All Butter Pastry Dough

All-Butter Pastry Dough (Pate Brisee)

Makes 1 (9-inch) single crust tart

INGREDIENTS

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
(2 tablespoons sugar for a sweet pie, if desired)
4 ounces cold unsalted butter (8 tablespoons, 1 stick), cut into 1/2-inch cubes (frozen if using a food processor)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 to 4 tablespoons ice water or 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Blend together flour, butter, shortening, and salt in a bowl with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until most of mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Drizzle evenly with 3 tablespoons ice water (or egg yolk mixture) and gently stir with a fork (or pulse in processor) until incorporated.

Squeeze a small handful: If it doesn't hold together, add the other tablespoon water, stirring (or pulsing) until just incorporated, then test again. (Do not overwork mixture, or pastry will be tough.)

Mound the mixture onto a work surface. With heel of your hand, smear a portion of the dough outward to work in the butter, continue with the rest of the dough, one portion at a time. Gather dough together with pastry scraper and press into a ball, then flatten into a disk. Chill dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.

Roll out dough on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin into an 11-inch round and fit into tart pan. Trim excess dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang, then fold overhang over pastry and press against side to reinforce edge. Lightly prick bottom with a fork and chill until firm, about 30 minutes.

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400°F.

Line chilled shell with foil and fill with pie weights. Bake until pastry is set and pale golden along rim, 15 to 20 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights and bake shell until golden all over, 10 to 15 minutes more. Transfer shell to a rack. (Leave oven on.)