Feelin' Flaky

Longing to achieve the perfect, tender, flaky pie crust?  Keep these tips in mind:

• Don't mix the dough perfectly.  You actually want to have some big, distinctive chunks of butter in the mix.  And, on that note, minimize the amount of time you spend working the dough with your hands...hands generate heat, heat melts butter.
• Plan to let your dough relax for a bit in the fridge; usually the minimum is four hours, but you can even let it go up to 3 days.  Why let it relax?  Aging the dough releases acids that relax the gluten in the mixture, and relaxed gluten produces a tender crust.
• Keep the dough refrigerator cold throughout the process, right up until it goes in the oven.  Cold is the key to a flaky crust.

Mmm...tasty!