Active Time

　　10 min

　　Total Time

　　1 1/4 hr

　　Basic is best when it comes to piecrust. There's no need to fiddle with this multipurpose flaky pastry.

　　

Ingredients

Makes enough for 1 (9-inch) single-crust pie or 1 (9- to 11-inch) tart shell

　　1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

　　1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter

　　1/4 teaspoon salt

　　3 to 5 tablespoons ice water

　　Equipment: a pastry or bench scraper

　　

Step 1

Blend together flour, butter, and salt in a bowl with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Drizzle 3 tablespoons ice water evenly over mixture and gently stir with a fork (or pulse) until incorporated.

　　

Step 2

Squeeze a small handful of dough: If it doesn't hold together, add more ice water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, stirring (or pulsing) until incorporated. Do not overwork dough, or pastry will be tough.

　　

Step 3

Turn out dough onto a work surface. Divide dough into 4 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather all dough together with pastry scraper. Press into a ball, then flatten into a 5-inch disk.

　　

Step 4

Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 1 hour.

　　Cooks' notes:

　　· If you're making two desserts that call for this pastry dough, you can make a double batch. · Pastry dough can be chilled up to 2 days or frozen, wrapped well, up to 3 months.