Our copycat Marie Callender's Pie Crust recipe makes a perfectly tender and flaky pie shells for sweet or savory pies. Simple to make, and tastes just like the original! It's naturally vegan so you're everyone can enjoy it.
So get your pie dish ready and let's get baking!
Why You'll Love This Vegan Pie Crust Recipe
Making pie crust from scratch can be intimidating, but with this recipe it's easy. This copycat Marie Callender's pastry shells are simple to make and results in a delicious, flaky crust every time. Plus, it's cheaper than store bought pie crust!
You can use this pie crust recipe for our Angus Barn Chocolate Chess Pie recipe, and it does not require blind baking! To use this Marie Callender's pie crust in our No Bake Key Lime Pie, you will first need to blind bake it (instructions are below).
These flaky pie shells are dairy free, and just like Marie Callender's, is considered vegan. Give it a try and you'll never go back to store-bought again.
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love This Vegan Pie Crust Recipe
- Copycat Marie Callender Pie Crust Ingredients
- How To Make Marie Callender Pie Crusts
- How To Blind Bake a Pie Crust
- Tips for Success
- Substitutions and Variations
- Serving Suggestions
- Storage Options
- Related Recipes
- Equipment
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Delish Ideas
- Copycat Marie Callender Pie Crust Recipe
Copycat Marie Callender Pie Crust Ingredients
If you're a fan of Marie Callender's, and you've been looking for a recipe for their signature pie shells, look no further. This recipe yields one double crust (top and bottom crust) pie crust.
- All purpose flour
- Sugar
- Salt
- Vegetable Shortening
- Ice Water
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How To Make Marie Callender Pie Crusts
The best trick I know for flaky pie shells is to freeze the shortening and then grate or cut it up into smaller pieces. And, always use ice water when adding the water.
Mix The Dry Ingredients
- Mix the flour with the sugar and salt.
- Use a large mixing bowl, as you need room to cut in the shortening.
Cut in the Fat
- Cut in the vegetable shortening until you get pea size bits throughout the mixture.
Add the Ice Water
- Add ice water in 1 to 2 tablespoon increments, tossing with each addition.
- Repeat until mixture just holds together when scrunched in your hand.
Form Dough Into A Ball
- Tip the bowl of pie crust mixture out on a clean counter or pie mat.
- Pull the rough, shaggy dough together using your hands, into a ball.
Chill The Dough Balls
- Split the ball of dough in half, and form two thick discs, each about 6" in diameter.
- Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
Roll Out Pie The Crusts
- Roll out one of the chilled discs on a lightly floured counter or pastry mat.
- Roll up with your rolling pin and center on the pie plate.
- Trim excess and crimp the edges around the pie plate.
PRO TIP: Be sure to lightly flour the rolling pin, and roll the pie crust out 2" larger than the pie plate.
Fill Or Blind Bake The Pie Crust
Fill your pie shells with pie filling and bake your pie for fillings like fruit, meat and quiche. For cream based pies, you will first need to blind bake the pie shells.
Why, and what is blind baking? A blind bake is simply partially baking the pie shells before adding the filling. Once the pie shells are cooled you add the cream filling and bake the pie, or for no bake pies, refrigerate it.
Why do we blind bake for a custard or cream pie? Because the bottom crust sometimes gets soggy from the custard before it has a chance to actually cook.
How To Blind Bake a Pie Crust
- You will line the pie pan fitted with the crimped crust with either aluminum foil or parchment paper. Wax paper will do in a pinch. Then, either use pie weights or one or two lbs of dry beans or rice. I prefer the dry beans.
- Pour the dry beans onto the parchment or aluminum foil covered pie crust. Bake it in the oven at 400° F. Remove the pie pan and lift off the aluminum foil or parchment paper, with the beans. Save the beans, you can use them again.
- Put the pie shells back in the oven to brown for another 8 minutes. To prevent the crimped edges from getting too brown, use a silicone pie crust shield. Let the crust cool. After it has cooled it is ready for a no bake pie filling or a custard filling that requires baking.
Tips for Success
- You can use dry beans or rice for 'pie weights.
- If you don't have parchment paper, wax paper will also work.
- Keep a couple rolled out and crimped pie crusts in your freezer, you can bake thing quickly as needed.
Substitutions and Variations
- For a richer pastry, use unsalted butter.
