Sweet Short-Crust Pastry
6 T unsalted butter, chilled and 1½ c unsifted flour
cut into ¼-inch bits ¼ tsp salt
2 T lard, chilled and cut into 1 T sugar
¼-inch bits 3 to 4 T ice water
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TO PREPARE THE PASTRY DOUGH: In a large chilled bowl, combine the
butter and lard bits, the flour, salt and sugar. With your fingertips, rub
the flour and fat together until the mixture looks like flakes of coarse
meal.Pour 3 tablespoons of ice water over the mixture all at once, toss together lightly and gather the dough into a ball. If the dough crumbles, add up to 1 tablespoon more ice water by drops until the particles adhere. Dust the pastry dough with a little flour and wrap it in wax paper. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before using.
Spread 1 tablespoon of softened butter over the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie pan with a pastry brush.
On a lightly floured surface, pat the chilled short-crust pastry dough into a rough circle about 1 inch thick. Dust a little flour over and under it, and roll it out from the center to within an inch of the far edge of the circle. Lift the dough and turn it clockwise about 2 inches; roll again from the center to within an inch or so of the far edge. Repeat--lifting, turning, rolling--until the circle is about 1/8 inch thick and 13 to 14 inches in diameter. If the dough sticks to the board or table, lift it gently with a metal spatula and sprinkle a little flour under it. Drape the dough over the rolling pin, lift it up, and unroll it slackly over the buttered pie pan. Gently press the dough into the bottom and sides of the pan, taking care not to stretch it. With a pair of scissors, cut off the excess dough from the edges, leaving a 1-inch overhang all around the outside rim. Tuck the overhang under the edge all around and crimp it with your fingers or the tines of a fork.
PIE FILLING
1 c unsifted flour 1 tsp baking soda
½ c light brown sugar 1 c boiling water
¼ c vegetable shortening, cut 2/3 c light corn syrup
into ¼-inch bits 1/3 c dark molasses
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Preheat the oven to 375°. To prepare the crumb topping, combine the
flour, brown sugar and shortening in a bowl and rub them together with
your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse meal.In a deep bowl, dissolve the soda in the boiling water. Then add the corn syrup and molasses, and stir to blend well. Pour the mixture into the unbaked pie shell and sprinkle the crumbs evenly over the top.
Bake the shoofly pie in the middle of the oven for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350° and continue baking for about 25 minutes longer, or until the filling is set and does not quiver when the pie pan is gently shaken from side to side. Do not overbake or the filling will become too dry. Cool the pie to room temperature before serving, and accompany it if you like with sweetened whipped cream or scoops of vanilla ice cream. Makes one 9-inch pie.
