I tried a little bit of a different technique this time, and it paid off bigtime. This pie crust was flaky and delicious, and on top of it, super easy to put together and roll out. This will be my go-to.
For my pie crust, I have always used half butter, half lard (just like mom used to). I had read that “leaf” lard is the way to go. I’m going to tell you right now that it’s spendy and hard to come by. I would also say, worth it. This website has some interesting information and also lists places to purchase it. I got mine from Amazon, but I’d try the other places listed on the website too, depending on price. Or maybe even make my own.
This time I used a bit of a different technique. I’ve always “half” cut in the fat and (all of) the flour. in a food processor This time, I used a paste technique, that is cut in all of the fat with 2/3rds of the flour (completely, until it is a “paste”) in a food processor, then, a quick cut-in of the remaining 1/3 of the flour, and adding the liquid until the dough just comes together.
First, the paste. I use a Breville Sous Chef food processor, and it is the best I’ve ever used (and I’ve had 3 food processors).
Then I added the last 1/3 of the flour and just did a few pulses to cut it in, then the water, and another couple of pulses.
I hand-formed the dough into 2 disks and wrapped in food service wrap. You’re supposed to leave it in the fridge for an hour, but I left it for a week. Oops! But it was perfect when I rolled it out a week later.
Seriously, it was super easy to roll out. I did roll it out on the food service wrap, and used the food service wrap to help me roll that into the pie pan.
I used 2 pounds of sour Door County cherries, a cup of sugar, and 1/4 cup King Arthur Flour Clearjel. It’s kind of expensive so next time I’ll try this.
Normally I would have added a teaspoon of almond extract, but sadly, I didn’t have any (how is that??) Instead I used a tablespoon of Grenadine, because I did have some of that. It turned out nicely.
You can see the marks from where I rolled out the dough on the food service wrap (they’ll cook out). I sprinkled Demerara sugar on top (I LOVE the crunch it gives after cooking. SO satisfying!)
And after baking. This was, by far, the best pie crust, and pie, I’ve ever made.
IF YOU LIKE THIS RECIPE YOU WILL ALSO LIKE:
- Key Lime Pie
- Goat Cheese, Apple and Honey Tart
- Classic Scones
- Pumpkin Pound Cake
- Instant Pot Lemon Layered Cheeseckake
- Carrot Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting
- Lemon Sour Cream Ombre Cake
- Mini Desserts
Cherry Pie
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour divided
- 8 tablespoons butter chilled
- ¼ cup leaf lard
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt Cut back to 1 tsp if using salted butter
- 6 tablespoons water
- 4 tablespoons demerara sugar for the top
- 1 egg beaten for the top
Filling
- 2 pounds sour cherries
- 1 cup sugar
- ¼ cup Clearjel
- 3 tablespoons grenadine or 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the crust
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine 2 cups of the flour with butter and leaf lard. Process until a paste forms and fat is completely mixed into the flour. Add remaining ½ cup flour and pulse several times to combine. Add water and pulse several times until dough just comes together. Divide dough into 2 pieces and form a disc or ball with each. Wrap in food service wrap and chill for at least one hour or up to one week.
For filling
- Combine filling ingredients and mix. The clearjel may have some lumps but they’ll bake out.
- Assemble pie crust, brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with Demerara sugar. Bake in 350 degree oven for 45 minutes to an hour, until crust is browned and filling is bubbling.
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