Cheddar Cheese Pie Crust

Prep Methods/Techniques
Cuisine ,
Course
Ingredients
  • 1 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 tsp salt (see Cook's Notes)
  • 3/4 cup grated Cheddar cheese
  • 8 tbsp unsalted butter, preferably a high-fat, European-style butter like Plugra, chilled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 2 to 5 tablespoons ice water
Method
  1. In a food processor, briefly pulse together the flour and salt. Add the cheddar and pulse until mixture forms coarse crumbs. Add the butter and pulse until mixture forms chickpea-size pieces (3 to 5 one-second pulses). Add the ice water 1 tablespoon at a time and pulse until mixture is just moist enough to hold together.
  2. Form dough into a ball, wrap with plastic and flatten into a disk. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before rolling out and baking.
    To prebake the crust: Preheat oven to 375. On a lightly floured surface, roll out pie crust to a 12-inch circle. Transfer crust to a 9-inch pie plate. Fold over any excess dough, then crimp edges. Prick crust all over with a fork. If you have time, freeze crust for 15 to 30 minutes; otherwise skip this step. Cover pie with buttered aluminum foil (buttered side face down) and fill with pie weights (you can use pennies, rice or dried beans for this). Bake for 15 minutes; remove foil and weights and bake until pale golden, 5 to 7 minutes more. Cool on rack until needed.
Cook's Notes
Yield

Makes dough for 1 nine-inch pie crust.