| 1 cup all-purpose flour divided | | 3 tbl ice water | | 12 tsp cider vinegar | | 1 tbl powdered sugar | | 1/4 tsp salt | | 1/4 cup vegetable shortening |
| | Your wish is our command: an easy, homemade piecrust - without all the fat. | | Want a piecrust as good as Mom's, but with far less fat? Your search is over. This goof-proof, freezer-friendly homemade crust will impress your family and friends with its taste and texture, and knock their socks off when they find out it's light. The typical piecrust (homemade and store-bought alike) contributes 70% of the fat and more than half the calories in a slice of apple pie. Ours is only a fraction of that. | | How'd we do it? The key to this tender piecrust is a slurry - a mixture of flour and liquid (water and vinegar , in this case), which displaces much of the fat. We said this crust is easy, but to make it even easier, check out our step-by-steps as a reference while you're putting it together. And once you've got the crust down, fill it with one of our wonderful fillings for holidays - or any day. | | See Pastry Crust Step-By-Steps: http://www.cookinglight.com/special/sxs_pies.asp A slurry is a mixture of flour and liquid (water and vinegar in this recipe). It's the key to this tender low-fat crust. Pie weights can be ordered by mail or found in gourmet kitchen shops. You can also use uncooked dried beans , but save them to reuse as weights. They'll be too hard for cooking. | | 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. | | 2. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine 1/4 cup flour, ice water, and vinegar, stirring with a whisk until well-blended. | | 3. Combine 3/4 cup flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl; cut in shortening with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add slurry; toss with a fork until flour mixture is moist. Gently press mixture into a 4-inch circle on heavy-duty plastic wrap; cover with additional plastic wrap. Roll dough, still covered, into a 12-inch circle; freeze 10 minutes. Remove 1 sheet of plastic wrap; let stand 1 minute or until pliable. Fit dough, plastic-wrap side up, into a 9-inch pie plate or a 9-inch round removable-bottom tart pan. Remove plastic wrap. Press the dough against bottom and sides of pan. Fold edges under or flute decoratively. Line bottom of dough with a piece of foil; arrange pie weights on foil. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until edge is lightly browned. Remove pie weights and foil; cool on a wire rack . | | Yield: 1 (9-inch) crust. |
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