When it comes to summer, everyone thinks about apple or rhubarb pie. But chilled pies are good, too. So it’s handy to be able to do a pre-baked crust.
Ingredients
1-1/3 cups flour
1-1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 pound (one stick, eight tablespoons, 1/2 cup) butter
1 dash salt
3 tablespoons cold water
Directions
Follow the directions from the earlier post on making pie crust from scratch. After rolling out the crust, press it into a pie plate.
Pinch the edges onto the top of the plate, just like I didn’t do above. You’ll see why in a little bit.
Line the crust with foil, and fill the bottom with unbaked beans or coins.
The idea is to have enough weight on the bottom that the crust doesn’t rise when you bake it. Bake at 325° for 15 minutes. Carefully lift out the foil. Remember, the coins (or beans) will be hot.
You can see in the next picture that the sides have started to slide down into the plate. Not enough to make it unusable, but it won’t look as good. This is why you have to pinch the edges to the top of the plate.
Prick the bottom with a fork to let steam out while it continues baking. Again, this is to keep it from rising.
Bake for another 10 minutes, or until the bottom looks dry and the edges start to turn golden-brown.
And that’s it.
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6 Comments
I have never heard of putting coins in a pie crust while baking it. Beans, yes. Rice, sure. But coins? That’s a new one.
I have this mental image of someone reading a recipe with no pictures, and they put a couple of cans of baked beans in there, and they explode in the oven. Hi-larious.
For information on the American Pie Council and on the 2008 APC Crisco National Pie Championships in Orlando, Florida, visit http://www.piecouncil.org.
Nancy, thanks for the pointer. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the best-in-show winner didn’t have any Crisco in it.
I just did this for the first time at my mom's house (there for the pointers) and was very gratified when it worked beautifully, since my mother is all about the Crisco. I did not use the weights/beans/coins, just pricked the heck out of it (bottom and sides), and I didn't see it rise. Also, I've noticed that you don't finish your edges; I know it isn't necessary, but a fluted edge looks nice and is easy and kinda fun. Now to add custard!
Ally, I wish I had done the edge. I've tried a few times, and not been really successful yet. I need to practice more.