The ‘Absolutely Genius’ Ingredient You Should Be Adding to Your Pie Crust ...Saudi Arabia

Pie crust has humbled every last one of us. Whether you’re wrestling with homemade dough or dealing with a store-bought crust, it has a sneaky way of falling apart, cracking and crumbling. And during Thanksgiving? Well, that simply won’t do. Problems with pie crust during the busy holiday season can be enough to make even seasoned bakers swear off pastry altogether and just go for the store-bought pie. So when I spotted a flood of comments calling one particular pie crust a “go-to” foolproof recipe online, my curiosity was piqued. And the secret? Probably something you have in your fridge right this very minute.This clever recipe comes from author, TV baking personality and pastry mastermind Dan Langan, whose cookbook, Bake Your Heart Out, is all about delivering home-baker-friendly techniques with crave-worthy results. His pie dough has taken over his social media feeds, inspiring fans to roll it out for everything from fancy fruit pies to lattice-top stunners. One Instagram fan wrote, “Have made this crust three times this year—and will be doing so four more times before the year is up—and it’s fantastic! I am so grateful you’ve shared it for the home bakers!” Another added, “What??? Can’t wait to try this bc my crusts always crack when I roll them. I was about to give up. You’ve given me a reason to keep going. ?” With comments like that, I knew I had to give it a go. I tried the crust myself and also went straight to the source, asking Langan about what inspired him to put this particular ingredient in pie dough, why his method is so reliable and how this ingredient changes the game for home bakers. His answers explain exactly why this genius hack works so well, and why it just might become your new go-to dough.Related: I Tried Costco’s Thanksgiving Pies and Ranked Them Worst to Best

Langan's absolutely genius pie crust addition? Cream cheese.

Langan first learned about cream cheese pie crust from baking legend Rose Levy Beranbaum. “I certainly didn’t invent the idea of adding cream cheese to pie crust,” he tells Parade. But when he started writing his book, he knew he wanted a pie crust that was easy to work with and one that wouldn’t intimidate home bakers. “Many people get tripped up by the sometimes finicky nature of rolling and shaping pie crust,” he says. “Enter this cream cheese pie crust recipe, which is forgiving and easy to handle.”?? SIGN UP to get delicious recipes, handy kitchen hacks & more in our daily Parade Eats newsletter. ??

4 Reasons You'll Love Cream Cheese Pie Crust

“Because cream cheese is an emulsion, and about 50% water, it brings this dough together easily and makes for a malleable and easy-to-handle final dough," explains Langan. That built-in moisture means you don’t have to guess how much water is “enough,” a common pitfall in traditional pie dough making.

Plus, "In my experience, this recipe creates a dough that you can fold over, pick up and reposition without fear that it will break or crack,” he adds.Related: The Simple But Fancy Way to Make Store-Bought Pie Crust 10x Better

2. It tastes better

Flavor-wise, cream cheese adds a subtle tang that makes the crust delicious on its own, something Langan says is rare (and we agree!). “I find that it’s common for people to leave the crimped crust of a pie on their plate,” he explains, “but the cream cheese as well as the balance of salt and sugar make this pie crust truly delicious on its own, so you'll want to eat it.”

Langan’s recipe is specifically designed to be made in a stand mixer, which makes the process so easy. “I designed mine to be made in a stand mixer, which takes warm hands out of the equation, and guarantees that the butter fat stays in defined pieces (doesn't melt while mixing), which in turn ensures flakiness when it bakes,” he says.

4. It's all-purpose

Langan gives this crust the green light for sweet or savory uses—whatever your heart desires. “I use this recipe for everything,” he shares. “Chicken pot pie throughout the winter, apple pie, pumpkin pie, cutouts and decorations—this is my go-to as-is. No changes needed.”Related: The Clever Butter Trick That Will Make Making Pies So Much Easier

Ingredients Needed for Cream Cheese Pie Crust

Here’s the full ingredient lineup straight from Langan’s recipe. (You can also see the full recipe in his Instagram caption.) This amount makes enough for two single-crust pies or one double-crust pie, including a lattice top:

You’ll need 2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour, 2 tablespoons light brown sugar, 1 1/4 teaspoons fine salt, 14 tablespoons cold unsalted butter cut into 1/2-inch cubes, 4 ounces cold full-fat cream cheese cut into 1-inch cubes, and 2 1/2 tablespoons cold water.A couple of notes on ingredients here: Langan says if you plan to use the dough for a savory pie, don’t worry about the small amount of sugar in it—it won’t make the dough overly sweet. “The sugar adds tenderness, helps browning and adds flavor, but doesn't make this sweet to the tongue,” he says. He also prefers block cream cheese over whipped, and says he gets that questions a ton. “Whipped cream cheese is wonderful for topping bagels, but the additional air and stabilizers/add-ins can become a wild card…Block cream cheese is standard,” he explains.Related: The Super Smart Store-Bought Pie Crust Trick We Wish We’d Known About Sooner

How To Make Cream Cheese Pie Crust

Start by combining the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low for 30 seconds. Add the cold butter and cream cheese all at once and continue mixing on low for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs with a few intact pea-sized pieces of butter.

Drizzle the cold water into the bowl and mix on low for another 10 to 15 seconds, just until small clumps start forming. (Langan describes them as looking “a bit like popcorn.”) Turn the mixture out onto your work surface and bring everything together into a mound. Press and knead it 3 or 4 times until the dough becomes cohesive with no dry spots.

For a double-crust or lattice pie, divide the dough into two portions: Two-thirds of the dough for one disk and one-third of the dough for the second. For two single-crust pies, divide the dough evenly. Press each portion into a 1/2-inch thick disk, wrap in plastic, and chill for at least two hours or up to two days. The dough also freezes beautifully for up to two months, Langan says.

In hotter months, or if your kitchen is overheated during peak baking times, freeze your mixer bowl and paddle for maximum dough deliciousness. “This guarantees a cool mix so the chunks of butter remain and end up in the dough, but this isn't much of a concern during colder months,” Langan says.

2. Don’t be afraid to handle

This dough is sturdier, more flexible and less crack-prone than traditional pie crust recipes, so don’t be afraid to handle it a little more.

3. Don't forget to chill

This info is in Langan's recipe, but it bears repeating. Make sure to chill the dough in rounds for at least two hours before attempting to roll it out (planning ahead is your friend here).

Related: The Simple Pie Crust Trick That Fans Are Calling ‘Brilliant’

Cream Cheese Pie Crust: My Honest Thoughts

Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel

I bake all the time, but I've got to say, making pie dough has always been a little tricky for me. It always ends up being a little bit stubborn, and the end result is usually a hole-ridden, broken mess—something I explain away to my dinner guests as "rustic." So, when I saw this pretty straightforward recipe with a little something extra added in, I got excited. And this one 100% delivered. Incorporating the cream cheese into the pie dough meant that my dough was almost embarrassingly easy to roll out, not to mention that I had a lot of fun playing around with different crimping methods I found on TikTok without my dough turning on me. The dough is sturdy, but not tough or dry, and bakes up beautifully with nary a break in sight. I made a sweet pie with mine, but after trying it out, I see what Langan means when he says that you can definitely use this for savory pies as well; the small amount of brown sugar is nearly undetectable.

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