17 Surprising Recipes That Start With Store Bought Pie Crust (2024)

FAQs

How to use pie crust from grocery store? ›

If it is frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge before using. From the fridge, let it sit at room temp for 15 to 20 minutes before unrolling so that you limit cracking. Bake hot and fast, around 425 to 450 degrees F is a good temperature for desserts made with pie crust, and most will be done in between 8 to 18 minutes.

The Ancient Egyptians were the first to invent a dish close to what we know as a pie today. They had a honey filling covered in a crusty cake made from oats, wheat, rye or barley. A recipe for chicken pie was also discovered on a tablet carved prior to 2000 BC.

A brush of butter (and maybe a sprinkle of cookie crumbs) adds moisture and texture. Since store-bought pie crusts have a tendency to dry out, our experts suggest using a moistening agent to imbue the crust with texture and flavor.

If your recipe calls for a baked or par-baked pie crust, and you are using store-bought pie dough, you still need to par-bake it. For example, if using store-bought crust in this brownie pie recipe, you still need to follow the par-baking instructions in that recipe (which are the same instructions you find below).

For years I pre-baked crusts the way most people did, about 15 minutes at a high baking temperature using foil or parchment and pie weights, then removing the pie weights and foil, poking the bottom of the crust with the tines of a fork, and continuing to bake for 20 minutes, uncovered.

(It's even said that Native Americans fed pumpkin to their horses.) Did you know that the FIRST pumpkin pies were actually WHOLE BAKED PUMPKINS stuffed with assorted spices and apples? Did you know 50 million pumpkin pies are baked every year? The LARGEST PUMPKIN PIE on record was five feet around.

A coffin or coffyn referred to a container made of pastry, a precursor of the modern pie crust, and food was served in the coffin it had been cooked in. The first printed use of the word coffin as a box for a corpse appeared later, in the 16th century. Historians trace pies back to ancient times.

Apple Pie. Apple pie is arguably one of the most popular pie flavors. A symbol of America, the apple pie was actually invented by the British. Apple pie is simply made with sliced apples on double-crusted pastry dough.

Claire suggests pairing "citrus zest with fruit pies, warm spices with custard pies, and vanilla with just about anything." Liquid flavoring like fruit juices are not recommended—they add more moisture and can potentially cause tough crusts.

Use Very Cold Butter or Fat

Butter, shortening, lard, or suet—whatever fat the recipe calls for should be well-chilled and cut into small pieces to start with for the flakiest crust in the end. The fat in a pie crust must maintain some of its integrity in the dough to make the crust truly flaky.

What not to do when making pie crust? ›

In terms of preserving the pie shell's crispness, we found neither hot nor warm fillings made the shells damp. However, we preferred using warm filling for different reasons. Since the hot filling was more liquid when poured into the crust, it settled in a very compact way.

Pie Crust. Let refrigerated crusts stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes, or microwave one pouch on DEFROST (30% power) for 10 to 20 seconds before unrolling. Remove frozen crusts from box and let stand at room temperature for 60 to 90 minutes before unrolling. Do not microwave frozen crusts.

To Make a Baked Ready-To-Fill Crust:

Remove frozen crust from package. Let thaw 15 minutes. 3. Thoroughly prick bottom and side of crust with fork to help reduce shrinkage and bubbling.

You can bake it if you are determined to do so until the pie filling bubbles in the middle (1/2 hour or so at 350 f). This may burn your graham cracker crust so put a foil shield around the edge of the pan to protect it. I would just put the pie filling in the crust, top it with whipped cream and enjoy.

When you are ready to bake your pie, remove the pie plate from the freezer and remove foil and plastic wrap. Allow the crust to thaw for 15 minutes while preheating your oven to 375° F. Prick the bottom of the crust with a fork to help prevent air bubbles from forming.