Alton Browns Pie Crust Recipe 455

ALTON BROWN'S PIE CRUST RECIPE - (4.5/5)

Steps:

• Flour parchment paper. Add butter and cover completely with flour. Chop butter and coat thoroughly. Chill everything in a metal bowl. Take 4 tablespoons butter out of fridge and warm to room temperature. Process dry ingredients till butter completely disappears; pulse. Add rest of the butter half at a time. Pulse 10 times; til pea sized. Process rest of butter, leaving chunks of butter. Put mix in a bowl; spray top of dough till glistens and work in with a spatula. Spray again and fold. Grab a handful of dough and squeeze-if shows crease of hand and breaks apart cleanly, not crumbly, about right. Spray again, stir if dry; pack into a mound; push down with waxed paper and turn out of bowl. Wrap tightly and chill 20 minutes. On a floured surface, with a floured rolling pin, press straight down, turn crust 10 degrees per roll, till size desired. Brush top of crust with 1 egg and 1 tablespoon water. Sprinkle with coarse sugar.

ALTON BROWN'S PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Place butter and lard in freezer for 15 minutes. When ready to use, remove and cut both into small pieces.
• In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour and salt by pulsing 3 to 4 times. Add butter and pulse 5 to 6 times until texture looks mealy. Add lard and pulse another 3 to 4 times. Remove lid of food processor and spritz surface of mixture thoroughly with water. Replace lid and pulse 5 times. Add more water and pulse again until mixture holds together when squeezed. Place mixture in large zip-top bag, squeeze together until it forms a ball, and then press into a rounded disk and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Place 2 metal pie pans in the refrigerator to chill.
• Remove dough from refrigerator. Cut along 2 sides of the plastic bag, open bag to expose dough, and sprinkle both sides with flour. Cover again with plastic and roll out with a rolling pin to a 10 to 11-inch circle. Open plastic again and sprinkle top of dough with flour. Remove pie pans from refrigerator and set first pan on top of dough. Turn everything upside down and peel plastic from bottom of dough. Place second pan upside down on top of dough and flip again. Remove first pan from atop dough. Trim edges if necessary, leaving an edge for meringue to adhere to. Poke holes in dough and place in refrigerator for 15 minutes.
• Place a large piece of parchment paper on top of dough and fill with dry beans. Press beans into edges of dough and bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove parchment and beans and continue baking until golden in color, approximately 10 to 15 minutes longer. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Let cool completely before filling.

THE LAST PIZZA DOUGH I'LL EVER NEED

Steps:

• For the dough: Place each ingredient into the bowl of a stand mixer in the order listed. Install the dough hook attachment and mix on low until the dough comes together, forming a ball and pulling away from the sides of the bowl. Increase the mixer speed to medium and knead for 5 minutes.
• Lightly flour the countertops, then round the dough into a smooth ball by folding the edges of the round in toward the center several times and rolling between your hands on the counter. Lightly oil a bowl and place the dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 18 to 24 hours.
• "Punch down" the dough by turning it out onto a clean countertop and shaping it into a rough rectangle, using your knuckles to work out as many of the large gas bubbles as possible. Then tightly roll the dough into a log 12 to 15 inches long. Cut this into thirds. Shape each third into a disk, then shape the disks into smooth balls. You may want to moisten the counter with water to up the surface tension a bit so that the ball tightens up instead of sliding across the counter.
• Cover each ball with a clean kitchen towel and set aside for 30 minutes at room temperature.
• At this point, you can also transfer the dough to airtight plastic containers and refrigerate for up to 8 hours. Just make sure you bring the balls to room temperature 30 minutes before use.
• Pizza time: Set a pizza stone on the lower rack of the oven (or the floor, if using a gas oven) and crank the heat as high as it will go, hopefully 550 degrees F. Give the oven and the stone a good 30 minutes to heat up.
• For the toppings: Press a ball of dough into a 12-inch round. (Save the remaining dough balls for another use.) Smear with the jelly, then top with the fontina and bacon. Transfer to the pizza stone and bake until golden brown and melty, about 10 minutes.

PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Place butter and lard in freezer for 15 minutes. When ready to use, remove and cut both into small pieces.
• In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour and salt by pulsing 3 to 4 times. Add butter and pulse 5 to 6 times until texture looks mealy. Add lard and pulse another 3 to 4 times. Remove lid of food processor and spritz surface of mixture thoroughly with water. Replace lid and pulse 5 times. Add more water and pulse again until mixture holds together when squeezed. Place mixture in large zip-top bag, squeeze together until it forms a ball, and then press into a rounded disk and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Place 2 metal pie pans in the refrigerator to chill.
• Remove dough from refrigerator. Cut along 2 sides of the plastic bag, open bag to expose dough, and sprinkle both sides with flour. Cover again with plastic and roll out with a rolling pin to a 10 to 11-inch circle. Open plastic again and sprinkle top of dough with flour. Remove pie pans from refrigerator and set first pan on top of dough. Turn everything upside down and peel plastic from bottom of dough. Place second pan upside down on top of dough and flip again. Remove first pan from atop dough. Trim edges if necessary, leaving an edge for meringue to adhere to. Poke holes in dough and place in refrigerator for 15 minutes.
• Place a large piece of parchment paper on top of dough and fill with dry beans. Press beans into edges of dough and bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove parchment and beans and continue baking until golden in color, approximately 10 to 15 minutes longer. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Let cool completely before filling.

