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With Thanksgiving only weeks away, I thought it would be a perfect time to share the recipe I use for einkorn pie crust! I’m not much of a pie maker, but I do make crust regularly for my Daddy’s Quiche, one of our favorite dinners.
In fact, every time I make a pie crust, I can hear my Daddy coaching me, “Don’t overwork the dough. Don’t overwork the dough. Nice job, that looks perfect.” It’s almost like he’s there with me as I cut the butter into the flour.
He’s completely to blame for me making all of my crusts, actually. There was a time, years ago, when I only bought the Pillsbury refrigerated ready-made crusts. You know the ones you just unroll and place into the pie dish? Yeah, those. He gave me such grief over that! Ha! He thought it was the biggest oxymoron to go to the trouble to make a homemade quiche, and then use a refrigerated pie crust. I think his words were something like: “What? How are you gonna make a homemade quiche with a store-bought pie crust? That doesn’t make any sense!” Oh, how I love my Daddy so.
And of course, I know now about all of the hurtful ingredients as well. Why does pie crust need Red #40 and Yellow #5?!? Likewise, BHA and BHT are the exact chemical preservatives we avoid now, especially as we support my son’s ADHD symptoms naturally.
Homemade pie crusts for the win! Once my Daddy coached me through my first crust years ago, it got easier and easier. Eventually, I made all of my crusts. I was using white flour up until this past January, when I made the commitment to switch my baking out to einkorn. It took a little while to attain the results I wanted with einkorn flour. In fact, I had some pretty bad pie crust flops over the summer, but I persevered and now have fairly consistent crusts. It does take planning time to make sure the crust gets refrigerated long enough before you use it, but following these directions creates a light, flaky crust for me now.
And every crust I make is like a little date with my Daddy, as if he’s sitting at the kitchen table watching me work, just like he always did.
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Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose einkorn flour
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup cold grass-fed butter, cut into chunks
- 1/4 cup cold water
Instructions
- Mix flour and salt in a large bowl.
- Add butter to the bowl.
- Using a pastry cutter (THIS ONE is my favorite), cut the chunks of butter into the flour mixture. Work the butter until most pieces are about the size of a pea. Some larger chunks are ok.
- Add the cold water to the bowl. Mix with a fork until the flour is coarse and mealy.
- Add additional water if needed, but in very small increments.
- Knead just until a dough forms and you incorporate all of the flour. But as my Daddy coached me, don't overwork it! Overworking won't give you the light, flaky crust you're desiring. Work it just until the dough sticks together. It's ok if there are a few floury spots and it feels like the dough might fall apart. Just go with it!
- Put the dough in an airtight glass container and flatten it out a little. This makes it easier to roll later.
- Place in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
- Remove from the refrigerator.
- If you're making a pie, divide into two parts. If you're making my Daddy's Quiche, skip that part.
- On a liberally floured surface, roll the dough out with a rolling pin to a size that is slightly larger than the pan you'll be using. I use a rolling pin cover, which helps the dough not stick. Make sure to rotate the dough each time you roll, and re-flour the surface. It's very important that you maintain a liberally floured surface under the dough, or it will stick and make a big mess. Trust me, I know!
- Repeat with the second part, if you've divided the dough.
- Transfer dough to desired pan (I always use glass), shape as necessary, and cut off excess.
- Put the pan into the freezer for about 30 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Remove the crust from the freezer, and bake for about 15 minutes, or until the crust is golden and flaky. Allow it to cool completely before filling.
- Alternatively, if your recipe calls for filling the crust before baking: Add cold filling after you remove the crust from the freezer, and hot filling before you put into the freezer. Then follow baking directions for your recipe.
- Allow the crust to cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting.
- Enjoy!
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