Recipe: No-Fear Pie Crust (no-roll, using cream cheese)

NO-FEAR PIE CRUST

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
2 ounces cream cheese, softened but still cool

Lightly coat a 9-inch glass pie plate with cooking spray. Whisk flour, sugar and salt together in a bowl.

With electric mixer at medium-high speed, beat butter and cream cheese in a large bowl, stopping once or twice to scrape down beater and sides of bowl, until completely homogenous, about 2 minutes.

Add flour mixture; combine on medium-low speed until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal, about 20 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl. Increase mixer speed to medium-high, and beat until dough begins to form large clumps, about 30 seconds.

Reserve 3 tablespoons of dough. Turn remaining dough onto lightly floured surface, gather into ball, and flatten into a 6-inch disk. Transfer disk to greased pie plate.

Press dough evenly over bottom of pie plate toward sides, using heel of your hand. Hold plate up to light to ensure that dough is evenly distributed. With fingertips, continue to work dough over bottom of plate and up sides until evenly distributed.

On floured surface, roll reserved dough into 12-inch rope. Divide into three pieces, roll each piece into 8-inch rope, and form fluted edge, pressing to connect to crust in pie plate. Wrap crust in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

WHEN READY TO BAKE:
Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Lightly prick bottom of crust with fork.

Bake until golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool on wire rack. (If large bubbles form, wait until crust is fully baked, then gently press on bubbles with kitchen towel. Bubbles will settle as crust cools.)

Makes 1 (9-inch) pie shell
Source: Cook's Country magazine, August/September 2006