Recipe: Flaky or Semi-Flaky Pie Dough - BUTTER

Recipe by Elizebett Rocha Bento Eslinger

If you’re looking for an all-butter pie dough recipe, definitely give this recipe a try! I teach this recipe in my pastry classes, and it's been a student favorite! Buttery, flaky, and easy to put together. While all-butter pie doughs don’t shape as well as those that have shortening or lard, the flavor and flake of this recipe is just delicious. Makes 2 disks of dough.

Note #1: You can use a food processor to mix together the ingredients in steps 1-3. You’ll then need to transfer the flour/butter mixture to a bowl for step 4.

Note #2: If you want “flaky” pastry (which works well for tops of pies or pies with pre-made fillings and need pre-baked pie shells), bigger bits of fat are better (pea-sized to walnut-sized when flattened out into the dough round). “Semi-flaky sturdy” pastry can work for pies that have the filling cooked in them (e.g. custard, fruit, savory pies); the bits of fat should be incorporated well but with bits of fat that aren’t larger than pea-sized when flattened. 

Ingredients

• 325 g (~2 ½ cups) all-purpose unbleached flour (with extra for rolling out dough)
• 30 g (~2 tbsp) granulated sugar
• ¾ tsp table salt
• 50 g (~4 tbsp) frozen European-style unsalted butter, shredded (keep chilled until use)
• 113 g (8 tbsp) frozen American-style unsalted butter, shredded (keep chilled until use)
• 6 to 10 tbsp ice cold water

Directions - Making the Dough

1. Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Add the European-style butter to the flour mixture. Toss the butter with the flour and then use a pastry cutter (or two butter knives or your fingertips) to quickly cut down and incorporate the butter pieces.
3. Add in the remaining unsalted butter to the flour mixture, and continue to use a pastry cutter (or two knives or your fingertips) to break down the butter until you see a good variety of different-sized bits of butter throughout the mixture (up to ½” pieces). 
4. Add ¼ cup (4 tbsp) of the ice water and mix the dough to start to bring it together. If it doesn’t come together, add more ice water, 1 tbsp at a time, until the dough starts to come together. Using your fingertips, bring the dough together into a ball. You don’t want too much water in your dough. The dough should easily hold together in a ball, but it shouldn’t be sticky to the touch.
5. Cut the dough in half (about 320 g per half) and press each half into a 6- to 8-inch disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. 

If you are not using the dough within 3 days: double-wrap in plastic wrap; wrap in foil; and store in a freezer-grade, zipper-lock bag. Freeze for up to 3 months.