Better Pie Crust

My grandmother says she took away two important things from college. The first was meeting my grandfather. The second was how to make this pie crust. This is an easy, foolproof pie crust recipe that bakes up into a rich, flaky crust without the need for complicated steps. Is this recipe as life-altering as meeting your future husband? My grandmother says yes.

Desserts

Prep: 20 min
Total: 20 min
Yields enough crust for top and bottom of a pie

Nutritional Info

Carbs per serving: 30g

Dough
330g / 2 ⅔ cups all-purpose flour
Measure flour into a large bowl.
2 teaspoon salt
⅔ cup + ¼ cup vegetable shortening
Add the salt and shortening.
Using two dull butter knives or a pastry blender, blend the flour, salt and shortening until the shortening is the size of peas.
10 to 12 tablespoons ice cold water
Fill a wide-mouthed glass with ice. Add water to the top. Measure or pour the ice cold water into the flour mixture. Using a spatula or your hands, mix the water into the flour to form a large ball of dough. You may need to add an extra tablespoon of water if you have excess flour. If you added too much water, add additional flour until the dough is well formed but not too sticky. Handle and mix the dough as little as possible.
Separate dough into two pieces, one being slightly larger than the other. The larger piece is the bottom layer of crust.
Wrap the pieces separately in wax paper and put them in the freezer for 10 minutes or the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
When ready to use, remove dough and place on counter.
Rolling and Baking
flour (as needed)
Lightly sprinkle a clean work surface with flour. Using a rolling pin, roll the large piece of crust out until it is slightly larger than the diameter of your pie plate.
Place in pie plate and fill with desired filling.
Roll out second, smaller piece of dough and place on top of pie. Crimp the edges together and cut an 'X' in the center of the pie to allow steam to escape.
Bake according to whatever pie recipe you are using. Let cool and enjoy!