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Farm Kitchen:  Pie Crust - Oil, lard, crisco, butter?  |
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brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
 Posted - Aug 10 2006 : 6:13:51 PM
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There were over 100 pies at our county fair's pie auction yesterday. Each person entering is limited to 4 pies, so there were at least 25 entrants! They judge the pies (the judging took 3 hours) and award only a first place in each category, then auction off all the pies to raise money for the fairgrounds.
I did not win in ANY category, even though I did win some ribbons in the open class pie baking, so my ego isn't injured TOO much. I guess it just depends on who is doing the judging, and how their mothers baked pies!
Now to the question: I usually use a mixture of butter and lard in my crusts, and they are VERY flaky. But I wonder if maybe this type of pie is out of fashion now? So - what kind of shortening do you use to make your pie crusts?
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my blog at http://brightmeadowfarms.blogspot.com, web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
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Mumof3
True Blue Farmgirl
3890 Posts
Karin
Ellenwood
GA
USA
3890 Posts |
Posted - Aug 10 2006 : 6:27:49 PM
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Brenda- I use straight butter in my pie crust. Very cold butter that I cut into tiny pieces before adding to the flour. As long as I don't add too much water, they come out just fine.
Nice and flaky. I think you are right about the judges- just like art, a good pie crust is subjective to their palate!! Bravo to you for entering- I would be a wreck to have my food out for all to judge!
Karin |
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daffodil dreamer
True Blue Farmgirl
805 Posts
Jayne
Hamilton
Victoria
Australia
805 Posts |
Posted - Aug 10 2006 : 6:31:14 PM
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Hi Brenda,
Congratulations on your ribbons. I'm sure your pies were delicious and as you say, judging is all a bit subjective, depending on what they like.
I love making (and eating) pies and I always makes mine with just butter. It seems to give the crust some flakiness but also they seem solid, if that makes any sense.
Good luck with the experimenting - at least it will give you lots of pies to eat! Yum!
Jayne |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Aug 10 2006 : 6:38:17 PM
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I use just butter in mine...I have always liked that best. My grandma used just lard and it was great too. I have access more to butter (having a cow) and not lard so I never really experiment..and havn't had a complaint.
I think it is sure right that everyone has a different idea of perfect pie crust..thats for sure!
Pie is probably my favorite dessert..especially peach!!
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
Edited by - Aunt Jenny on Aug 10 2006 8:32:28 PM |
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BStein
True Blue Farmgirl
75 Posts
Barbara
Westerville
OH
75 Posts |
Posted - Aug 10 2006 : 8:28:42 PM
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I recently bought (accidentally) a shortening that was part lard and part vegetable shortening. It was a store brand I think I found at Giant Eagle. I noticed a big difference in how baked goods tasted (really good!)and finally looked at the can of shortening. I couldn't believe I had bought a part lard shortening...but, boy did we taste the difference. I would never have guessed. I would definitely try a mix again, but if you like the way things taste with lard, I would stick with it. I have never used butter in pie crusts, only shortening (because of the cost). I think most people use vegetable shortening (at least most of the recipes I see call for it).
Barbara |
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OregonGal
True Blue Farmgirl
511 Posts
Chris
No. IL
USA
511 Posts |
Posted - Aug 10 2006 : 8:36:10 PM
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I use just lard in mine and we think its very good. Congrats on your ribbons. Alot of times at fairs, it just depends on what that particular judge that year likes. Do the same thing next year and first place winner will be last, and last place will be first. How can you know what a particular judge will like, and who will the next judge be? I say make the best pies the best way you know how and one of these times you'll find a judge that will like yours best. It is fun competing. Good luck on your future tries.
"...a merry heart does good like a medicine, it has the power to cure." |
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katiedid
True Blue Farmgirl
601 Posts
Kate
West Jordan
Utah
USA
601 Posts |
Posted - Aug 12 2006 : 9:58:31 PM
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Oh Jenny, a fresh peach pie sounds so good...I can't wait for peaches to come on. YUM.
