Success at Long Last

If you have been reading this Blog for any length of time, you may recall my lifelong battle with pie crust. I did not inherit my mother's gene for pastry.

But I think I have finally found a crust recipe that works every time. At least it has worked for my last two pies, which just happened to be strawberry-rhubarb.

The recipe below rolls out without tearing or sticking. It transfers nicely to the pie plate without falling apart. It browns well and gets flaky instead of hard. Most importantly it tastes good.

I'm not sure what the difference is. Maybe the fact that I actually measured the ingredients fairly precisely. Maybe the ratio of shortening to butter to ice water. Maybe rolling it out on my granite countertop instead of a board or a cloth.

I'll probably never know, but I'm just happy to no longer dread being asked to bring a pie!

3 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup chilled solid vegetable shortening, cut into pieces
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
10 tablespoons (about) ice water

Combine flour, sugar and salt in processor. Using on/off turns, cut in shortening and butter until coarse meal forms. Blend in enough ice water 2 tablespoons at a time to form moist clumps. Gather dough into ball; cut in half. Flatten each half into disk. Wrap separately in plastic; refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. Let dough soften slightly at room temperature before rolling.)