Mastering Make-Ahead Pie Dough: A Comprehensive Guide to Simplifying Your Baking
There’s nothing quite as delightful as a classic apple pie to cap off a cozy meal. However, when it comes to preparing a multitude of pumpkin pies for your Thanksgiving feast, the time required for making the pastry dough can add up. To streamline your next baking project, our team at Better Homes & Gardens Test Kitchen suggests preparing your favorite pastry dough in advance and storing it for later use. Whether you’re looking to refrigerate or freeze your dough, here’s a guide to ensuring that your flaky, buttery crust will be ready to go for all your favorite pie recipes ahead of time.
Make-Ahead Pie Crust
Follow your favorite recipe (try our single-crust pastry or gluten-free pie crust recipes) as directed, but avoid rolling it out. Instead, flatten the dough into a patty or form it into a ball, then wrap it in plastic wrap, label it, and seal it. Your pie dough can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. Before rolling it out for pie, make sure to allow the pastry to come to room temperature. If you’re not ready to use the pie crust within a few days, place it in a freezer bag and freeze it for up to 3 months. For a strawberry-rhubarb pie, thaw the pastry overnight in the refrigerator before filling.
Make-Ahead Pie Crust in the Pan
For a pie crust that’s already fitted to a pie plate or tart pan, roll out the dough and fit it into a freezer- and oven-safe pie plate or tart pan. Place the pastry and container in a freezer bag and freeze as directed. It’s crucial to note that some glass baking dishes, like Pyrex, can shatter if moved from one extreme temperature to another. To bake frozen pastry shells without thawing fully, let your frozen shell rest at room temperature while your oven preheats. You may need to add 5 or 10 minutes to the baking time.
Blind Baking Pastry Shells Before Storing
Blind baking (baking a pastry shell before it’s filled) creates a stronger crust that can better hold a moist filling, like an egg mixture in quiche. Prepare and roll out the pastry dough. Generously prick the bottom and sides of the pastry in a pie plate with a fork. Line the pastry with pie weights or a double layer of heavy foil. This helps to weigh down the crust and prevent it from bubbling up or blistering. Bake in a 450°F oven for 8 minutes. Remove the weights or foil and bake for 5 to 6 minutes more or until golden. Cool on a wire rack. To store the baked pie crust, cool the pastry shell, wrap it in foil, and place it in a freezer container or bag. Seal, label, and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the fridge before using.
Once you’ve honed your pastry-making skills, you can plan for all the delicious fillings that will put those shells to good use. Consider a creamy chicken pot pie for dinner or a chocolaty pecan pie for dessert.