REFRIGERATOR PIE

Steps:

• In a nonreactive, stainless steel bowl, combine the cream or half-and-half and the eggs. Whisk until combined thoroughly. Add the salt and the nutmeg. Whisk to combine.
• Refrigerator Pie Rules: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Evenly distribute the pie fillings in the pie crust. Do not overfill the crust with the filling ingredients. Do not pour too much royale into the crust. The eggs will expand upon cooking. Bake the pie until it is firm to the touch like set Jell-O, about 45 minutes. Cool the pie for at least 15 minutes before slicing.

ALTON BROWN'S PIZZA

Steps:

• Place the sugar, salt, olive oil, water, 1 cup of flour, yeast, and remaining cup of flour into the mixer's work bowl.
• Using the paddle attachment, start the mixer on low and mix until the dough just comes together, forming a ball. Lube the hook attachment with cooking spray. Attach the hook to the mixer and knead for 15 minutes on medium speed.
• Tear off a small piece of dough and flatten into a disc. Stretch the dough until thin. Hold it up to the light and look to see if the baker's windowpane, or taut membrane, has formed. If the dough tears before it forms, knead the dough for an additional 5 to 10 minutes.
• Roll the pizza dough into a smooth ball on the countertop. Place into a stainless steel or glass bowl. Add 2 teaspoons of olive oil to the bowl and toss to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 18 to 24 hours.
• Place the pizza stone or tile onto the bottom of a cold oven and turn the oven to its highest temperature, about 500 degrees F. If the oven has coils on the oven floor, place the tile onto the lowest rack of the oven.
• Split the pizza dough into 2 equal parts using a knife or a dough scraper. Flatten into a disk onto the countertop and then fold the dough into a ball.
• Wet hands barely with water and rub them onto the countertop to dampen the surface. Roll the dough on the surface until it tightens. Cover one ball with a tea towel and rest for 30 minutes.
• Repeat the steps with the other piece of dough. If not baking the remaining pizza immediately, spray the inside of a ziptop bag with cooking spray and place the dough ball into the bag. Refrigerate for up to 6 days.
• Sprinkle the flour onto the peel and place the dough onto the peel. Using your hands, form a lip around the edges of the pizza. Stretch the dough into a round disc, rotating after each stretch. Toss the dough in the air if you dare. Shake the pizza on the peel to be sure that it will slide onto the pizza stone or tile. (Dress and bake the pizza immediately for a crisp crust or rest the dough for 30 minutes if you want a chewy texture.).
• Brush the rim of the pizza with olive oil. Spread the pizza sauce evenly onto the pizza. Sprinkle the herbs onto the pizza and top with the cheese.
• Slide the pizza onto the tile and bake for 7 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. Rest for 3 minutes before slicing.

ALTON BROWNS BASIC BREAD

Steps:

• Combine 5 ounces of the flour, 1/4 teaspoon of the yeast, all of the honey, and all of the bottled water in a straight-sided container; cover loosely and refrigerate for 8 to 12 hours.
• Place the remaining 11 ounces of flour, remaining yeast, and all the salt into the bowl of a stand mixer, and add the pre-ferment from the refrigerator. Using the dough hook attachment, knead the mixture on low for 2 to 3 minutes just until it comes together. Cover the dough in the bowl with a kitchen towel and allow to rest for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, knead the dough on medium speed for 5 to 10 minutes or until you are able to gently pull the dough into a thin sheet that light will pass through. The dough will be sticky, but not so sticky that you can't handle it.
• While the dough is kneading, pour half of the hot water into a shallow pan and place on the bottom rack of your oven.
• Grease the inside of a large straight-sided container with the vegetable oil. Place the dough ball into the container and set on the rack above the pan of water. Allow to rise until doubled in size, approximately 1 to 2 hours.
• Once the dough has doubled in size, turn it onto a counter top, lightly dust your hands with flour, and press the dough out with your knuckles; then fold 1 side in towards the middle of the mass and then the other, as if you were making a tri-fold wallet. Repeat the folding a second time. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and allow to rest for another 10 minutes.
• Flatten dough again with your knuckles and then fold the dough in onto itself, like you are shaping something that looks like a jellyfish. Turn the dough over and squeeze the bottom together so that the top surface of the dough is smooth. Place the dough back onto the counter and begin to roll gently between your hands. Do not grab the dough but allow it to move gently back and forth between your hands, moving in a circular motion. Move the dough ball to a pizza peel or the bottom of a sheet pan that has been sprinkled with the cornmeal. Cover with the kitchen towel and allow to bench proof for 1 hour, or until you poke the dough and it quickly fills back in where you poked it.
• Place an unglazed terra cotta dish upside down into the oven and heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Combine the 1/3 cup of water and the cornstarch in a small bowl. Uncover the dough and brush the surface with this mixture. Gently slash the top surface of the dough ball in several places, approximately 1/3 to 1/2-inch deep. Add more of the hot water to the shallow pan if it has evaporated. Slide the bread onto the terra cotta dish in the oven and bake for 50 to 60 minutes. Once the bread has reached an internal temperature of 205 to 210 degrees F, remove to a cooling rack and allow to sit for 30 minutes before slicing.

