This Cream Cheese Pie Crust is a versatile and foolproof recipe that consistently delivers a perfectly tender and flaky pastry. Made with a blend of butter and cream cheese, it’s rich and flavourful and works beautifully for sweet pies.
This crust works well for a Pandowdy with simple ingredients and easy preparation. Just remember to keep everything cold and allow time for chilling to achieve the best results!
Ingredients
- 1¼ cups flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1½ teaspoons sugar (omit if making a savoury pie)
- 4oz (113g) cold butter
- 4oz (113g) cold cream cheese (I put it in the freezer for half an hour before using)
- 1 teaspoon cider vinegar (You won’t taste this; it helps keep the crust tender.)
- 1-2 teaspoons cold (iced) water
Method
- Combine the flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor
- Cut the cream cheese and butter into large pieces and sprinkle into the flour mix.
- Give the mixture 8-12 one-second pulses. The mixture should look like shaggy breadcrumbs.
- Sprinkle the vinegar and some of the water over the dough. Process continuously until you see the dough starting to come together, about 3-5 seconds. It will still look crumbly with visible bits of butter and cream cheese. It should hold together when you pinch some in your hand. If it doesn’t, then add another teaspoon of water and process until it comes together.
- Press dough into a flat 1-inch (2-3cm) disk or square roughly the shape (not size) of your pie dish.
- Wrap dough in cling film and chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Roll out your dough between sheets of cooking parchment until it is 3-6mm (⅛-¼ inches) thick.
- Carefully place pastry over pie, pinching any broken bits together.
- Chill pie for 30-60 minutes before baking. This step is not essential but helps make a better crust.
- Bake in a moderately hot oven for 40-60 minutes, depending on the filling.
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