Had to pick between butter and shortening for my pie crust last Thanksgiving

I went with all butter because I wanted that flaky flavor, but the crust came out too crumbly to even slice cleanly, has anyone else gotten better results mixing the two?

3 comments

3 Comments

lopez.quinn17d ago

My neighbor swears by a 60/40 butter to shortening mix for her holiday pies, and that ratio changed everything for me last Christmas. It gave me the flaky layers from the butter without the crust falling apart when I cut into it. I noticed this same trade off happens a lot in life where going all in on one thing looks great but falls apart under pressure, while mixing things together makes everything hold up better.

tara79317d ago

this same trade off happens a lot in life" - what's a non-pie example where you've seen that 60/40 mix actually play out?

jake98617d ago

...and honestly you just described exactly why I never go full butter anymore. Tried pure shortening once and got a crust that felt like chewing on cardboard. The 60/40 mix is the sweet spot, no question. Butter gives you that golden color and the flavor, but shortening brings the structure so it doesn't shatter when you hit it with a knife.