As I mention in the clip, you really want to use a food processor for this. You can certainly use a wire pastry blender and do it by hand, but it�ll take a while, and mixing in the ice water is so much easier with whirling blades. I�m not sure I�ve ever achieved that same gorgeous �breadcrumb� texture blending by hand.
If you decide to use this pastry for a savory recipe, I�d suggest cutting the sugar down a bit, but don�t be tempted to leave it out. I used the leftover dough from the apple turnovers video, which had all the sugar, for some duck pot pies, and it was really good, but maybe just a tiny bit sweet.
If you�re going to use this recipe for some Easter pies or brunch desserts, I hope you like the dough as much as I did. Just make sure your butter cubes are frozen, and your ice water is, well, ice-cold water. These are the keys. Do that, and you�ll have a pastry dough that tastes, feels, and sounds fantastic. I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for about 1 pound pie dough (enough for 1 large pie or 4 turnovers):
2 cups flour (measure carefully, do not pack!)
1/2 cup unsalted butter (4 oz)
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
6 tbsp ice water