[Sca-cooks] Pillsbury pie crusts

[Phlip]

Ene bichizh ogsen baina shuu...

> That said, I can't make pie crust to save my life. No matter what recipe
and
> technique I use, it always comes out wretched. Go figure.
>
> Cynara

Two things to make pie crusts come out right-- make sure the fat is VERY
chilled, just soft enough to work into the flour mix, and _don't_ over work
it. Pie crusts, and many pastries, unlike other flour based concoctions such
as bread and cakes, don't benefit from being mixed within an inch of their
lives- their internal structure, the thing that makes them flaky, relies on
there being a bit of butter next to a bit of dough.

My suggestion would be to do what I do every time I'm learning to make
something- do it, and do it and do it until you get it right. When I learned
Julia Child's omelet making technique, I got several dozen eggs and various
stuffing ingredients, invited the neighbors over, and made omelets until my
neighbors could barely walk out the door, and in the process, worked out the
proper temp and timing, which is the key to a good omelet. And most of us
know my adventures with making fudge this last spring and summer- I asked
here first, listened closely, watched Alton Brown, and had at it until I
understood the process thoroughly. The recipe I posted a few days ago comes
from making batch after batch of fudge, and is as near fool-proof as I could
make it.

It may seem odd, to spend that much time getting a "simple" recipe straight,
but along the way you learn lots of other things that are related- for
example, my efforts with the eggs made most of my other egg dishes better.
The fudge work gave me a better understanding of crystallization processes,
useful in both future candy making, and in my blacksmithing. I've done
similar marathons with stir frying, making Indian style (and later other
Asian styles) of curries. My efforts, some years ago, learning how to make a
proper bouillion let me understand exactly what Adamantius was saying,
discussing the larded milk.

I am not, nor am I ever likely to be, a chef, but I guarantee you I'm a
damned serious amateur, and it really pays off.

Saint Phlip,
CoD

"When in doubt, heat it up and hit it with a hammer."
 Blacksmith's credo.

 If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it is probably not a
cat.

Never a horse that cain't be rode,
And never a rider who cain't be throwed....