Perfect Pie Pastry-For a 9-inch single crust pie

Ingredients

• About 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 Tablespoons cold water
• 3 Tablespoons cold Challenge European Style Butter, cut into chunks
• 3 Tablespoons cold solid shortening, cut into chunks

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix 1-cup flour and the salt. Add butter and shortening. With a pastry blender or your fingers, cut in the fats (or rub in with your fingers) until the largest pieces are pea-size.
2. Sprinkle cold water over flour mixture. Stir with a fork just until evenly moistened. Gently squeeze about ¼ cup of the dough into a ball; if it won’t hold together, crumble lump back into bowl and sprinkle with more water, 1 teaspoon at a time; stir with a fork until evenly moistened.
3. With lightly floured hands, gently squeeze dough into a ball. Pat dough into a 4-inch-wide round pressing to make edges smooth.
4. Lay dough on a lightly floured surface. Coat a rolling pin with flour. Roll firmly but gently in short strokes from center of dough outward to form an 11-inch-wide round. If edges split while rolling, push them back toward center to make round relatively smooth. Occasionally lift dough or turn over, dusting flour beneath to prevent sticking.
5. Fold the dough round in half, lift it gently without stretching, and lay the folded edge across the middle of a 9-inch pie pan. Unfold and ease the dough into pan without stretching. Trim dough edge evenly ¾-inch beyond pan rim.
6. Fold dough edge under itself, flush with pan rim. To flute, press down rim with your thumb and first finger to make an indentation; at the same time, press against dough edge with 1 finger of your other hand, pushing it between your fingers on the rim. Repeat indentations side by side. Bake or fill crust as recipe directs.

Yield: 8 servingsPrep time: About 20 minutesSource: Recipe developed by Sunset Magazine Test Kitchens.www.sunsetmagazine.com