| MOM’S PIE CRUST 2 cups white flour 1 cup vegetable shortening 1 teaspoon salt Enough cold water to form a soft ball (Approximately 1/3 cup) Chop shortening, flour and salt together until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add water all at once and stir until just moistened. Add more water if needed a teaspoon at a time. Divide dough in half and gently press together to make two balls. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough ball out forming a circle about ¼ inch thick and wide enough to cover the bottom of your pie pan plus a three inch overlap to accommodate the sides. Fold dough in half and lift off the counter top. Center it over the pie plate. Unfold the dough so that it covers the pan equally on all sides. Press dough and shape snuggly into the pan. Use a butter knife to trim off any excess dough hanging over the edges. Crimp the edges of the dough tight to the pan by using the thumb and pointer finger of one hand to press down and the pointer finger of the opposite hand to draw the dough up between the fingers of the opposite hand, forming a zigzag-like pattern of one flap up and one flap down, running along the entire edge of the pie crust. If you are preparing pie crusts for puddings and fillings that will be added cold to a baked shell you will need to take a fork and pierce the pie crust over the entire dough area including the sides of the pie pan leaving only about a quarter of an inch between fork pricks. This will keep the pie dough from bubbling and losing its shape as it bakes by allowing the air to escape from the holes. If you are filling the crust with filling that needs to be baked such as pumpkin or pecan filling do not pierce any holes in the dough. Recipe makes three single pie shells or one double and one single crust. |
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