Ready-made pie crusts-any that you can recommend?

[ballroombelle]

Are ready-made pie crusts decent? I don't have a great amount of luck making them from scratch so I thought pre-made might be as good and save me time.

Is there a brand that you can recommend? (Have a lot of different food shops available so even if it's obscure I would love to hear any brand recommendations! In a bit of a panic! )

 

[monkeyboy]

not the same as home made

 

[RitaZ.]

I'll be making pumpkin pies and I bought Mrs. Smiths frozen pie shells. I've never used this brand before, we'll see how they turn out. If I was making an apple pie, I would definitely make the dough from scratch.

 

[HappyGramma]

I have used Pillsbury as well as many of the store brands and I have found them all to be pretty decent. I must admit though that they aren't as good as homemade. I do use them though because I am also crust challenged. I am more of a cake and cookie baker.

 

[RitaZ.]

Here is a recipe for the dough, if you decide to make it from scratch. It's really not hard to do.

Perfect Pie Crust

Makes two 8- to 10-inch crusts


1 cup unsalted butter (about 2 sticks),plus more for pie plate

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour,plus more for rolling out dough

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1. Cut each stick of butter into eight pieces, and refrigerate until needed. Place the flour, salt, and sugar in a large mixing bowl, and mix to combine.

2. Add the chilled butter. Using a pastry blender, incorporate the butter into the flour mixture; the mixture should resemble coarse meal with small pieces of butter, the size of small peas, remaining visible.

3. Drizzle 2 tablespoons ice water over the flour-butter mixture, and blend. Repeat with an additional 2 tablespoons water. At this point, you may have to add more water: When a handful of dough squeezed together just holds its shape, you’ve added enough; if the dough crumbles, continue incorporating water, 1 tablespoon at a time, checking the consistency after each additional tablespoon.

4. Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface. Divide into two equal pieces, and place on two separate sheets of plastic wrap. Flatten, and form two disks. Wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

5. Lightly dust a clean, dry work surface with flour. Place the chilled dough in the center of the work surface, and dust the dough as well as the rolling pin with flour. Position the rolling pin on the center of the disk, and begin rolling the dough away from you. Give the disk a quarter turn, and roll again. Continue turning and rolling until you have an even 1/8-inch thickness. Turning the dough as you roll will prevent it from sticking to the work surface. A dry pastry brush is handy to remove any excess flour during and after the rolling process.

 

[Sparx]

Mrs. Smiths all the way.

 

[Beth76]

I only use Pillsbury. I find that it's the same if not better than homemade and sooooo much easier. And I bake a lot of pies.

 

[ballroombelle]

Thanks for the input and recipe.

I've always read in those fancy culinary magazines that you have to use a special shortening to make the best crusts. One writer went on an all-out hunt for this shortening made from some particular part of a pig or something?? That's not going to be me in these last few hours before T-day!

I'll debate this until I run out of time.

 

[Barb D]

Here's the pie crust recipe I use (easy and fairly foolproof):


Lucy's ("she's a smart old gal") pie crust

Lucy was a cousin of my mother-in-law. Another cousin of my mother-in-law called Lucy a "smart old gal." I'm not sure if it's just because of the pie crust or if there are other reasons, too!
Lucy's recipe is the only pie crust recipe any one in our family uses.

Lucy's recipe says this makes five crusts, but I use it to make four.

4 cups flour
1 T sugar
2 tsp salt
1 3/4 cup Crisco
1/2 cup water (cool)
1 T vinegar
1 large egg, beaten

In a large bowl, stir together flour, salt and sugar. Cut in shortening until crumbly. In separate small bowl, beat together water, vinegar and egg. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Separate into four or five balls. Let sit in refrigerator 1/2 hour before using (or wrap balls individually and freeze.)

Roll into pie crusts as normal.

Makes 4 to 5 pie crusts.

 

[RitaZ.]

One writer went on an all-out hunt for this shortening made from some particular part of a pig or something??

That sound really gross! The trick to making a light and flaky crust is to NOT mess with it too much while you are adding water to the coarse flour/butter mixture, just toss lightly to combine. Does that make sense?

 

[bballmom56]

I use Oronoque Orchard deep-dish frozen pie crusts. They come out very flaky and light.

 

[ballroombelle]

Maybe it wasn't a pig-...maybe derived from goat's milk?? I don't know where that stuff comes from!!

But Barb- yes, CRISCO. That's what another friend recommended instead of butter.

The trick to making a light and flaky crust is to NOT mess with it too much once you've added the water to the coarse flour/butter mixture, just toss lightly to combine. Does that make sense?

I guess it makes sense; I think it's something, if you didn't grow up watching someone going through the motions, you just have to suffer through trial-and-error. Lots and lots of error.

Oronoque-will I find that in a speciaty shop? The stores may be mobbed and at this point barren so thank you for the extra rec. I will remember it.

I'm wondering if I couldn't just go w/a ready-made crust BUT make the TOPPING from scratch...

 

[Tiggerlover91]

Mrs. Smiths all the way.

 

[bballmom56]

Oronoque-will I find that in a speciaty shop? The stores may be mobbed and at this point barren so thank you for the extra rec. I will remember it. QUOTE]

I don't know what part of the country you are in, but I get the Oronoque Orchard pie crusts in the grocery store (in my case, Shop Rite). They are in the freezer section next to Mrs. Smith's, Sara Lee, etc. I just bought mine today, as they were out of them last week. Guess they got a new shipment in.