Flaky Pie Dough For Savory Pea Pie Recipes

FLAKY PIE DOUGH

Steps:

• In a food processor, pulse flour and salt to combine. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons ice water; pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed (if necessary, add up to 2 tablespoons more water, 1 tablespoon at a time). Form dough into a 1-inch-thick rectangle, wrap tightly in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, 1 hour (or up to 3 days).

BASIC FLAKY PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Divide the butter into two parts, about two thirds to one third:
• For #1 2.5 ounces and 1.5 ounces (5 tablespoons and 3 tablespoons)
• For #2 3 ounces and 1.5 ounces (6 tablespoons and 3 tablespoons)
• For #3 4.5 ounces and 2.5 ounces (9 tablespoons and 5 tablespoons)
• Cut the butter into 3/4-inch cubes. Wrap each portion of butter with plastic wrap, refrigerate the larger amount and freeze the smaller for at least 30 minutes. Place the flour, salt, and baking powder in a reclosable gallon-size freezer bag and freeze for at least 30 minutes.
• Food processor method:
• Place the flour mixture in a food processor with the metal blade and process for a few seconds to combine. Set the bag aside.
• Add the larger amount of butter cubes to the flour and process for about 20 seconds or until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the remaining frozen butter cubes and pulse until all of the frozen butter is the size of peas. (Toss with a fork to see it better.)
• Add the lowest amount of the ice water and the vinegar and pulse 6 times. Pinch a small amount of the mixture together between your fingers. If it does not hold together, add half the remaining water and pulse 3 times. Try pinching the mixture again. If necessary, add the remaining water, pulsing 3 times to incorporate it. The mixture will be in particles and will not hold together without being pinched.
• For tiny 1-inch tartlets, omit the baking powder and allow the processing to continue just until a ball forms. The additional mixing produces a dough that is slightly less flaky but ensures that it will not puff out of shape in the tiny molds.
• Spoon the mixture into the plastic bag. (For a double-crust pie, it is easiest to divide the mixture in half at this point.)
• Holding both ends of the bag opening with you fingers, knead the mixture by alternately pressing it, from the outside of the bag, with the knuckles and heels of your hands until the mixture holds together in one piece and feels slightly stretchy when pulled.
• Wrap the dough with plastic wrap, flatten it into a disc (or discs) and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes, preferably overnight. (For a pie shell and lattice, divide it in a ratio of two thirds:one third - use about 9.5 ounces for the shell and the rest for the lattice, flattening the smaller part into a rectangle.)
• Hand method:
• Place a medium mixing bowl in the freezer to chill.
• Place the flour, salt, and optional baking powder in another medium bowl and whisk to combine them. Use a pastry cutter or rub the mixture between your fingers to blend the larger portion of the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse meal.
• Spoon the mixture, together with the cold butter, into a reclosable gallon-size freezer bag. Expel any air from the bag and close it. Use a rolling pin to flatten the butter into flakes. Place the bag in the freezer for at least 10 minutes or until the butter is very firm.
• Transfer the mixture to the chilled bowl, scraping the sides of the bag. Set the bag aside. Sprinkle the ice water and vinegar onto the mixture, tossing it lightly with a rubber spatula. Spoon the loose mixture back into the plastic bag. (For a double-crust pie, it is easiest to divide the mixture in half at this point.)
• Holding both ends of the bag opening with your fingers, knead the mixture by alternately pressing it, from the outside of the bag, with knuckles and heels of your hands until the mixture holds together in one piece and feels slightly stretchy when pulled.
• Wrap the dough with plastic wrap, flatten it into a disc (or discs) and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes, preferably overnight. (For a pie shell and lattice, divide it in a ratio of two thirds:one third - use about 9.5 ounces for the shell and the rest for the lattice, flattening the smaller part into a rectangle.)
• Store:
• Refrigerated, up to 2 days; frozen, up to 3 months.
• Understanding:
• Pastry flour offers the most tenderness while maintaining flakiness, but it is the addition of vinegar that relaxes the dough without losing flakiness, making it easier to roll, shrink less, and be even more tender. The baking powder lifts and aerates the dough slightly without weakening it, but it makes it seem more tender.
• Thes secret to success is finely incorporating about two thirds of the butter into the flour, which keeps the flour from absorbing too much water and forming gluten, which would make the crust tough. The remaining one third of the butter is incorporated in larger pieces, which serve to seperate the layers, resulting in the desired flakiness. This pie crust does not shrink or distort as much as the standard all-butter crust because there is less gluten development.
• If when adding the water, you find you need more than indicated in the recipe, chances are you haven't moisture-proofed the flour adequately (you haven't used the correct amount of butter or processed it fine enough), leaving the flour free to absorb more liquid. The resulting crust will be flakier but less tender.
• If you find you need less water than specified in the recipe, chances are you divided the butter incorrectly and used too much of it to moisture-proof the flour, preventing it from absorbing an adequate amount of water. The resulting crust will be more tender but not very flaky.
• Flattening the newly formed dough into a disc or discs before refrigerating makes it easier to roll without cracking. The dough is refrigerated to relax the gluten, making it less elastic and easier to roll. Chilling also firms the butter, preventing sticking and the need for extra flour when rolling, which would toughen it. Dough that has rested overnight before baking shrinks less.

ALL BUTTER CHICKPEA FLOUR PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Place chickpea flour, salt, and natural cane sugar in a bowl and whisk to combine.
• Add cold butter cubes to the food processor and pulse until a crumbly dough forms (the crumbly bits should be about pea-sized or a little bigger).
• Using a tablespoon measure, add the iced water (but not the ice) to the flour-butter mixture. Start with three tablespoons, pulse for a few seconds, and then add one tablespoon at a time, pulsing for several seconds in between each addition until the dough comes together in a ball. It usually takes me 6-8 tablespoons.
• Turn the clump of pie dough out onto a floured surface and shape it into one round disc. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least two hours and up to a couple days.
• Unwrap the pie dough and discard the plastic wrap. Set the dough disc on a floured work surface and sprinkle more flour into your rolling pins and hands. Begin rolling out the dough with a rolling pin, turning it over occasionally to keep from sticking. Add more flour to the work surface or dough as necessary. Roll it out until it's about 1/4-inch thick (at least 12 inches in diameter).
• Carefully roll the pie dough onto your rolling pin so that it's loosely wrapped around it. Unroll the dough into a 9-inch pie dish and let it sink into the dish, helping guide it to fit. Roll in the jagged edges and flute the edges using your index fingers and thumb (see photos in post).
• Bake the pie crust according to your recipe's instructions.

FLAKY PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Dissolve the salt in the water.
• Using a pastry blender, cut the butter and shortening into the flour until the fat blobs are about the size of large peas. Or, for the mealy crust, until it's the consistency of cornmeal.
• Slowly drizzle in half a cup of salted water, and gently mix with a wooden spoon until the dough holds together when you pinch it. You won't necessarily need more than half a cup, but drizzle in a tablespoon more if you need it to hold the dough together. But don't overwork the dough, or the crust will be too hard.
• Gather the dough together into two piles, and then press each one into a disc.
• Wrap the dough tightly in plastic, and chill for at least two hours before using, or you can refrigerate it overnight.

FLAKY PIE DOUGH FOR SAVORY PEA PIE

Steps:

• Combine flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Add butter; process until mixture resembles coarse meal, 10 seconds.
• With machine running, add between 1/4 cup and 1/2 cup ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube of food processor. Combine for no longer than 30 seconds; dough should hold together. Turn dough onto piece of plastic wrap. Press into flat circle; wrap it in plastic. Chill at least 1 hour.