Combination Vegetable Shortening Butter Pastry Recipes

ALL VEGETABLE SHORTENING PASTRY RECIPE

Steps:

• 8- or 9-inch one-crust pie: --1/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon chilled vegetable shortening --1 cup all-purpose unbleached flour, plus extra for rolling --1/2 teaspoon salt --2 to 3 tablespoons ice water
• 8- or 9-inch two-crust pie: --2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons chilled vegetable shortening, cut into pieces --2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour, plus extra for rolling --1 teaspoon salt --4 to 6 tablespoons ice water
• In a large bowl with a pastry blender or two knives, cut vegetable shortening into flour and salt until particles are the size of small peas. Sprinkle in water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry dough almost cleans side of bowl (1 to 2 teaspoons additional water can be added if necessary). You want the ingredients to barely bind together.
• Flour your hands generously. Tilt the rolling pin and sprinkle it with flour as you rotate the rolling pin. On a lightly floured surface, form pastry into a ball; shape into a flattened round. (For two-crust pie, divide pastry into halves and shape into two rounds.) Roll pastry 2 inches larger than an inverted pie plate with a floured rolling pin. Try to control the rolling pin and move from the center out. Don't use the rolling pin to go back and forth. Use your rolling pin something like this: Roll North, pick up the pin, roll Northeast, pick up dough and move counter-clockwise, repeat. You want the crust as evenly rolled as you can.
• Fold pastry into quarter folds and ease into pie plate, pressing firmly against bottom and sides of pie plate.

BUTTER-AND-SHORTENING PASTRY DOUGH

Steps:

• In a food processor, pulse together the flour and salt. Add the shortening and butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. With the motor running, pour the water through the feed tube and process until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl, adding no more water than necessary. Divide the dough into 2 balls, flatten them into thick disks and place them between waxed-paper sheets. Refrigerate for at least one hour before rolling out.