The prickly pear cactus produces sweet, juicy fruit that is sometimes referred to as a “cactus fig” or a “tuna.” It creates a light, energizing summer delight when combined with lime and frozen. Any Mexican grocery store as well as certain upscale markets have cactus fig.
| Servings: | 16 |
| Yield: | 2 pie crusts |
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups shortening
- 5 tablespoons cold water
Instructions
- Cut the shortening into cubes, and toss into flour. Take your hands and crumble it up into a fine, pebbly, grainy sort of dough.
- Add water, enough to make a soft dough. Form into a ball, and chill for about an hour.
- When chilled, knead it a couple of times on a floured surface. Roll it out, and proceed to fill with your choice of pie fillings.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 344 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 24 g |
| Cholesterol | 14 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 3 g |
| Saturated Fat | 10 g |
| Sodium | 1 mg |
| Sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 26 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I have been making my crust this way since watching Alton Brown make it. Don’t over mix and the crust will be perfect every time.
I was in a hurry when I made this, and I halved it. I also did not pay attention to the directions and in my infinite wisdom decided to put it in the food processor. My suggestion would be to not do those things. I ended up adding flour bc I messed it up so much, which ended up with a really flaky and floury crust I could only press into my quiche pan. It worked okay, and no one but me knew I messed it up, but take note and try not to do what I did. I’m definitely not marking this recipe down for my mistakes, but I’ll try it again–as directed–to see what I think then. Thanks for the recipe!
A bit of salt will help it brown. About a teaspoon should be right.
i was going to reserve judgement until after i ate this but this was the worst pie crust mess i ever had…and that was without adding the water. way too much shortening. i had to add at least another cup of flour and then doctor it up so ended up with twice as much (hopefully salvageable) pie crust than i needed
This has always been my “Idiot Proof” pie crust recipe that I originally got out of a Peg Bracken book and also from a magazine where it was called Grama Rose’s pie crust. My version has always been 1/2 as much water as lard/shortening/butter combo,and 1/2 as much lard/shortening/butter combo as flour. Could it be any easier? Easy to roll out and can be chilled or frozen. Used and approved by Sue in Kanada.
This is the same recipe that my grandma has been using for years. Good tip -chilling the dough makes it a lot easier to work with, but you can roll it right away if you like.
I used half lard & half butter – it came out flaky, tender and yummy. It was a little difficult to work with, but I think that is my peoblem with pie crust in general, and not necessarily the recipe. I would definately make it again!!!
I have made my pie crust this way for years, except my formula was also half as much water as shortening. If it’s too “wet” you can always add a little more flour. Too dry, add more water. I also add just a pinch of salt mixed in with the flour. Have always gotten compliments for my pie crusts. Grandma used to use lard, but I’ve always just used white shortening. Also, I never chill it.
Really good, makes nice pastry.
dough was hard to knead. fell apart whenever touched. and was impossible to get thin enough for pie. i definitely will not be going through that again!