How To Create A Lattice Food

HOW TO MAKE A LATTICE PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Make sure to start with a chilled pie crust. It should have at least 30 minutes in the fridge before rolling it out. Let it sit at room temperature for a couple minutes to soften before rolling. For tons of details on how to make the best pie crust and roll it out successfully, check out my post for How to Make Flaky Pie Crust.
• Roll out your first pie crust into about a 13 inch circle and lay it in an ungreased 9 inch pie plate. with the edges hanging over the edge. Stick your pie pan in the fridge or freezer if there is any time lag before the next step.
• Fill 'er up. Fill your crust with COLD pie filling, mounding it in the middle. Your lattice is going to be so much easier to form if your filling is cold or frozen. (Room temperature filling at the very least.) A lattice is basically impossible to do with warm pie filling, because it will melt the butter in your crust and make it fall apart. Place your filled pie in the fridge or freezer if there is any time lag before the next step.
• Dust a work space with flour. I highly recommend rolling out the lattice on a pastry cloth or on parchment paper. That way it is easy to transfer the whole thing to the fridge or freezer if it gets warm and soft.
• Roll out your second pie crust into a circle that is about 10 inches across. You want this one to be rolled out thicker than the first one. First of all, you don't need to worry about making it big enough to go up the sides of the pie plate (it's just laying flat across the top) and second, thick strips are much easier to maneuver in a lattice situation than thin wimpy strips. Keep em sturdy; don't roll out too thin.
• Cut into strips. Use a pizza cutter that you've rolled in flour to slice the pie dough into even strips. You can make the strips as wide or as thin as you want; if you are a beginner, you might want to make thick strips to simplify your life. I made my strips about 1 and 1/4 inches wide.
• Remember, if at ANY point your pie dough starts to get soft, stick the whole thing back in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes. I lift up my entire pastry cloth and transfer the whole thing to the freezer.
• Weave your lattice. Take every other strip of pie dough and lay it across your pie with a little space in between each one. See photos. Peel back every other strip that is on your pie, all the way to the edge.
• Lay an edge piece of dough perpendicular to the others, tucked up right against the edge. See photos! Replace the peeled back strips of dough to lay flat on top of the pie.
• Take the strips that are underneath, and peel them back. Lay down your next strip of dough. Replace the peeled back strips.
• Continue until the pie is completely weaved. I know this is hard to understand without a visual, so be sure to check the photos in the post! Remember, if at ANY point your pie dough becomes soft, toss all of it in the fridge or freezer. If you have a strip that tears, use a tiny bit of ice water to patch it with your fingers.
• Fold up the edges. You can trim any super long pieces of lattice that are hanging over the edge if you like, but I usually just leave them and incorporate them into the crust. For lattice pies, I like to fold the edges up and over onto themselves. It might look cracked and wimpy. That's ok. Pretend it is play dough and just mold it back into a smooth edge.
• Crimp the edge. Use your fingers to crimp the edge of your pie crust. I like to use 3 fingers (many people use their knuckles) to make a curved edge. See photos!
• Refrigerate or freeze the whole pie to make sure that the pie dough goes into the oven completely cold. That's what makes for a flaky crust!
• Don't forget to brush the top of your pie with egg or milk (or a mixture of both, my favorite) and sprinkle with granulated or raw sugar before putting it in the oven. This will make your pie nice and brown.
• Halfway through your bake time, add a tin foil pie shield on the edges of your pie to protect the edges from burning. See my flaky pie crust post for all the details.

LATTICE CRUST APPLE PIE

Steps:

• To make the dough by hand: Whisk together the flour, sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Using your fingers, work the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles yellow cornmeal mixed with bean-size bits of butter. (If the flour/butter mixture gets warm, refrigerate it for 10 minutes before proceeding.) Add the egg and stir the dough together with a fork or by hand in the bowl. If the dough is dry, sprinkle up to a tablespoon more of cold water over the mixture.
• To make the dough in a food processor: Pulse the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor fitted with the metal blade until combined. Add the butter and pulse until it resembles yellow cornmeal mixed with bean-size bits of butter, about 10 times. Add the egg and pulse 1 to 2 times; don't let the dough form into a ball in the machine. (If the dough is very dry, add up to a tablespoon more of cold water.) Remove the bowl from the machine, remove the blade and bring the dough together by hand.
• Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 1 hour.
• For the filling: Put the lemon juice in a medium bowl. Peel, halve and core the apples. Cut each half into 4 wedges. Toss the apple with the lemon juice. Add the sugar and toss to combine evenly.
• Melt the butter over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the apples and cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to simmer, about 2 minutes. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the apples soften and release most of their juices, about 7 minutes.
• Strain the apples in a colander over a medium bowl to catch all the juice. Shake the colander to get as much liquid as possible. Return the juices to the skillet, and simmer over medium heat until thickened and lightly caramelized, about 10 minutes.
• Toss the apples with the reduced juice and spices in a medium bowl. Set aside to cool completely. (This filling can be made up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated or frozen for up to 6 months.)
• To assemble the pie: Cut the dough in half. On a lightly floured surface, roll each half into a disc 11 to 12 inches wide. Layer the dough between pieces of parchment or wax paper on a baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 10 minutes.
• Place a baking sheet on a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Line the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan with one of the discs of dough, and trim it so it lays about 1/2 inch beyond the edge of the pan. Add the apple filling to the pan.
• Use a chef's knife or a pizza cutter and cut the second round into 1/2-inch thick strips. Lay strips of dough, evenly spaced, across the entire pie. Weave more strips of dough perpendicular through the previous strips to make a lattice or basket weave design across the entire pie. Trim the excess ends from the strips of dough. Pinch the bottom crust edge and lattice edge together, and flute the edge as desired. Brush the surface of the dough with egg and then sprinkle with sugar. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
• Bake the pie on the preheated baking sheet until the crust is golden, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool on a rack for at least 3 hours before serving. The pie keeps well at room temperature (covered) for 24 hours, or refrigerated for up to 4 days.

THE BEST PIE DOUGH FOR A LATTICE CRUST

Steps:

• Pulse the flour, shortening, sugar, salt and 4 tablespoons of the butter in a food processor until the mixture is the consistency of a fine meal. Add the remaining 8 tablespoons butter and pulse to pea-size pieces. Sprinkle the vodka and water over the mixture and pulse until the dough just comes together.
• Divide the dough between 2 pieces of plastic wrap, and gently pat each portion into a round. Wrap each round tightly and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour and up to overnight. The dough can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated, or frozen for up to 3 months.