Buttermilk Pie in a Pastry Shell

Set out all-purpose flour, unsalted butter melted, and granulated sugar before you start Buttermilk Pie in a Pastry Shell. The batch is written for 12 slices.

Count on 30 minutes of prep, 45 minutes of cooking, about 1 hour from the first measurement to the plate.

Ingredients Method

What goes in the bowl

Filling

• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• ½ cup unsalted butter melted
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 3 whole eggs
• 1 cup full fat buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon water
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 All-Butter Pie Crust, par baked

• 1 cup all-purpose flour measured by fluffing the flour then spooning it in
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• 4 ½ tablespoon cold butter cubed into ½ inch cubes
• 1 ⅛ oz cold water or as much or as little as needed

How the cooking goes

Make the all-butter pie crust

1. Beat together pastry flour, salt and sugar. Using your preferred method cut in the butter until you have pea sized pieces. If you are using a bench scraper, pastry blender or two knives, you will chop the butter into the flour using an up and down motion, corralling the flour back into the center occasionally. If you are using the electric mixer or food processor, leave slightly larger pieces.
2. Slowly begin to add your ice water a tablespoon at a time. If making it by hand, pour into the center of the flour and gently toss the flour into the water with the bench scraper, knife or a fork until you have a crumbly mixture. At this point be very careful with the amount of water that you add because it only needs a few teaspoons more.
3. When your dough is shaggy, which means it looks like shards or strands of pastry, and there is still some loose flour, turn out your dough from the mixer or food processor and work the dough together by gathering it and pressing away from you with the heal of your hand. Do this JUST until it comes together. If it is crumbling, then dip your hand in a little ice water and pat it on the pastry dough.
4. Press into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours or overnight. If you chill your dough overnight, you will need to let it rest a bit before rolling or it will be too cold and it will crack.
5. Roll the dough out to ⅛ inch thick.

Par bake the pie crust

1. Warm the oven to 350°F convection or 375°F conventional (no fan).
2. Line a pie tin with your pie crust. Do not dock the dough. Chill the dough thoroughly before baking.
3. When ready to bake line the inside of the crust with baking paper and then fill with pie weights or beans. Bake 20 minutes with the weight and then remove the weight and continue baking until the bottom crust has started to brown but is not yet fully baked.
4. While the pie crust cools, prepare the filling.

Prepare the Buttermilk Filling

1. In a medium bowl, whisk all the ingredients together. This will reduce the number of bubbles in the filling and the top of the custard will be smooth after baking. You whisked the ingredients individually when preparing the pie in the photos and you can see the bubbles that rose to the surface while baking. The texture is the same but it is prettier when smooth.
2. Pour into prepared crust and bake in preheated oven for 35-45 minutes or until the filling has puffed and jiggles cohesively like Jell-O when gently shaken. The top may brown a bit, which you think improves the flavor.
3. Cool completely before slicing. The pie slices best when well chilled.
4. Serve ambient temperature or cold.

After it comes off the heat

Let the pan settle before you slice, so the crumb stays together. Cover leftovers once they are cool.

If you want another plate from Pies and tarts, open French Silk Pie in a Pastry Shell and Key Lime Pie Cooled Before Slicing.