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Pastry for Pies and Tarts

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A recipe that belongs in every pie lover’s collection! If you’re making a baked pie crust, a one-crust or two-crust pie or tart, what you need to know can be found in this recipe.

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(43 Ratings)

43 Ratings

5 spoons 70%

4 spoons 14%

3 spoons 14%

2 spoons

1 spoons

Member Reviews (13)

e74dfc22-dd54-4564-b653-0f142faf91a2

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PREP TIME
15 Min
TOTAL TIME
1 Hr
SERVINGS
8

1: cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour

1/2: teaspoon salt

1/3: cup plus 1 tablespoon shortening

2: to 3 tablespoons cold water

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1 Unbaked One-Crust Pie Crust: Mix flour and salt in medium bowl. Cut in shortening, using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite directions), until particles are size of small peas. Sprinkle with cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost leaves side of bowl (1 to 2 teaspoons more water can be added if necessary).
Gather pastry into a ball. Shape into flattened round on lightly floured surface. Wrap flattened round of pastry in plastic wrap and refrigerate about 45 minutes or until dough is firm and cold, yet pliable. This allows the shortening to become slightly firm, which helps make the baked pastry more flaky. If refrigerated longer, let pastry soften slightly before rolling.
Roll pastry, using floured rolling pin, into circle 2 inches larger than upside-down 9-inch glass pie plate, or 3 inches larger than 10- or 11-inch tart pan. Fold pastry into fourths; place in pie plate. Unfold and ease into plate, pressing firmly against bottom and side and being careful not to stretch pastry, which will cause it to shrink when baked.

Trim overhanging edge of pastry 1 inch from rim of pie plate. Fold and roll pastry under, even with plate; flute as desired. Continue with directions in pie recipe.
2 Baked Pie Crust: Heat oven to 475ºF. Mix flour and salt in medium bowl. Cut in shortening, using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite directions), until particles are size of small peas. Sprinkle with cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost leaves side of bowl (1 to 2 teaspoons more water can be added if necessary).
Gather pastry into a ball. Shape into flattened round on lightly floured surface. Wrap flattened round of pastry in plastic wrap and refrigerate about 45 minutes or until dough is firm and cold, yet pliable. This allows the shortening to become slightly firm, which helps make the baked pastry more flaky. If refrigerated longer, let pastry soften slightly before rolling.
Roll pastry, using floured rolling pin, into circle 2 inches larger than upside-down 9-inch glass pie plate. Fold pastry into fourths; place in pie plate. Unfold and ease into plate, pressing firmly against bottom and side.

For pie, trim overhanging edge of pastry 1 inch from rim of pie plate. Fold and roll pastry under, even with plate; flute as desired. For tart, trim overhanging edge of pastry even with top of tart pan. Prick bottom and side of pastry thoroughly with fork. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light brown; cool on wire rack.
3 Two-Crust Pie: Mix 2 cups flour and 1 teaspoon salt in medium bowl. Cut in 2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons shortening, using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite directions), until particles are size of small peas. Sprinkle with 4 to 6 tablespoons cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost leaves side of bowl (1 to 2 teaspoons more water can be added if necessary).
Gather pastry into a ball. Divide in half and shape into 2 flattened rounds on lightly floured surface. Wrap flattened rounds of pastry in plastic wrap and refrigerate about 45 minutes or until dough is firm and cold, yet pliable. This allows the shortening to become slightly firm, which helps make the baked pastry more flaky. If refrigerated longer, let pastry soften slightly before rolling.
Roll one round on lightly floured surface, using floured rolling pin, into circle 2 inches larger than upside-down 9-inch glass pie plate. Fold pastry into fourths; place in pie plate. Unfold and ease into plate, pressing firmly against bottom and side.
Spoon desired filling into pastry-lined pie plate. Roll other round of pastry. Fold into fourths and cut slits so steam can escape. Unfold top pastry over filling; trim overhanging edge 1 inch from rim of plate. Fold and roll top edge under lower edge, pressing on rim to seal; flute as desired. Continue as directed in pie or tart recipe.

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Expert Tips

You can taste the difference! Pie crusts made with self-rising flour differ in flavor and texture from those made with all-purpose flour.

If you want, you can use self-rising flour. Just be sure to leave out the salt!

Got a question for our Kitchen Experts? Ask it in the Message Boards

Nutrition Information:

1 Serving (1 Serving)

Calories 145

(Calories from Fat 90 ),

Total Fat 10 g

(Saturated Fat 3 g,

Cholesterol 0mg;
Sodium 150 mg;
Total Carbohydrate 12 g

(Dietary Fiber 0g,

Protein 2 g;

Percent Daily Value*:

Vitamin A 2.00%;
Vitamin C 0.00%;
Calcium 0.00%;
Iron 4.00%;

Exchanges:

1 Starch;
1 1/2 Fat;

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Review & Comments

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1 - 3 of 13 Reviews View All

Posted 11/22/2011 9:41:49 PM REPORT ABUSE Bsolan said:

Rating:

I use this recipe and add a T. sugar and a 1/2 tsp vinegar. I get compliments every time I make it. Very flaky and tasty with the added sugar and no lard flavor. Be sure to cover it with foil until the last 10 min.

This reply was: Helpful Inspiring

Posted 9/25/2011 7:57:28 AM REPORT ABUSE SingingGrandMum said:

Rating:

Joining the chorus of people who have used this recipe for decades. One hint- Always use a wire pastry pastry blender (instead of knives or the thicker variety) to get the best results. Also, reviewers are right about butter flavored Crisco. This was the recipe my mother used. Her pie crusts were always perfect. She always had me watch from the time I was 4 years old but never let me try. When I moved on my own, I was nervous the first time, but "Snap!"- it was perfect. Decades later have won several blue ribbons for my crust. Have used this Betty Crocker recipe for 40+ years and so does my daughter now.

This reply was: Helpful Inspiring

Posted 3/24/2011 2:27:45 PM REPORT ABUSE camerakid said:

Rating:

I rarely make pies w/ homemade crust, in part because I could never seem to make a good crust! However, I recently tried this recipe because I needed a lard-free pie crust. Thank you, Betty Crocker, for a recipe that a novice pie maker found very easy to use! I got more than one compliment on my tasty, flaky pie crust. I will definitely use this recipe again!

This reply was: Helpful Inspiring