PREMADE PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Chill the butter in the freezer for 15 minutes along with two identical 9-inch metal pie pans.
• In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the flour and salt to combine (about 4 pulses). Scatter the butter over the top of the flour and pulse until the texture looks mealy and no large lumps remain, 8 to 10 pulses. Add the ice water and pulse 5 times. At this point the mixture should just hold together when squeezed.
• Turn the dough out on a sheet of plastic wrap and draw the plastic up around it, squeezing and pressing the dough into a ball. Flatten into a disk approximately 1 inch thick and 5 inches in diameter. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator, unwrap, and place on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper. Lightly flour the disk then top with another sheet of parchment. Roll with a rolling pin, with the dough between the two pieces of paper, turning the dough a quarter turn after every few rolls until the disk is 12 inches in diameter. (If the dough seems too firm to roll at first, let it sit for 5 minutes at room temperature to soften.)
• Retrieve the pie pans from the freezer and place one upside down on the counter. Remove the top layer of parchment from the dough disk and lift the bottom layer of parchment with the dough and set on top of the inverted pie pan. Invert the second pan, place over the dough, and press down gently to shape the dough. Trim away any excess dough with a paring knife.
• Flip both pans right-side up, lift off the top pan, peel away the last piece of parchment, and place the pan back on top, thus sandwiching the bare dough between the two cold pans. Return to the freezer for a minimum of 30 minutes. (See Cook's Note.)
• When ready to bake, heat the oven to 300 degrees F. Position a rack in the center of the oven and a second one just beneath it.
• Place the dough-pan sandwich upside-down directly on the center oven rack. Place an empty sheet pan on the lower rack to catch any butter that might render out. Bake for 1 hour, then increase the oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Bake 15 minutes more.
• Carefully remove the crust from the oven and let cool for 20 minutes with both pie pans in place. Invert so the pie pans are right-side up, remove the top pan, and continue to cool to room temperature. At this point, fill the pie or place back between the pans and keep at room temperature for up to 3 days. (Do not wrap in plastic if storing at room temperature.)

ALTON BROWN QUICHE RECIPE - (3.9/5)

Steps:

• In a nonreactive, stainless steel bowl, combine the cream or half-and-half and the eggs. Whisk until combined thoroughly. Add the salt and the nutmeg. Whisk to combine. Refrigerator Pie Rules: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Evenly distribute the pie fillings in the pie crust. Do not overfill the crust with the filling ingredients. Do not pour too much royale into the crust. The eggs will expand upon cooking. Bake the pie until it is firm to the touch like set Jell-O, about 45 minutes. Cool the pie for at least 15 minutes before slicing.

GRAHAM CRACKERS - ALTON BROWN

Steps:

• In a food processor, combine cinnamon, baking soda, salt, baking powder, flour, brown sugar and graham flour. Pulse to combine. Add very cold butter and pulse until it resembles coarse cornmeal.
• Add molasses, milk and vanilla. Pulse until a smooth dough forms. Press dough into a 1/2" thick disc, wrap in plastic and refrigerate 30 minutes.
• Roll dough between sheets of parchment to 1/8" thickness. Cut into 2x2" squares with a pizza cutter (or an accordion cutter, if you have one). Prick each cracker 3 times with the tines of a fork (or a docking roller if you have one). Remove irregular edges and bake in preheated 350°F oven for 25 minutes until the color has gotten slightly paler. Allow to cool completely IN THE PAN. Store in zip top bag with as much air removed as possible for up to 14 days.

MOO-LESS CHOCOLATE PIE BY ALTON BROWN

Steps:

• Place a small metal bowl over a saucepan with simmering water. Melt the chocolate and coffee liqueur in the bowl. Stir in vanilla.
• Combine the tofu, chocolate mixture, and honey in the blender jar. Liquefy until smooth.
• Pour the filling into the crust and refrigerate for 2 hours, or until the filling is set. Don't pause in this step or it might set up before you finish getting it into the pan! If it does it's okay but it makes it difficult to spread into the pan.
• Note: I have bad luck finding a good prepared chocolate wafer crust so I use a prepared graham cracker crust.
• Optional: Add a dollop of cool whip or dump the whole tub on the cake like a meringue. I think it's too rich this way, my husband loves it.