Basic Pie Crust Jeri Lynn Scott
5 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups shortening plus 4 tablespoons butter
3/4 cups of water plus enough ice to equal 1 full cup
Sift flour and salt into a large bowl. Cut in shortening/butter into flour mixture until the dry ingredients resemble cornmeal. Yes, this is requires a little patience, but the end result is worth it. You can use a pastry cutter, however, I still like using a regular butter knife. By this time most of the ice should be melted and you are ready to add the water. The less you work the dough, the flakier your pie crust will be and the colder the water the better. Fold in the water until all of the dry ingredients are moistened and the dough almost cleans the side of the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and chill the dough for an hour before rolling out.
This is enough pie crust to make 2 - 10 inch double crust pies. Yep, the top and bottom. I figure if you’re going to take the time to make home made crust make enough to make it worth your while. Extra dough makes really tasty cookies. Just add butter, sugar and cinnamon and bake at 425 for 10 - 15 minutes. Or, just give your extra crust to Karen.