Art of the Pie® Dough Recipe
For those who would like a print at home recipe. This is the Art of the Pie® dough that I have taught with great success to thousands of people who come to my Art of the Pie® Workshops. And yes, if you prefer an all butter crust, 14 Tablespoons will be just fine. Here’s the link for a full description of how to make.
A chubby disc ready for rolling. Photo by K Cline
Recipe: Art of the Pie® Basic Pie Dough
Prep time
Total time
This is the Basic Pie Dough that I have taught to thousands at Art of the Pie workshops across the country. For more information on workshops please visit www.artofthepie.com.
Author: Kate McDermott-Art of the Pie®
Recipe type: Pastry
Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2-1/2 cups (363g) unbleached all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp (3g) salt
- *8 Tbs (112g) of Kerrygold or other salted or unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon size pieces
- *8 Tbs (112g) leaf lard
- 8 Tbs (118g) of ice water (This is an average but sometimes the dough takes more or less.)
- *(For ALL BUTTER dough use 14 Tbs (196g) of Kerrygold or other salted or unsalted butter for your total fat)
Procedure
- Put all ingredients but the ice water in a large bowl.
- With clean hands, blend the mixture together until it looks like coarse meal with some lumps in it that looks like cracker crumbs, peas, and almonds. The lumps make flakey pies.
- Sprinkle ice water over mixture and stir lightly with a fork.
- Squeeze a handful of dough together. Mix in a bit more water if it doesnʼt keep together.
- Divide the dough in half and make two chubby disks about 5 inches across.
- Wrap the disks separately in plastic wrap and chill for about an hour.
- Take out one disk and put it on a well-floured board, pastry cloth, parchment paper or plastic wrap.
- Sprinkle some flour onto the top of the disk. Thump the disk with your rolling pin several times.
- Turn it over and thump the other side.
- Sprinkle more flour onto the top of the crust if needed to keep the pin from sticking and roll the crust out from the center in all directions.
- When it is an inch or so larger than your pie pan, brush off the extra flour on both sides. Fold the dough over the top of the pin and lay it in the pie pan carefully.
- Donʼt worry if the crust needs to be patched together; just paint a little water where it needs to be patched and “glue” on the patch piece.
- Put the filling in the pie and repeat the process with the other disk.
Notes
This recipe will make one double-crust pie or two single-crust pies for 9" pie pans. Leaf lard is available at some butcher shops, farmers markets and also by mail-order. *If you prefer an all-butter crust, use about 14 Tablespoons of Kerrygold or other salted or unsalted butter for your total fat. It will take about 5-7 minutes to put the dough together. Minimum chill time is 20 minutes but 1-2 hours is great. After chilling, dough discs may be frozen for up to 1 month. Be Happy and Make Pie!
Go Kate Go! I just discovered a similar plugin– makes things so easy, and now I can start my Kate McDermott Awesome Pie section in my three ring binder. Kate where do you buy your leaf lard? I forgot. Thanks! Tom on Vashon.
So sweet! I’ve been getting it at Dietrich’s Meats in Pennsylvania. Sea Breeze is on the island and usually has it at the Seattle farmers markets, too. You may want to give them a call and pick some up.
Hi Kate,
I just discovered your website! Great information on making pie crust. I made an apple pie today; however the pie crust cracked during the baking process. I used a combination of butter (Plugra) and leaf lard (2 ozs.). I made the dough in the food processor and then added more ice water as necessary. I chilled the dough and it rolled out beautifully. After I assembled the pie, I put it in the freezer for 15 mins; then into the hot oven (375). What would cause the crust to crack when it’s baking. This has happened more than once and don’t know what to do. I do use King Arthur flour (all purpose). Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thank you.
Dear Kate,
My Grandmother made her pie crusts using lard. She mixed her crusts in a large wooden bowl full of flour. She knew just how to mix the dough without measuring. Thank you for giving the measurements. I was too small to understand how she always got it right.
Jo Ryal
Hi Jo- My pleasure! When I was young, I learned without measuring equipment too– a little of this, and a little of that. Kate