My battle with making pie crust....

I've been making pie crust for a couple of years now and I've been trying many different recipes out there. Anyone that says that they can never make pie crust but this or that recipe works for them I'm there trying it. Almost all the pie crust I've tried making taste pretty good so what's the problem? The problem is that I have a hell of a time rolling the pie crust. You might wonder why not make no roll pie crust. I need to make pie crust that's easy to roll like the ones you get from the grocery store because most of the time when I make a pie I normally need a crust for the top so I'm going to need to roll it out so that I can top the pie with crust hence no roll pie crust will not work for me.

I've tried everything I've read from refrigerating the food processor, making sure the shortening/butter is very cold to freezing/refrigerating the dough and make sure is very cold before I roll it out. I've also tried now pulsing my dough less but nothing works. Every single time I roll out my dough it cracks and I have to put it together like a jigsaw puzzle. Today I rolled out my pie crust between two wax paper and the side still cracked or broken like puzzle!

I'm wondering why people can have such success with the same recipe while I fail to have the same success.

Pie Crust

Ingredients
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter flavor shortening, chilled
1/4 cup plus 2tablespoons ice water (As needed)

Method
1. Whisk the flour and salt together in a medium size bowl. With a pastry blender, cut in the cold shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Drizzle 2 to 3 tablespoons ice water over flour. Toss mixture with a fork to moisten, adding more water a few drops at a time until the dough comes together.
2. Gently gather dough particles together into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 30 minutes before rolling. (I put mine in the freezer for a several hours)
3. Roll out dough, and put in a pie plate. Fill with desired filling and bake.

This is a really good recipe. I was able roll it between two wax paper and the middle was great but the edges were cracking like a puzzle and I had to put it together like a puzzle too..How can I make a pie crust that rolls out like the once we get from the grocery store. Any comment, suggestion or any idea is welcome! Thanks!!!

Pie Crust II

Hubby lurvesss pies especially apple pie. Every time when we go to the store he'll want to buy an apple pie however he will refrain himself because he knows that I don't really care for it when he buy the pies at the store because is normally full of sugar and is always over priced anyway. I don't really do any baking in the Summer because is already so hot hence I don't really want to increase the heat in the house by baking. However I love to bake in fall, winter and spring because the heat from the over will help warm the house up. Since it's been pretty cool this few weeks I've been keeping myself busy in the kitchen. I've been trying to find/experiment with the pie crust recipes because I want to find a pie crust recipe that will work with sweet pies and meat pies. The reason is when I make my chicken pot pie I like to keep some of the gravy from the chicken pot pie but so far the pie shells (except the ready made once from the store) that I've made will absorb all my gravy thus making my chicken pot pie dry.

So far the Pie crusts have tasted pretty good but I do not dare to try making chicken pot pie with it because I'm afraid it'll be dry. On another note...I absolutely heart my food processor. I had been itching to get a food processor that I could use to make pie dough too and when we were up North after a very very long time of looking I finally decided to get one. I barely use my food processor at that time because I had a small kitchen when I was living up North. When I moved down here I finally decided to use my food processor to make dough but to my horror there was no dough blade! I was really pissed by then because I researched and researched on which food processor to get and I purposely got the Black and Decker Pro II so that I could make dough/pie crust (yes I'm dumb even though I have a KitchenAid mixer sitting on my counter). I was freaking out too because it's been like 1 year plus since I bought the food processor and I didn't think that they would replace the dough blade for me. I made up so many stories in my head so that when they ask me I can tell them smoothly a story but they just asked me some numbers and told me that they would send me the dough blade. At that time I was just relieved (lurvee Black and Decker customer service) but I did complain to hubby that they didn't even question me and I spend so many time thinking of all different stories to tell them and I didn't even have to use them!Anyway I really love how easy to make my pie crust with the food processor. I have been making up batches of pie crust or grinding food and mincing meat with my food processor. Is so convenient!!

Last weekend we looked high and low for little pie pan so that hubs can have little pies (like in the restaurants)

I decided to make a smiley.

Pie Crust
Ingredients
2 C of Flour
1/2 tsp of salt
2 tbsp of sugar (if making sweet pie)
1/2 C of shortening
1/4-1/2C of butter
1/2 C of ice cold water
1.Chill everything you will be using in the fridge/freezer.
2.(Because I'm using my food processor) Put flour, sugar and salt in the food processor and mix it.
3. Add shortening and butter.
4. Pulse it until it resemble like pea size.
5. Add water a table spoon at a time and pulse until it becomes a huge ball.
6. Separate it and wrap with cling wrap. Refrigerate it at least 4 hours or overnight (this process ease the rolling process).

* you want to work the dough as little as possible because the lease you handle the dough the flakier it gets.
** After pulsing several times if it still doesn't stick together I normally just take it out and knead it to a big ball.
***My second batch I didn't have time to refrigerate it and I did have a difficult time to roll it out. If you have a difficult time rolling it and putting it on the pie pan; roll it between parchment paper or cling wrap.

Hubby loves this pie crust but he loves all the pie crust that I've made so far so I would have to see if it works with the chicken pot pie. It's still a keeper anyhow! Everyone wanted a piece of the pie that I didn't even have time to take a picture of it after came out of the oven.

Chicken Pot Pie & Pie Crust

I made Chicken Pot Pie for dinner tonight. I even cut my nails really short so that when I make the crust it will not stick underneath my nails. It's a little more work, it taste yummy (kind off like the store bought kind with no preservatives) but then I think next time when I'm lazy I'll just use the easier method ie, use frozen veg and can soup..LOL..I even made my own chicken broth. I would still make my crust because I like the taste of it and it's not all that difficult to make..

Delicious Chicken Pot Pie

1 cup potatoes, diced
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup celery, diced
1 cup chopped carrots
1/3 cup melted margarine
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 cups chopped cooked chicken
2 pie crusts (either store bought or your own recipe)

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Saute onion, celery, carrots and potatoes in butter for 10 minutes.

Add flour to sauteed mixture, stirring well Cook one minute stirring constantly.

Combine broth and half and half

Gradually stir into vegetable mixture

Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly.

Stir in salt and pepper; add chicken and stir well.

Pour into shallow 2 quart casserole dish and top with pie shells .

Cut slits to allow steam to escape.

Bake for 40-50 minutes or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly and cooked through.

This is how it looks when it's done cooking

Shake-A-Pie Crust

2 1/2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup Crisco shortening
1/2 cup cold water
1 dash salt

Put flour, sugar, salt and crisco in a plastic bowl with a lid.

Seal and wink (let the air out;-) Shake until it sounds like sand.

Add water.

Seal and wink.

Shake until it sounds like a rock.

Roll out for your favorite pie or pastries.

p/s: I didn't add the sugar in because I was making this dish but if you are using this recipe to make dessert feel free to add the sugar.

The finished product...