I remember Grandma Lula telling me (she sold her pies to resturants and once at a charity auction her chocolate pie brought $150.00) that any solid fat works well, the main thing is to not over-work a pie crust...she used her hands.
Keep in mind, I don't regulary bake pies, just passing the info on.
Kate
http://theknifemakerswife.blogspot.com/2006/07/knifemakers-wife.html |
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sugarsfarm
True Blue Farmgirl
272 Posts
Leah
Woodward
Iowa
USA
272 Posts |
Posted - Aug 12 2006 : 10:00:01 PM
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I use crisco in mine. Its my grandmothers recipe and its her mothers recipe. Its delicious!! Just the right amount of flakiness!! Good job at the fair!!
You must be the change you want to see in the world.
Mahatma Gandhi |
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katie-ell
True Blue Farmgirl
1818 Posts
Katie
Illinois
1818 Posts |
Posted - Aug 13 2006 : 05:01:32 AM
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| Can you imagine the judges' job? Tasting 100 pies? I think I'd pass out after the first 40. And all of them were probably delicious. My two cents on the pie crust is that a flaky crust is never out of fashion! But if you decide to change your pie crust making, do some surveys i.e. taste tests with friends/family this summer. And maybe next year submit two pies with a lard/butter crust and two pies with just butter or whatever? Congrats on your ribbons -- good job. And I'll be over for pie! |
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Horseyrider
True Blue Farmgirl
1045 Posts
Mary Ann
Illinois
1045 Posts |
Posted - Aug 14 2006 : 07:05:43 AM
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I use a mixture of butter and lard, too. Just butter tends to make for a tougher crust with a shingle-like flake. Overworking the dough makes for a tougher crust, too; it develops the gluten in the flour too much. Water must be ice cold or the flour really just sponges it up. You want the flour particles irregularly coated with fat; that's how you get flakes, because the fat flattens out into little tiny discs when you roll it. I do love the flavor of an all butter crust though, and use it when I make a rustic apple galette. It's a delicous dough laid out roughly on a baking sheet, apples and sugars arranged in the center, and it's drizzled with Calvados, a French apple brandy before baking. It's to die for!
I think it's difficult to bake and judge pies in this kind of heat and humidity. The crusts get soggy so fast, and it's hard to judge just when your dough is exactly right because the flour soaks up so much moisture from the air. And I get irritated at a lot of judges who judge based entirely on eye appeal and little on flavor. Give me ugly, but give me deep rich honest flavor!!! |
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Meg
Moderator/Farmgirl True
974 Posts
Meg
Idaho
USA
974 Posts |
Posted - Aug 14 2006 : 12:46:28 PM
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Mary Ann~ I sure agree with your last statement! I am an all butter girl myself. I learned with shortening because it's a little easier to work with. But there is nothing like a rich butter crust! Mmmmmm, how good does a peach pie sound right now?
MaryJane's daughter,
Meg
megan@maryjanesfarm.org |
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jpbluesky
True Blue Farmgirl
6066 Posts
Jeannie
Florida
USA
6066 Posts |
Posted - Aug 14 2006 : 1:26:03 PM
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Meg - a pie sounds good to the expectant mom, huh? I always use butter, too. Anything else is really not good for your body. Shortening often bakes up the best, but butter is natural.
Peace |
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Horseyrider
True Blue Farmgirl
1045 Posts
Mary Ann
Illinois
1045 Posts |
Posted - Aug 14 2006 : 4:26:56 PM
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Oh gosh Meg, that's my favorite summer pie! I like to find those peaches that only need a little sugar to macerate and the juices just flow! Then I like to top the pie with some large crystal sugar so it's crunchy. When the juices bubble out the slits and muddies up the sugar, it's like peach taffy!
