Pastry Dough

Name: Pastry Dough
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 1 1/4 hr
Yield: Makes enough for 1 (9-inch) single-crust pie
Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour; 3/4 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces; 2 tablespoons cold vegetable shortening (preferably trans-fat-free); 1/4 teaspoon salt; 4 to 5 tablespoons ice water

By Lillian Chou

December 6, 2007

There is nothing like a homemade piecrust. It's hard to say exactly why it's so amazing—it just is. This classic recipe calls for butter, for flavor, and shortening, for flakiness. Once you get the hang of it, you'll find that people will walk over hot coals for a piece of your pie.

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