Jkath, I'm highly complimented by the inclusion there! Let's just say your kindness and generosity is exceeded only by your extreme good looks! (An old family quip...and true in your case!)
Thanks, crewsk for excavating the earlier thread that I hope will answer Sarah's questions, or at least offer some thoughts as she tries her next crust. I don't remember if it was stated there or not, but one is fighting the formation of gluten in pie crusts, hence the resting/chilling period after mixing. And mixing, itself, is done as little as possible. As Ardge offered in his recipe, it is critically important that all ingredients are as cold as possible, especially when making a butter-based crust. And I will put all ingredients and everything, including the bowl and pastry blender, into the fridge to chill.
When mixing, I definately do not want the butter perfectly incorporated into the flour, preferring instead little clumps here and there that will streak out when rolling. And when adding water, I add just enough (ice water, by the way) to allow the dough to hold together when I squeeze a bit in my hand. It still looks dry and never forms a "ball" on its own volition. When it just begins to hold together, I dump the mass onto a board, scoop it gently into a round, flat wafer-shaped glob about 6 inches in diameter, wrap it in lots of plastic and toss it into the fridge to chill thoroughly and to relax.
When I roll out the dough, I prefer to do so on a floured (lightly so) board, instead of between waxed paper, etc., so that I can lift the dough and take quarter turns to keep it round and, moreover, to keep the dough from sticking and stretching and (later therefore) shrinking in the pan.
Having said all that...(is anyone looking here? Good!)
I've used the pillsbury ready crusts before when in a pinch and they served me well! They produced a nice, flaky crust, but I tend to make deep-dish pies more often that not, and they just don't give me enough dough to work with, unless I roll them paper-thin and that defeats my purpose entirely. I also make a lot of turnovers and occasional meat pies, so making my own dough gives me the ability to adjust the crust for sweet and savory uses. The ready-made crusts are, indeed, quite tasty and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them, if that gets people making pies!
After years of miserable failures and occasional victories, I finally settled long ago on the recipe I use every time now and know what to expect from it to achieve consistent results. I'm sure, sarah, that you'll do the same until you find a recipe and method that works best for you! Just keep practicing!
