Grandma’s Favorite Butter & lard pie crust

Gather your ingredients:

You only need a few ingredients to make this delicious pie crust. I’ll repeat this again and again though…make sure they are cold, cold, cold.

• Ice water
• Cold all purpose flour
• Cold Sugar
• Salt. The salt in the pie crust is a tenderizer. You need it if you want a tender flaky crust. So don’t skip the salt. 
• Cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• Cold lard, cut into cubes

The secret to the BEST pie crust is to use cold ingredients and keep the pie crust cold as long as you can.

Even your flour if you can, put all your ingredients in the fridge before you make your pie crust.

This recipe is quick, quick, quick if you have a food processor. The food processor does all the work for us so we don’t have to do anything until the very end.

You need to have your butter and your lard, again we’re using both, as cold as you can manage, so if you can cube it and put it in the fridge, if you can possibly put them in a freezer for like 10 minutes, that’s your best shot.

Can I really use the food processor to do everything?

Mostly. But, you’ll want to dump it out at the very end of the mixing process… 

The processor’s going to do all of the work of the mixing, but we only want to mix the crust until you see coarse crumbs. You do not want to overmix it or you will lose the tenderness of the crust.

Mix it just enough and just enough water that we don’t have any pockets of super wet that didn’t get mixed in but it just starts to come together. We don’t want it to be a fully mixed ball, yet. Just start to come together. 

And then turn the mess out on to a floured surface to add a bit more water and mix it with our hands just until it comes together and forms a ball. 

So yeah, a lot of people are going to be turned off about the lard and I totally get it. That’s totally okay.

If you are interested, here is a quick history of lard: A bit about Lard.

So if lard is not your thing, which I understand, you can use shortening, but the point is the mixture of the different kinds of fat is going to be what gives you that super tender, super flaky crust.

And here at NellieBellie, we’re all about the old vintage recipes, and lard is what they used for forever. This is one of the things my grandma used to do and I still do this recipe the old-school way but with a modern twist…the food processor :). She would be so jealous!

That, right there, is THE BEST Banana Cream Pie, by the way. Made with this crust. So good!

Now, you’ll want to split your crust into two parts and roll them out just a bit, into a small disc. Wrap up the disc with saran wrap and put it in the fridge for at least an hour before rolling it out.

When you go to roll it out, let it come just up in temp enough that you can roll it. Remember to roll it from the center out and as little as possible. Put the rolled crust into a pie plate and put it back into the fridge until you are ready to fill it. Again, the super cold ingredients are necessary.

When it comes time to bake your pie, make sure your oven is preheated before you start it. Again, keep that pie crust as cold as possible before it hits the oven

This pie crust is so simple, tender, flaky, and old-fashioned…and now, with the use of the food processor, it’s simply the best!

Tips for making the perfect pie crusts:

Keep everything cold

• Start with very cold fat. Freeze your butter or fat for 10 to 15 minutes first. The colder it is when it hits the oven, the flakier your crust. Heck, I even put my flour in the fridge.
• Chill the dough before rolling. Refrigeration keeps the crust from getting overworked and chewy.
• Chill again before filling. Pop the crust in its pan back in the fridge until you’re ready. It keeps its shape and the fat stays super cold.
• Use your fingertips, not your palms. Touch the dough as little as you can. The warmth from your hands is not what we’re after.

Mixing the dough

• Leave the bigger bits of fat alone. Those little pockets turn into pockets of air and flaky layers in a hot oven, but only if they’re cold.
• Use just enough water. Only what the recipe calls for, enough that the dough holds together when you pinch it. Too much makes it tough.
• Swap in vodka for the water. Use cold vodka in place of some or all of the water. Vodka is only about 60% water, so it hydrates the dough enough to roll but builds less gluten, which means a more tender, flakier crust. The alcohol bakes right off, so it won’t taste like anything. Keep it in the freezer until you need it. The dough may feel a little stickier, but resist adding more flour.
• Add an acid. If your recipe doesn’t have one, add 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice for a more tender crust. My Grandma swore by lemon juice, and so do I.
• Try an egg yolk. Only if you haven’t found your favorite crust yet. If you have one you love, leave it alone.

Pie Crust Storage Tips

• Dough in the fridge. Wrap the disk tightly in plastic and it keeps 2 to 3 days. Let it sit on the counter 10 to 15 minutes before rolling.
• Dough in the freezer. Wrap it in plastic, then a freezer bag, and it keeps up to 3 months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge, not on the counter.
• Crust already in the pan. Wrap it well and freeze it right in the pan. You can bake it straight from frozen, just add a few extra minutes.
• Baked crust. Cover it loosely on the counter for a day or two, or freeze it well wrapped for about a month. Warm it in the oven for a few minutes to bring back the crispness.

Rolling out your pie dough

• Shape it into a disk first. Under 1 inch thick makes it easier to roll. I often do this right after mixing, then store it in the fridge.
• Roll from the middle out, away from you. Keep the pressure even.
• Rotate 30 degrees at a time. Roll a bit, turn, roll a bit, turn. It keeps the dough from sticking.
• Flour generously, then brush it off. Use plenty to prevent sticking, but brush the extra off before baking so it doesn’t mess with your fat to flour ratio. I keep a pastry brush just for this.

Getting it in the pan

• Don’t push it into the corners. Let it fall into place, or it will shrink back during baking. The filling will nudge it into the nooks and crannies.
• Trim the edges after you fill it.
• Glass is best. A heat-resistant glass pie pan gives you the flakiest crust. I’ll be honest, I still use aluminum and love how porcelain pans look, but if you’re buying the best one, go glass.

Baking your pies

• Preheat all the way. Never put your pie in an oven that’s still warming up. It undoes all your cold-keeping work.
• Start at 425. Then reduce the heat after 30 minutes.
• Bake to fully brown, not just golden. Err on the side of over-baked, please.
• Cover the edges with foil. Use 2 to 3 inch wide strips so the edges don’t burn and you can leave the pie in as long as it needs.

The finishing touch

• Brush with egg wash before baking. Truly magical for shine. Milk will often do the trick too, but an egg wash makes it look amazing. You’ll be hooked.

The ultimate source for perfect pie crusts:

This, in my opinion, is the ultimate guide for perfect pie crusts and there is nothing I can improve one. So, head over to check out the Ultimate Tips… https://www.kingarthurflour.com/guides/pie-crust/

Other pie crusts to try:

Rich Butter Crust

Perfect Graham Cracker Crust