Pie tips

Pie tips

There are tricks to making perfect pie crusts. The first is maintaining the correct balance of ingredients and the second is temperature.Pie crusts are a mixture of flour, fat, and water. The best recipes seem to have a common ratio of these ingredients: 1/4 cup water to 1/2 cup fat to 2 1/2 cups flour. (The flour should be measured by spooning the flour into the measure, not scooping it. Scooping packs the flour and overloads the formula.) Add a teaspoon of salt and you have a recipe for a double crust.

1. Apple pie has better flavor ifa little salt is sprinkled on the apples before the top crust is put in place.
2. Fruit pies can be frozen unbaked or baked, but the former is preferred as the crust will be more tender and the fruit flavour will be true.
3. When freezing an unbaked pie, add an additional tablespoon of thickener to absorb the extra juices. If it is a closed double crust pie, do not put the vents in the top crust. Use freezer wrap.
4. When baking a frozen pie, do not thaw. Cut the vents in the top crust and bake at 350 F for approximately 20 minutes more than required in the recipe.
5. When freezing a baked fruit pie, cool and use freezer wrap. When it comes time to bake, thaw for an hour and then bake at 350 F for 30 minutes, then reduce heat if overbrowning and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes.
6. For a flaky pie crust, add creamor milk instead of water.
7. Store your rolling pin in the freezer. A frozen rolling pin makes rolling out pastry dough much easier.
8. Avoid soggy crusts by:
*rubbing the bottom of the pie plate with butter before adding the dough.
*sprinkling a small amount of sugar overthe crust before adding the filling.
*sprinkling breadcrumbs on the crust before adding the filling.
*brushing the pie crust with egg white, followed by a light sprinkling of flour.
9. Sprinkle buttermilk pancake mix on the counter top before rolling out pastry dough. It will make a tastier pie crust.
10. Pie crust is flakier if the dough is made and stored in the refrigerator for 1 day prior to use.
11. If you preheat your oven to 475 F, then reduce the oven temperature to 350 F for baking, you'll prevent the shell from shrinking.
12. Meringue will not shrink during baking if it is touching the edges of the piecrust.