Approaching the Perfect Pie Crust - pastry flour

Method

• Sift together flour and salt.
• Cut butter and lard into flour (some people swear by a food processor for mixing the fat and flour, but Ive never had good luck with itI prefer an old-fashioned pastry cutter) until the biggest lumps of fat are kidney bean-sized.
• Combine egg, vodka, water, and vinegar (start with 2 tablespoons of water, and add more if the dough is too dry, which is more likely if youre baking in a dry climate).
• Pour into flour mixture all at once.
• Blend with a spoon just until flour is all moistened.
• Refrigerate at least 30 minutes (overnight is best).
• You want to keep everything cold during and after the mixing process because you dont want the fats to melt and over-blend with the flouryou want to keep bits of it nice and separate.
• I even chill my mixing bowl and pastry cutter before using them.
• Divide the dough into two balls and roll them out, one at a time, on waxed paper (you will need to sprinkle a fair amount of flour on the waxed paper and the dough to keep it from sticking).
• Try to handle the dough minimally and roll it lightlytoo much handling develops gluten and makes the crust tough.
• If you can see big blobs of fat in the crust as you roll it out, youre doing it right!
• To place the crust in the pie plate, flip the waxed paper and peel it off carefully when crust is in place.
• Try not to stretch the crust as youre putting it in the plate, or it will shrink back as it bakes.
• Trim about 1/4 past the edge of the plate and fold edges lightly under the rim.
• Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before baking (again, several hours or overnight in the freezer is better).
• An unbaked bottom crust can be frozen in the pie plate until you need it.
• Freeze it until firm, then wrap in an extra-large Ziplock bag.
• To pre-bake a bottom crust, prick it at 1/2-inch intervals before refrigerating.
• Adjust the oven rack to its lowest position.
• Place a baking stone in the bottom of the oven and preheat it to 400 degrees F. for at least 30 minutes.
• Press a doubled 12-inch square of aluminum foil into the pie crust, just covering the bottom.
• Weight crust with pie weights.
• Bake, until crust is firmly set, about 15 minutes.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F., remove weights and foil, and brush with slightly-beaten egg white.
• Mask edges of crust with a pie shield or foil.
• Continue to bake directly on the baking stone until crust is crisp and rich brown in color, about 10 minutes longer.
• To bake a filled single-crust pie in a crust that wasn't pre-baked, adjust the oven rack to its lowest position.
• Place a baking stone in the bottom of the oven and preheat it to 400 degrees F. for at least 30 minutes.
• Mask the edges of the pie with a pie shield or foil.
• Place the pie on the lowest oven rack for 15-20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 degrees F. and move it down, directly on the baking stone (this makes gets the bottom crust really crisp).
• Follow the directions in your pie recipe for total baking time.
• For a double-crust pie: Refrigerate the unrolled portion of the dough for the top crust until you are ready to roll it out.
• If the filling is going to be wet, brush the bottom crust with slightly-beaten egg white before chilling, to keep it from getting soggy.
• Fill the bottom crust and top with the top crust.
• Seal edges together with fingers or the times of a fork.
• To bake, adjust the oven rack to its lowest position.
• Place a baking stone in the bottom of the oven and preheat it to 400 degrees F. for at least 30 minutes.
• Mask the edges of the pie with a pie shield or foil.
• Place the pie on the lowest oven rack for 15-20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 degrees and move it down, directly on the baking stone (this gets the bottom crust really crisp).
• Follow the directions in your pie recipe for total baking time.
• Prep time includes time to chill dough.