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Homemade Brown Sugar Pie Crust

Homemade Brown Sugar Pie Crust, an easy simple pie dough, that is perfect for your favourite pies, tarts and much more. Flakey and buttery. The added touch of brown sugar makes it perfect. It will be your new go to Pie Crust Recipe.

pie crust dough on parchment paper

I got this Made from Scratch Pie Crust Recipe from my cousin a couple of years ago. And the other day I decided to pull it out again because I wanted to make a couple of recipes (stayed tuned).

This Pie Crust Recipe is definitely one of my favourite crusts that I make.

I love that subtle taste of brown sugar and the flakiness is absolutely perfect.

And how do I know it’s perfect? Because everything I make with it is gone in minutes.

pie crust how to dough in the food processor and as a dough ball


 

How to make a Pie Dough from Scratch

  1. Whisk together the flour, brown sugar, salt and baking powder in a medium bowl, then cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
  2. Beat the egg, cold water and vinegar together.
  3. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix gently with a fork.
  4. Transfer to a flat surface and gently knead into a ball.
  5. Wrap in plastic and chill for approximately an hour or even over night.

How to Blind Bake a Pie:

  • Roll the dough to approximately 1/8 inch thickness
  • place it  in prepared pie plate,
  • prick the bottom with a fork.
  • Cover with parchment paper and add dried beans or pie weights on top, bake in a pre-heated 350F (180C) oven for approximately 15 minutes, remove the parchment paper and weights and continue to bake for about 5-10 minutes or until baked and golden.
  • Remove from the oven, let cool before filling.
homemade pie dough on parchment paper

How to store it

Wrap the unbaked pie dough in plastic it can be kept in the fridge for about 2-3 days, be sure to bring it to room temperature before rolling. Or it can be frozen in a freezer safe bag or container for up to 3 months.

But remember in order to have a flaky pie crust, the water and butter need to be cold, right out of the fridge cold. Don’t leave out the vinegar it makes the crust tender.

Be very gently and do not over knead the dough, that makes it tough. Apparently a glass pie dish makes the flakiest crusts!

Whatever you make with this Homemade Brown Sugar Pie Crust, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

A few Recipes made with a different Pie Dough you may enjoy!

Chocolate Vanilla Berry Panna Cotta Tart

A fast and easy Chocolate Vanilla Berry Panna Cotta Tart. A delicious creamy, delicate Italian Dessert, a berry sauce makes it perfect.

Italian Lemon Crostata

Italian Lemon Crostata, a simple and easy Italian Dessert, a flaky pie pastry and delicious lemon filling. A perfect snack or dessert recipe.

Old Fashioned Butter Tarts

2 old fashioned butter tarts, one leaning against the other

Pie Dough

pie dough up close on parchment paper
pie dough up close on parchment paper

Homemade Brown Sugar Pie Crust

Rosemary Molloy
Homemade Brown Sugar Pie Crust, an easy simple pie dough, that is perfect for your favourite pies, tarts and much more.  Flakey and buttery.  The added touch of brown sugar makes it perfect.  It will be your new go to Pie Crust Recipe.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 2 crust pie
Calories 1396 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • pinch salt*
  • 1⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 cup butter (cold)
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons cold water
  • 1 teaspoon white vinegar

*If you use unsalted butter then add ¼ teaspoon of salt.

    Instructions
     

    • You can make this dough either by hand or with a food processor.
    • In a medium bowl or in the food processor container whisk together the flour, brown sugar, salt and baking powder.  Either cut in butter or pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
    • In a medium bowl beat together the egg, cold water and vinegar.  Add to flour mixture and mix until almost combined.  Transfer to a flat surface and gently knead into a ball.  Wrap in plastic and chill for approximately 30-60 minutes before using.  Enjoy!

    Nutrition

    Calories: 1396kcal | Carbohydrates: 123g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 93g | Saturated Fat: 58g | Cholesterol: 244mg | Sodium: 816mg | Potassium: 396mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2835IU | Calcium: 137mg | Iron: 7.4mg
    Did You Make This Recipe?Please leave a comment below or pin it to your Pinterest account!

    61 Comments

    1. 5 stars
      I’ve made this pie crust and it was a complete success. Now I’d like to make it gluten-free. Can I just replace the flour with a gluten-free mix or do you have another advice? Thank you!

      1. Hi Malaika, I really don’t know because I have never used gluten-free flour. Although I know some people just do a one for one substitution. Let me know if you try it.

    2. 5 stars
      Have made a lot of pie crusts in my day…but this is the ONLY one I will make from now on. It was so easy to roll out…Perfectly flakey with that little hint of sweetness with the brown sugar. Awesome!

    3. 5 stars
      We tried this recipe and it is so good. We didn’t have vinegar so we used lemon juice and it worked. But I have a question, can we freeze the dough and if so how long can we freeze it for?

      1. Hi Vicky, thanks,so glad you like it and yes you can freeze the dough, it will last up to 3 months in the freezer.

    4. 5 stars
      I used your recipe this past Thanksgiving (Thurs. Nov. 22) and made my first homemade crust for an apple pie. To say it was a hit is an understatement. Everyone raved about how unbelievable the crust was. This will be my only recipe from now on. I was so nervous being I’d never made homemade crust before. This was easy and turned out excellent. Thank you!

    5. 5 stars
      Thanks for sharing this, I’ve never put brown sugar in a pie crust before! Also it’s been chilling in the fridge for about 20 minutes and I just now realized I forgot the egg, I hope it still comes out ok.

        1. It was a little more crumbly when rolling it out, but it tastes good. 🙂 I’ll definitely use this recipe again, but hopefully remember the egg! haha

        2. Hi Monica, yes the egg would help hold it together, oh well as long as it tasted good. Yes try it next time with the egg and let me know. 🙂

    6. Maybe I missed it, but does this make single or double crust? Been so long since I made a crust from scratch, I couldn’t tell from ingredients. Will tri this one, though..thanks.

    7. 5 stars
      Carol Ladwig

      I have been using this recipe since the 1960’s.Called never fail pie crust.
      Did use CRISCO.
      PEOPLE ALWAYS LIKED MY CRUST.

    8. This pie crust must be a keeper. At 93+ still make from scratch. Curiosity is taking over and I am making this. Never too old to learn new tricks. What fun

    9. 5 stars
      This great Recipe doesn’t say just what kind of vinegar to use so I tried both White and Apple Cider vinegar, preferred the Apple Cider vinegar!

      1. Hi Lynn, sorry about that, it was actually white vinegar, but good to know apple cider works too. I will have to try that next time. So glad you like it.

    10. 5 stars
      The crust sounds divine but your nutrional chart is off the charts…123 grams of carbs and 17 protein…no way…must be a big typo:)

      1. Hi Betty, thanks so much and yeah sometimes it is, although it is for the whole crust not a serving.

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