- No pastry cutter? Try this tick: Freeze your butter and then grate it into the flour while the butter is still frozen. Toss the grated butter and flour to coat and proceed with your recipe.
Serving Suggestions
- If you don't like graham cracker crusts with your no bake pies, you can blind bake (bake the pie shell without any filling) before filling.
- When the pie shells are cooled, simply pour your no bake filling.
Storage Options
- You can refrigerate uncooked pastry dough for up to three days, after that it's better to freeze it.
- This recipe freeze really well. You can freeze it at the disc stage, rolled out into pie pans, or even pre baked and then frozen.
- Defrost the uncooked dough in the refrigerator to reduce condensation. It will make rolling it out easier also.
Related Recipes
- Cast Iron Chicken Pot Pie
- Blueberry Strawberry Pie
- Peach Pie Crumble
- Triple Berry Slab Pie
- Rhubarb Dump Cake
Equipment
Good pastry equipment is vital to getting the results you hope for. You will need a rolling pin and pastry blender at the minimum. A pastry mat has pre defined circles that match up with various baking tin sizes.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Blind baking is a process where you either fully or partially bake a pie shell, then add fillings per your recipe.
There are two times when blind baking is necessary: when making a custard pie or when the pie filling is unbaked. With a custard pies, like a pumpkin pies, the moisture in the filling can make the crust soggy before it has time to actually bake.
The dough should be â…›" thick and 2" wider than the pie plate.
To prevent shrinkage, or slopping down into the pie plate while blind baking, be sure to use enough pie weights. This will prevent the pie crust from shrinking.
It's not necessary to grease and flour a pie pan. If you grease a pie pan, you can end up with a texture you don't want. For a flaky and tender pie crust, do not grease the pan.
Fats contribute to the flakiness and tenderness of pastry by being layered in between sheets of thin dough. It can also be cut in or rubbed into the flour as pea-sized shapes before the final dough is made. The fat melts during baking, leaving air spaces.
More Delish Ideas
Copycat Marie Callender Pie Crust Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3¼ cups flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1¼ teaspoon salt
- 9 oz vegetable shortening chilled
- ½ cup ice water
Instructions
Make the Pie Dough
- Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl.3¼ cups flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1¼ teaspoon salt
- Add the chilled shortening. Use a pastry blender or fork to cut the shortening into the flour mixture. Cut in until you have pea sized lumps throughout.9 oz vegetable shortening
- Sprinkle the ice water into the mixture in 1 to 2 tablespoon increments at a time, tossing with a fork after each addition of water. Add ice water until the flour mixture is moistened but still looks crumbly. You will know you have enough water added when you can squeeze the flour in your hand and it clumps together.½ cup ice water
- Transfer the pie crust mixture to a cutting board, parchment paper, or pastry mat. Using both hands, pull all the loose bits together and form a large ball.
- Divide the ball in half, shaping each into a thick disc about 6" diameter. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Rolling the Pie Crust Out
- To roll the pie crust out, use a lightly floured rolling pin and a lightly floured counter, parchment paper, or pastry mat. Roll the pie dough pastry into a circle that is 2" larger than the diameter of your pie dish.
- Roll the pie dough pastry over the rolling pin to transfer it to the pie dish. Center it and trim any excess. Crimp the edges all around the top.
- If you are pre-baking, preheat the oven to 400° F. Prick the surface of the pie crust with a fork and then pop it in the freezer for 20 minutes.
- Remove from the freezer, line with parchment paper and fill with pie weights.
- Bake for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven and lift off the parchment paper and pie weights. Return to the oven for 8 more minutes of cook time, or until golden brown.
- Cool, then fill with your pie filling. Both the unbaked pie crust and the pre baked pie crusts can be frozen and used just like any frozen store bought pie crust.
Notes
- You can freeze your shortening and grate or chunk it up ahead of time. This makes it easier to cut ito the flour in pea size bits.
- You can use dry beans or rice for 'pie weights.
- If you don't have parchment paper, wax paper will also work.
- Keep a couple rolled out and crimped pie crusts in your freezer, you can bake thing quickly as needed.
Traci
There are no measurements given for ingredients.
Kelly Bloom
Hi, I got your note about ingredients missing in the Marie Callenders Pie Crust recipe. They are not missing, as post is only an overview of the actual recipe. All ingredient amounts and more detailed instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post: https://smellslikedelish.com/print/10301/