This single-crust food processor pie dough is wonderfully versatile: I use it for at least 75% of the sweet and savory pies I make. It has great flavor and a flaky texture; it’s easy to handle; and it freezes well.

　　

Ingredients

Makes one 9- to 9½-inch standard or deep-dish pie shell

　　1½ cups all-purpose flour

　　1½ tsp. cornstarch

　　½ tsp. salt

　　10 Tbsp. (1¼ sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

　　2 tsp. white vinegar

　　Scant ⅓ cup cold water

　　

Step 1

Combine the flour, cornstarch, and salt in a large bowl. Scatter the fat on a large flour-dusted plate. Measure the vinegar into a 1-cup glass measuring cup. Add just enough cold water to equal a scant ⅓ cup. Refrigerate everything for 10 to 15 minutes.

　　

Step 2

Transfer the dry ingredients to a food processor. Add all of the fat, then pulse the machine six or seven times, until the pieces of fat are roughly the size of small peas.

　　

Step 3

Pour the vinegar-water mixture through the feed tube in a 7- or 8-second stream, pulsing the machine as you add it. Stop pulsing when the mixture is just starting to form larger clumps.

　　

Step 4

Turn the dough out onto your work surface and pack it into a ball. Put the dough on a sheet of plastic wrap and flatten it into a 3/4-inch-thick disk. Wrap the disk and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before rolling.

　　Cooks' Note:

　　Once you’re comfortable making this dough with all butter, I encourage you to try this variation using shortening or lard, which will make the dough more tender and less prone to shrinkage. Instead of 10 tablespoons (1¼ stick) butter, use 8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold, cubed unsalted butter plus 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening or lard in small pieces.

　　From Pie Academy © 2020 by Ken Haedrich. Reprinted with permission from Storey Publishing.Buy the full book from Amazon or Bookshop.