Ingredients
1/2 cup + 2 t all-purpose unbleached flour
1/4 cup whole-wheat flour
3 tbsp cold margarine, cut into small pieces
3 tbsp to 4 t ice water
2 cup dried beans, washed, or pie weights;
Directions
Preheat oven to 450F. Lightly coat an 8-inch pie pan with nonstick
cooking spray. Combine 1/2 c of the unbleached flour with the whole
wheat flour in a bowl, or in a food processor bowl, and add the
margarine. In the bowl, use a fork to crumble the flour and margarine
into a coarse mixture. In the food processor, use the metal chopping
blade and pulse the machine 10-12 times to cut the margarine into
small pieces. As you form the mixture, add the ice water, 1 tbspoon
at a time, until the lumps appread moist. Transfer the dough to a
board, and lightly knead it for 1 minute. Form into a ball, place in
a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 10
minutes. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tbspoons of flour on a pastry board
and lightly coat the rolling pin with flour. On the floured board
roll the pie dough out in a circle slightly large than your pie pan.
Carefully transfer the dough to the prepared pie pan. Crimp the edges
of the dough against the rim of the pie pan. You can use this unbaked
pie shell in many recipes, except for fruit fillings. If you make a
fruit-filled pie, you must pre-bake the shell so the fruit juices
won't make it soggy. To pre-bake it, cover the crust with tinfoil,
place 2 cups of clean beans or pie weights in the center of the
crust, and bake for 10 minutes. YIELD: Makes 1 8-inch pie shell -
Serving 8.
Servings: 1 servings
Perfect Pie Crust (Lf) Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Dessert; Pie
The History of Recipes
It is quite possible to prove the history of written cooking instructions way back into the distant past, in truth as far back into history as the Egypt of the Pharoahs, and possibly even further. Interesting though that is, sadly, these ancient records were just basic hieroglyphic recipes for preparing meals.
In fact, the most ancient recipe discovered so far, according to Professor Solomon Katz, is a collection of stone tablets in ancient Sumerian which describe the preparation of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made anyone who drank it feel `blissful`. Progressing into Roman times around 25BC a man called Apicius assembled a collection of scripts which described recipes enjoyed by wealthy Romans. In his scrolls, he describes how the meals were separated into appetizers, entrees and dessert, something that is very familiar to us today. Aspicius informs us how the Roman chefs used a good variety of herbs and spices, including a few that will be familiar to modern cooks like basil, rue and dill. Later on, there are a couple of interesting cookery books published in the 1300s : one book entitled `Forme of Cury`, and another, similary entitled `Curye on Inglish`. The titles are somewhat misleading tho`, these two books have no connection with the indian food that appears on menues today, but rather recipes for the types of food on the menues of the upper classes. Later on in the 1400s, the Crusaders brought back many new foods and spices from middle-east cuisine, such as parsley, basil and rosemary. These new foods and tastes led to an outbreak in recipe publications, some of which are now in private collections. For the centuries that followed, the powerful families of the West tried to serve the most extravagent banquests, and because of this cooks and their collection of recipes were highly sought after. However, it was during the 1800s that haute cuisine and recipe publications became really popular. The Famous Mrs Beeton in the UK, and the equally famous Fannie Merritt Farmer in the US, devoted their lives to collecting, verifying, and publishing recipes that were common in the better off homes of the day. By the advent of the twentieth century, recipe books are increasing in popularity as a result of higher levels of literacy, more spare time and being a little richer. The introduction of the TV brought us celebrity chefs and the demand for the spin-off recipe books. And that pretty much brings us to the present day and the invention of the internet, allowing us all to access thousands of recipes such as those found on our web site. |
We hope you enjoy this Perfect Pie Crust (Lf) recipe.
