Makes one 9- to 9½-inch crust, for a 9- to 9½-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom or a 9-inch pie pan
This is the dough for savory tarts, like the Tomato Tart with Mustard and Ricotta, and the one you should roll out when you’re making your favorite quiche. But you can use it for sweet tarts, too, if you’d like.
Working Ahead
You can refrigerate the dough for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 2 months. While you can freeze the fully baked crust, wrapped airtight, for up to 2 months, I prefer to freeze it unbaked in the pan, wrapped tightly in aluminum foil, with the foil pressed against the crust to create as tight a seal as possible. Bake it directly from the freezer — it will have a fresher flavor. Just add about 5 minutes to the baking time.
Put the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse to blend. Scatter the pieces of butter over the dry ingredients and pulse until the butter is cut in coarsely — you’ll have some pieces the size of oatmeal flakes and some the size of peas. Beat the egg and water together and add to the machine in three additions, pulsing after each bit goes in. Then whir until the dough forms moist clumps and curds — you’re aiming for a moist dough that holds together when pinched.
Shape the dough into a disk, pat it down to flatten it and put it between sheets of parchment paper. Roll the dough out evenly, turning it over frequently and lifting the paper often so that it doesn’t roll into the dough and form creases. Roll the dough into a circle that’s about 11 inches in diameter. If you’re making a pie now, have a buttered 9-inch pan and a baking sheet at hand. If the dough is still cool, you can fit it into the tart (or pie) pan now; if it’s not, slide it, still between the paper, onto a baking sheet and refrigerate it for 2 hours, or up to 3 days; or freeze it for 1 hour, or (well wrapped) for up to 2 months. If you’re chilling or freezing for more than a few hours, wrap the dough airtight.
If the dough has been chilled, let it rest on the counter until it’s just pliable enough to bend without breaking. Remove the paper, fit the dough into the buttered tart pan and trim the excess dough even with the edge of the pan. (If you’d like, you can fold the excess over and make a thicker wall around the sides of the tart.) Prick the crust all over with the tines of a fork and freeze for at least 30 minutes — an hour or two is better — or up to 2 months before baking.
To partially bake the crust: Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 400 degrees F. Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil and fit it snugly against the crust. Fill it with dried beans or rice (which you can reuse for crusts, but not for eating).
Bake the crust for 25 minutes, then carefully remove the foil and weights. If the crust has puffed, press it down gently with the back of a spoon. Transfer the crust to a rack (leave it in its pan).
To fully bake the crust: Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 400 degrees F. Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil and fit it snugly against the crust. Fill it with dried beans or rice (which you can reuse for crusts, but not for eating).
Bake the crust for 25 minutes, then carefully remove the foil and weights. If the crust has puffed, press it down gently with the back of a spoon. Bake the crust for another 7 to 10 minutes, until it is firm and golden brown. Transfer the crust to a rack (leave it in its pan).