Do shepherds pies have a bottom crust?
Super_Dave
Explorer
Nov 10, 2014
There's a saying that goes something like this, "I only like 2 kinds of pie, hot pie and cold pie."
NYCgrrl
Explorer
Nov 10, 2014
SWMO wrote:
If you want to have a flaky crust like moms and grandmas you have to bite the bullet and use lard. Truth is there isn't that much fat in a slice of pie. It probably isn't anymore than a lean hamburger, maybe less.

My Nana stopped using vegetable shortening and butter in her traditional style pie crust when they changed the Crisco formula in the '70's. Since she wasn't allowed to use lard due to a family member's health concerns, she started making Pillbury's crazy crust for her apple pie. It used less veggie shortening, required less hand work(arthritic hands)and was still gobbled down. She was happy for the learning but still longed for the flakiness and butter flavor.
SWMO
Explorer
Nov 10, 2014
If you want to have a flaky crust like moms and grandmas you have to bite the bullet and use lard. Truth is there isn't that much fat in a slice of pie. It probably isn't anymore than a lean hamburger, maybe less.
NYCgrrl
Explorer
Nov 10, 2014
Epicurious dedicated a week to making pie, IRL and on the 'net.
Here are the results:

Tips and Tricks to Making Pie

You'll find several links within the text.