Julia Child’s Pastry Dough, Pie Crust Recipe (Pizza Dough, etc)
Looking for the best homemade pie crust recipe? Julia Child’s pastry dough recipe is the best for homemade pies, turnovers and flaky pizza crust!
This recipe for Julia Child’s French pie crust will elevate your baking game, whether you’re making a butter pie crust for the holidays or experimenting with classic shortcrust pastry.
Recipe Inspiration
Whenever I need a recipe, I turn to Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Without fail there is always a recipe with the best explanation of how to make it. Out of all of the cookbooks that I own, hers are the very best. She not only provides recipes, but teaches you techniques and tips along the way. I, along with many others, refer to her cookbooks as The Bible of Cooking. It’s like having your own personal chef instructor in the kitchen with you! Amazing!
As I mentioned yesterday, Little Finch and I made Pastry Dough for our Calzone Wanna-Be’s. This recipe for Pastry Dough is from Julia Child’s “Mastering The Art of French Cooking” Volume I. My little girlie and I had a lot of fun making this!
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Ingredients
- all-purpose flour – this butter pie crust recipe uses all-purpose flour to create an irresistible flaky pie dough. I suggest sifting your flour through a fine mesh stainer before using, even if the package says the flour has already been pre-sifted.
- salt – I prefer to use Kosher salt which enhances the flavor without the metallic taste of iodized salt
- sugar – granulated white sugar
- butter – most recipes call for unsalted butter, but I chose to use salted butter or sweet cream in my recipes. Choose which butter you prefer, the main point to note is you need COLD butter. Chilled, cold butter is essential for a flaky pie crust—make sure to work quickly once you start making the dough to keep the dough cool
- shortening – there are two types of shortening you can use. All vegetable shortening or lard which is prepared from meat fats
- a scant half cup of iced water
Step-by-Step Instructions
This classic pie crust is versatile and works beautifully for both sweet and savory recipes. To create coarse crumbs, use a pastry blender or pastry cutter to mix the dry ingredients together.
Place 2 c all-purpose flour in a bowl 
Add 1 tsp salt 
Add 1/4 tsp sugar Slice 1 1/2 sticks of butter into 1/2″ slices Add to flour mixture Add 4 Tbs chilled shortening 
Start chilling a glass full of water with ice and set aside (you won’t use the ice) Rub flour, butter and shortening together rapidly between the tips of your fingers until the fat is broken into pieces the size of oatmeal flakes. Do not overdo 
Remove ice and keep 1/2 c of water Add water and blend quickly with one hand, fingers held together and slightly cupped, as you rapidly gather the dough into a mass Form into a ball Place dough on a lightly floured surface With the heel of one hand, not the palm which is too warm, rapidly press the pastry by two-spoonful bits down on the board and away from you in a firm, quick smear of about 6 inches. This continues the final blending of fat and flour Smear out about 6″ Gather the dough again into a mass Knead it briefly into a fairly smooth round ball Sprinkle lightly with flour and wrap in waxed paper. Either place the dough in the freezer for 1 hour or until firm or refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight (we put ours in the freezer)
And there you have it! Once you are ready to use the dough, roll out with rolling pin and use to your hearts desire! This dough was the perfect combination of flakey and moist (sounds oxymoron I know, but it’s true!)
Decorative Pie Crust
Once you’ve rolled out your pie crust, it’s time to decorate! My favorite tools for creating beautiful pie crust shapes are with the pastry wheel roller and plunger cookie cutters!
Pie Dishes and Plates
One thing to consider when buying beautiful pie dishes is the depth of the pie dish. The very first pie dish I owed was a glass Pyrex pie dish that is pretty shallow. I like this pie dish for pies that I don’t want to be super thick/deep or if I don’t have a ton of filling, and need it to be a smaller pie.
On the flip side, I have a beautiful 9″ Emile Henry pie dish that I use a lot, but it is very deep – and store-bought pie crust doesn’t fill the entire dish to the edges, as you can see here in my quiche recipe. When I use this particular pie dish with homemade pie crust, I adjust the size of my crust by making it larger in diameter).
Kitchen Memories
I first shared this recipe on Gathered In The Kitchen in 2011 – this little guy was such a cute little helper. I miss the days of my kiddos sitting in Bumbo seats helping me cook! I hope that your kitchens are full of memory making with those you love!
The kids grow up and then start baking recipes from mom’s blog all on their own!
Hope you bail on the store bought dough and give this a try! Happy baking, friends!
Printable Recipe Card
Julia Child’s Pastry Dough, Pie Crust Recipes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 c all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp sugar
- 1 1/2 sticks chilled butter cut into 1/2″ slices
- 4 tbs chilled shortening
- a scant half cup of iced water, plus droplets more if needed
Instructions
- Place 2 c all-purpose flour in a bowl
- Add 1 tsp salt
- Add 1/4 tsp sugar
- Slice 1 1/2 sticks of butter into 1/2″ slices
- Add to flour mixture
- Add 4 Tbs chilled shortening
- Start chilling a glass full of water with ice and set aside (you won’t use the ice)
- Rub flour, butter and shortening together rapidly between the tips of your fingers until the fat is broken into pieces the size of oatmeal flakes. Do not overdo
- Remove ice and keep 1/2 c of water
- Add water and blend quickly with one hand, fingers held together and slightly cupped, as you rapidly gather the dough into a mass
- Form into a ball
- Place dough on a lightly floured surface
- With the heel of one hand, not the palm which is too warm, rapidly press the pastry by two-spoonful bits down on the board and away from you in a firm, quick smear of about 6 inches. This continues the final blending of fat and flour
- Smear out about 6″
- Gather the dough again into a mass
- Knead it briefly into a fairly smooth round ball
- Sprinkle lightly with flour and wrap in waxed paper. Either place the dough in the freezer for 1 hour or until firm or refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight (we put ours in the freezer)
In Conclusion
Dust off your rolling pins and share your pastry adventures with us—every pie tells a story, and we’re eager to savor yours. Post your photos and tales using #Gatheredinthekitchen and let’s celebrate the joy of baking together!
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Stephanie—home cook, DIY addict, seasonal decor fanatic, and proud chicken wrangler living in a Victorian house that’s always a project. Whether I’m cooking with garden-fresh ingredients, herding mischievous chickens, or tackling another DIY, I’m here to share the fun (and chaos).
Is this for a two crust piecrust?
This was delicious! So crispy!! Perfect for all my fruit pies and even chicken pot pie!
What temperature do we cook it at and for? How long?
Hi Jenae, It depends on what you are baking and what the filling inside is. Bake it at whatever temperature and length the recipe you are following (ie: pie, pot pie, etc) calls for.
For my fruit pies – I typically do 375-400°F and the timing all varies…it varies on if the filling was warm, cold, etc when I put it in the oven. Also, it depends on if the pie top is lattice or a full pie piece. Sorry to not be able to give you a specific temp and length. Happy baking!