The Flakiest Most Tender Pie Crust

I know I promised chai tea lattes, but do to complications of a broken milk frother, that will have to wait for another day.

So instead I've got a double shot for you. I'm going to share two recipes;

1. The best pastry dough you've ever rolled out! and...
2. A classic deep dish apple pie.

This comes on the heels of Thanksgiving of course, so everything you see is clearly indulgent. I just thought I'd put that out there.

Now I am going to do this in two parts mainly because I've found that there aren't many sites that give a  detailed explanation on how to make a good pie pastry (accept for the pioneer woman of course). So today I'll show you how to make the pie dough and in my next post I'll give you my recipe for a huge classic apple pie.

If you have ever been anxious about making pastry (let's face it, it's not always an easy feat), then this is the pastry dough for you. It's flaky, it's tender and it rolls out like a dream come true. There's no cracking or crumbling when rolling this pastry out. It turns out perfect every time. It also makes a lot of dough, which freezes well.

This is actually the pastry that Marty's World Famous Coffee House in Bracebridge Ontario uses. If you've ever been there then you know that they're famous for their giant buttertart's and pies. They even come with a warning on the box: "Do not drive and eat these tarts; you will wear them". It's a very old recipe, literally a century old, that was used by La congregation des Soeurs grises (The Grey Nuns) in Quebec, that was passed down through Marty's family. I realize some of you don't know what buttertart's are so here is a picture.

Getting back to the pie dough, here is the starting lineup of players:

Before you get started I'm going to give you a few tips for making perfect pastry:

1. Always use a chilled stainless steel bowl.
2. Chill the Tenderflake/Crisco for an hour before using.
3. Don't over-cut the lard into the flour; it should be loose and light.
4. Whip the egg white in a clean, steel bowl. Any residue from the lard will reduce fluffiness.
5. Ice-cold water is important to use.
6. Wrap and chill the dough in the fridge for 1 hour before rolling out.

Century-Old Nun's Pastry Dough (makes 1 "head" of dough: 3 pie crusts)

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Ingredients:

• 4 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp sea salt
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1lb Tenderflake (lard or shortening)
• 1 egg, separated

Directions:

1. Sift the flour into a large chilled stainless steel bowl. Whisk in the salt. Cut the lard into small cubes and add to the flour. Using a pastry cutter work the lard into the flour until the mix resembles a course, floury crumble.
2. Separate the egg white into a bowl for whisking (if you have a mixer fitted with a whisk; all the better) and the yolk into a measuring jug. Add the lemon juice to the egg yolk and top with ice cold water to the 1-cup line, and stir well.
3. Whisk the egg white until foamy and white. About 2-3 minutes on high-speed if using a stand mixer.
4. Using your hands, make a well in the middle of the flour mixture. Add the egg yolk mixture to the flour mix and gently fold together with your fingertips from the outer edges in just until it starts to come together. While the mix is still a bit floury, add the whipped egg white and gently press and fold the dough from outside to inside, until all the flour comes together into a paste-like ball.
5. Divide the dough into 3 separate balls then wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour before using.

 If you'd like a visual demonstration of how to make this pastry check out this video. And don't forget to come back Monday for a classic apple pie recipe!

I think it's time a for green smoothie now.

Chai Tea

Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian friends!

Fall is all about comforts.

Like curling up in a blanket with a warm cup of tea and a good book.

I think I can say that it finally feels like fall now. You know those big dark clouds that blow over with a deluge of rain and then move off to let the sun come out, only to let another round blow in. Yeah, that's how you know it's fall around here. Not to mention the big gusty cold winds. It is certainly sweater weather. And let's not forget the pumpkins, squash and fall mums taking over at the market.

That's why I whipped up my own batch of chai tea.

There are fewer things more warming than a brewed cup of chai tea that's been made with freshly toasted spices. If you want to make your home smell like fall this will definitely do the trick. Homemade bags of chai tea make a great holiday gift too.

I know it's not Christmas but the pink peppercorns in this add a bit of holiday colour. These will add some heat so if that's not your "cup of tea" (couldn't resist) then cut back on them. They really are pretty though. Cardamom has a unique taste and is intensely aromatic. You want to get the green cardamom pods. It comes from Malaysia and works better in sweet recipes than it's black counterpart, which comes from Asia & Australia and is much stronger and smokey flavoured. Black cardamom is used often in garam masala to make curries. Make sure you buy the pods instead of ground cardamom. Ground will lose it's flavour and aroma quite quickly.

Sometimes you'll find fennel seeds in a well made rye bread. They have an intense anise-flavour. It has a taste and smell that is licorice-like, but is sweeter and less intense.

I think one of the things I'm most forward to this fall is soups, homemade bread and roasted delicata squash. If you haven't tried this squash before you'll be in for a treat. Before I get all caught up lets get to that recipe for homemade chai tea!

Chai Tea (makes 12 teabags)

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Ingredients:

• 16 green cardamom pods
• 1/4-1/2 tsp pink peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp whole cloves
• 1 Tbsp fennel seeds
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 Tbsp candied ginger, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup loose leaf black tea (I used Scottish breakfast - it goes wonderfully with milk)

Directions:

1. Pre heat oven to 325*F.
2. With a small sharp paring knife, split the cardamom pods in half, and remove the seeds. Combine with next 4 ingredients, through to cinnamon, and place on a baking sheet. Gently toast the spices in the oven for four minutes until fragrant. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes.
3. Using a mortar and pestle (or rolling pin), crush the spices together. Make sure you snap the cinnamon stick into a few smaller pieces first.
4. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the crushed spices, candied ginger and tea.
5. Viola! You now have a lovely chai tea. You can store this in a container. If you use a glass jar, make sure you keep it in a dark area as all teas and coffee should be kept from light for best quality.

Feel free to adjust any of the spices to your taste and liking. Tea and coffee is quite a personal thing.

Be on the lookout for some chai tea lattes on the blog and have a wonderful thanksgiving weekend!

P.S. I smell pie!

I'm making apple and pumpkin from scratch as well as the pastry for Thanksgiving dinner!