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LARD PIE CRUST 
I know in this day it is not considered healthy to use animal fats in our diet. This is a recipe that my grandmother used for as long as I can remember. The lard was usually freshly rendered from butchering, the stove was an old monarch wood, and the fruit inside the pie was usually home grown and canned by her. She also took first prize every time she entered them in the fair. She just left us this year at the age of 100, and not from heart disease.

I use this crust when I want to impress company with a pie.

8 OR 9-INCH CRUST:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup lard
2 tbsp. water

9-INCH TWO CRUST:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
2/3 cup lard
1/4 cup water

Mix flour and salt in a bowl. Cut in lard with pastry blender until small pea size particles are obtained. Sprinkle with water a little at a time. Mix with fork until flour is moist. Press into a ball and turn out onto a floured board. If making a two crust pie divide in half.

Roll out with rolling pin. Try not to use too much extra flour because it makes the crust tough. Roll out to desired size. Usually about 1-inch bigger around than the tin. Fold pastry in half and move up to pan. Unfold and put pastry into pan. Try not to stretch the pastry because this causes shrinking in baking. Sprinkle the top crust with a little sugar to evenly brown.

recipe reviews
Lard Pie Crust
   #137892
 Judy (United States) says:
My mother always used lard for her pies and it was great, mom will be 90 very soon and would love to have another pie she made.
   #140539
 Maggie Hesketh (Ontario) says:
Love this recipe, found I needed a bit more water, but it's probably the best crust I have ever made! Thanks for sharing!
   #144942
 Ancel Keys (Colorado) says:
Yep, it's true, seed oils are horrible for you. Lard is where it's at It's best to use leaf lard for that extra extra awesome. It's getting easier to find too with the whole Paleo thing and people embracing real lard. The best is the Pure Lard and Leaf Lard from an awesome company called Fatworks. Tedergrass Farms also makes lard for a bit less. If you have never tried tallow in place of lard you should. A good tallow will make a moister crust and if it's good quality it will not taste beefy at all. Thanks for the recipe.
   #145069
 Rebecca (California) says:
I can get a package of pork fat from a local place that raises their own cows for butcher. It is super easy to render it yourself on the stove. If you go slow with the heat, it does not have a pronounced pork flavor. Then you can keep it in the fridge if you have room. Some people just leave it in the pantry in a mason jar. I do the same with beef fat, whuch is excellent for any deep frying. I usw lard and coconut oil the most. I also use butter. I melt it first if recipe calls for a liquid oil. The only thing to consider is it wont work in baked good like cake the same way. Since i rarely make cakes, i just use sunflower or similar for those. It is ok to intake omega 6 once in a while if you arent eating any processed packaged foods. If you do eat packaged foods, then you are already overloaded on omega 6. Now . all that being said, this crust recipe is wonderful. I was looking for a simple recipe that didnt have a million ingredients and didnt use butter because butter is far more expensive than lard in my case. Wonderful, thanks for the simple old fashioned recipe.
   #146514
 Elizabeth W (Louisiana) says:
For years, I made pie crusts that were never as good as my Grandma's using Crisco or store-bought lard. I was beginning to think those childhood memories of an amazingly delicious, flaky pie crust were something my mind had idealized. But last month, I bought some ground pork fat from a local farm, rendered it in my crock-pot (easy!) and used this crust recipe to bake the best apple pie my family has ever had! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
 #146572
 Tammy (New York) says:
My husband and I just rendered fat from a butchered pig - very easy to do and excited to try it for our holiday pie crusts. Like many have mentioned, I miss my grandmother's pies.. this will be like going back to my childhood!
   #147345
 Coco (Pennsylvania) says:
Amazing pie crust! Light, flaky, tender and delicious. I will never use another crust recipe.
 #147452
 Sherri Lunsford (North Carolina) says:
I found "organic" lard, pigs that are raised outdoors with no hormones or antibiotics, at my local farmer's market.
   #150304
 George Laughlin (Colorado) says:
Pretty much the same recipe my mother gave me. Works wonderfully! Thanks for sharing... Lard also is the best for scratch pancakes as well...
   #151199
 S. mort (Pennsylvania) says:
My dough was a bit sticky, but since I measure more by guess than by the cup or spoon, I can't complain. The family all loved it. A suggestion for locating good lard: If you have any Mennonite or Amish communities near you, check to see if they may sell it, since many sell their baked goods as well. I live in western PA, and get mine from a Mennonite store in Ohio, along with other pure groceries they offer. It's well worth the trip!
   #154044
 G. Butler (Ohio) says:
Just like the pie crust my West Virginia neighbor used to make! She told me a crust should be so flaky that you can lift separate layers with a fork and this is certainly it.
   #157814
 Dot (Ohio) says:
My mother in-law always used this same recipe and her pie crusts were the best ever! Might I suggest, she also used "ice water" in making her crusts.
   #160848
 Elaine H. Stevens (Maine) says:
I tried this recipe for the first time for a Thanksgiving blueberry pie. I was ecstatic with the results. I have been so disappointed so many times. This crust is a winner AND is so flaky. Great, Great!
 #161894
 Robertthebruce62 (Ohio) says:
It has recently been PROVEN that all these different oils are killing us! They turn into VERY harmful substances there conciseness is to go back to lard and coconut oil my grandparents lived well into their nineties and they all ate things cooked in lard !
   #164546
 Elaine H. Stevens (Maine) says:
This pie crust is the best I've EVER MADE! I render my own lard and so easy to make! WOW! This is what I've been looking for - it is great.

 

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