Butter Pie Crust | The Recipe Critic

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This Butter Pie Crust is the most tender and flaky crust you’ll ever make! It’s made from just four ingredients and will make the perfect base for all of your pies this holiday season.

I love a good pie! In fact, it’s one of my favorite desserts. I like ’em every way! Cold, hot, baked, or no-bake, give me a pie and I’ll eat it! This also means I have tons of pie recipes you need to try out! You’ve got to try this classic Chocolate Pie, this “dump everything in a blender and bake” Impossible Pie, and this perfect for any occasion Fresh Strawberry Pie!

Butter pie crust in a pie pan unbaked.

All Butter Pie Crust

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I LOVE PIE! It’s the perfect dessert. And the perfect dessert deserves the PERFECT pie crust, and this butter pie crust is it! It is so simple to whip up, and has a delicious buttery flavor that everyone always compliments. It is perfect for any filling, whether you like your classic pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving or want to try something different, like a German chocolate pie or a strawberry rhubarb. Whatever your filling, this crust is the perfect match!

This butter pie crust (sometimes called all butter pie crust) is made with only butter, so you won’t have to worry about grabbing shortening. You make it the same way you do a traditional pie crust. I love this recipe because it always gets tons of compliments, and honestly, it’s one of the easiest crusts to make! It is also the perfect kind of crust for a beautiful lattice or double-crusted pie.

Ingredients

This pie crust is one of my favorites because it is so simple and only takes 4 ingredients to make a flaky and delicious pie crust. It always perfectly browns on top and has great structure, but still melts in your mouth. You are going to love it! Find the exact measurements below in the recipe card.

  • All-Purpose Flour: Your regular pantry flour will work great! Because this pie crust only has a few simple ingredients, the better quality flour you have, the better it will taste!
  • Salt: Salt brings out all the lovely flavors in this pie crust.
  • Cold Butter: You will want to use unsalted butter since you are already adding salt to the crust. It should be nice and cold, you could even freeze it.
  • Cold Water: The water should actually be ice cold, so drop some ice in the bowl before using it to make sure it’s the right temperature.
Process photos showing the ingredients being pulsed in a food processor, then rolled out and pressed into a pie pan with a double crust and the cut out of a house.

Let’s Make the Crust!

This butter pie crust recipe is so easy! I make it all the time, and every time I do people are asking me for my pie crust recipe. It’s so simple and you will become the pie crust expert after people taste your pies.

  1. Pulse: Using a food processor with the metal blade attachment, pour flour salt and butter cubes in. Pulse until mixture is the texture of coarse meal. While you are pulsing the food processor, add ice water through the feed tube. Process until clumps form, don’t let it form one solid ball.
  2. Roll: On a floured surface, roll to an 11” circle with a rolling pin, press pie dough into pie plate and trim dough to your liking.
  3. Refrigerate: Prick bottom and sides with a fork or toothpick and chill in refrigerator until firm, about 30 minutes in the fridge, or 15 minutes in the freezer.
  4. Bake: If you’re wanting pie crust on the top of the pie, double the recipe, roll two separate rounds, fill your pie with desired filling and top with your second round of dough. Bake according to the filling’s instructions.
  5. Blind Bake: If your pie crust needs to be blind baked, bake the crust in an oven preheated to 425℉ until golden and crisp, about 15 minutes. To prevent shrinking, line it first closely with foil and fill with dried beans or pie weights.

Tips for Making Butter Pie Crust

This crust is easy peasy! You are going to love this recipe, and it will definitely become your go-to pie crust. I use it every year and can’t believe it took me this long to share it with you! Here are some tips I’ve learned over the years that will make you an instant pro.

  • Blending the Dough: Don’t overwork this dough or it will become tough and not flaky once baked. You also will run the risk of getting the butter too warm, which means the fat in the butter won’t have a chance to make the crust flaky like you want it. It is so important that the butter stays cold and crumbly! Make sure you touch the dough as little as possible with your hands, since your hands are warm and will melt the dough quickly.
  • Keep It Cool: The dough should be kept as cool as possible, I recommend refrigerating after lining the pan with the dough before baking. This will ensure you get a flaky pie crust! It will also help the pie crust stay in shape without shrinking or expanding.
  • Making Pie Crust Without a Food Processor: People have been doing it forever! And every once in a while, I love doing it too. Follow these same instructions, but instead of putting your ingredients in the food processor, you will put them into a large bowl. Use a pastry cutter to cut in the ingredients, it will act like the blades of the food processor.

Close up of pie crust with hands crimping the edges.

Storing Homemade Pie Crust

If you are making this butter pie crust ahead of time, that is a great idea! It will be a great time saver and less dishes to clean on the day of your gathering. Here are some tips to store your pie crust!

In the Refrigerator: You can store your uncooked pie dough in a ball wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You will want to bake it before the 3 days are up or it may become dry.

In the Freezer: Store your uncooked pie dough either in a dough ball wrapped in plastic wrap or rolled out and pressed into a tin pie pan and covered. It will last up to 3 months. Allow the crust dough to thaw in the fridge before rolling it out.


  • Using a food processor with the metal blade attachment, pour flour salt and butter in. Pulse until mixture is the texture of coarse meal. While you are pulsing the food processor, add ice water through the feed tube. Process until clumps form, don’t let it form one solid ball.

  • On a floured surface, roll to an 11” circle, press into pie pan and trim dough to your liking.

  • Prick bottom and sides with a fork or toothpick and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes in the fridge, or 15 minutes in the freezer.

  • If you’re wanting pie crust on the top of the pie, double the recipe, roll two separate rounds, fill your pie with desired filling and top with your second round of dough. Bake according to the filling’s instructions.

  • If your pie crust needs to be blind baked, bake the crust in an oven preheated to 425℉ until golden and crisp, about 15 minutes. To prevent shrinking, line it first closely with foil and fill with dried beans or pie weights.



Serves: 1

Calories614kcal (31%)Carbohydrates127g (42%)Protein17g (34%)Fat2g (3%)Saturated Fat1g (5%)Polyunsaturated Fat1gMonounsaturated Fat0.4gTrans Fat0.03gCholesterol2mg (1%)Sodium1169mg (49%)Potassium179mg (5%)Fiber5g (20%)Sugar0.5g (1%)Vitamin A25IU (1%)Calcium28mg (3%)Iron8mg (44%)

All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword butter pie crust, homemade pie crust

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