I bought some gorgeous peaches at the sweet corn festival last weekend, and I wish I'd gotten a whole bunch more. We used to get peaches with that incredible flavor, and we'd blanch the peels off, slice them in a big pan, and sprinkle with about a half cup of sugar per quart of slices. Then we'd slip that into scalded hot jars and seal. OMG, nothing on the grocery shelves could ever touch those peaches! We could eat them straight from the jar or thicken them up and throw them in a crust for pie.
If I see some more, I'm going to jump all over them! Now I'm craving peach pie like crazy!
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therusticcottage
True Blue Farmgirl
4439 Posts
Kay
Vancouver
WA
USA
4439 Posts |
Posted - Aug 14 2006 : 6:37:59 PM
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My mother was the queen of pie bakers and she always used lard in her crust. It was the most flaky crust I've ever had. But I really do like butter in mine. Unfortunately I did not inherit her gene for pie baking. Oh a slice of warm peach pie with a dab of ice cream sure sounds good right now. I can almost taste it!
Lotion bars, linen spray, and purses in my online shop at http://therusticcottage.etsy.com
Read my ramblings at http://rusticcottage.blogspot.com/ |
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brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
Posted - Aug 14 2006 : 7:44:52 PM
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Oh, you all are making my mouth water!!!! Peach pie, a little cinnamon, a little nutmeg, some vanilla ice cream, oooooohhhhhh!!!!!!
Mary Ann, thanks for the tips. You are right on the spot with your comment about the heat and humidity making crusts soggy. To top it off for the fair judging the pies have to be submitted inside a Ziplock bag. I think this makes them even soggier, I would never do that to a pie in my own home! I leave the bag unzipped in my pie carrier until I arrive at the fair and turn them in, but they still have to sit in the bag for at least an hour before they are judged. At least it is the same for everybody.
Katie, thank goodness, at our fair they have several judging teams - a few people for each category of pie. There had to have been 25 people milling around the tables while the judging was going on. But even so, it would still be a lot of pies to taste! After the first 5 or 6 I think it must be hard to distinguish them any more.
I actually bought a bag of peaches on Saturday but they are sitting in my kitchen untouched - I am a littled "pied out" right now. Tomorrow night I think I will go for peach cobbler.
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my blog at http://brightmeadowfarms.blogspot.com, web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
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emma.birdwhistle
True Blue Farmgirl
187 Posts
Elizabeth Ann
Ontario
Canada
187 Posts |
Posted - Aug 15 2006 : 2:41:12 PM
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Lately I've been experimenting with pie crusts made with spelt flour and vegetable oil. They're not prize-winning material, I have to say, but I get myself on these kicks of trying to make everything as wholesome as possible, and I really relish the process! I like the simplicity of being able to clump together a pile of flour and oil with my hands, poke it into a pie pan, and see what happens. However, when I get over my spelt-spells, nothing tastes quite like one of my mother's "low" apple pies (so named because the recipe for the filling is meant for a much smaller pie plate than the one we like to use, and we've never bothered to adjust it). She makes her pastry with butter, and does it all by hand because I won't countenance the purchase of any kind of electric mixer.  The results are winning, if you ask me!
- Elizabeth Ann, who just today balanced out her latest bout of healthfulness with a very delicious helping of Pralines & Cream in a waffle cone.  It's summer, after all!
If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. - Thoreau |
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Horseyrider
True Blue Farmgirl
1045 Posts
Mary Ann
Illinois
1045 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2006 : 05:02:50 AM
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Lard gives the best texture to a pie crust, but butter gives flavor. That's why many people mix. An all lard crust is really good for a quiche, though, as well as an all butter one for galettes and shorter pastries.
Elizabeth Ann, you sound like me! I haven't worked with spelt yet, but I have an order in for some interesting new flours from King Arthur that I'm looking forward to playing with. Enjoy your ice cream! |
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Farm Kitchen: Pie Crust - Oil, lard, crisco, butter? |
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Pie Crust - Oil, lard, crisco, butter?
