Shot Glasses Are The Perfect Unexpected Hack For Mini Pie Crusts
While shot glasses are typically associated with decidedly unwholesome pursuits and questionable behaviors, there's a neat and manifestly virtuous hack that shows how they can also be a huge benefit in the kitchen. As outlined in a short video on Instagram, shot glasses can help you create the perfect mini pie crusts without much fuss or hassle.
Like many people, you're probably most familiar with standard-sized pie crusts, which are ideal for both sweet and savory recipes. Mini pie crusts are similarly versatile, as they can be filled with everything from chicken to pudding, to pecans to baked apples, beef, cheese, cherries, and numerous other ingredients. However, mini crusts do pose a complication. Most bakers prepare their crusts in muffin tins, which happen to be the perfect size. Ensuring the mini crusts are flush against the bottom of the tin can prove quite challenging unless you prefer your tiny pies with finger indentations. Fortunately, this ingenious shot glass hack can help you avoid such an unwanted outcome.
Shot glasses: a baker's best friend?
This deftly clever and handy Instagram tip couldn't be simpler or more effective. To get started, line the muffin or cupcake tin with raw mini pie crusts. While you can feel free to make your own dough, rest assured that you can easily find pre-made pie crust dough in a variety of sizes at most grocery stores. Line up each mini crust with the openings in the muffin tin, taking care to center the dough as well as possible. This will be important later.
Once each crust has been carefully placed on the muffin tin, it's time to grab your favorite shot glass from your collection. Take the glass with the bottom facing down and gently push it into the pie crust, until the dough sinks down into the tin. The dough should be flat against the bottom of the tin, but don't press too hard or you could cause the pie crust to thin out. After repeating the process on each crust, take your desired fillings and add them to the dough. Now that you've saved time with this efficient baking hack, you can put more energy into beautifying your mini pies.
Tips for topping mini pie crusts
Pies are unique in that you usually need the right decorating tips in order to make them look as good as they taste, especially after you've put so much effort into perfecting their crusts. Mini pies are no exception, although decorating them can prove a little more challenging due to their small size. If you're making a custard-based pie, you must exercise caution when filling the crust. In this case, stop pouring custard when you're about ⅛ inch from the top of the dough to avoid spillage. This way, the creamy mixture will have room to rise without overflowing.
If you want your mini pies to have an attractive lattice top, you'll need to take a few crucial steps. First, make sure the knife you use to cut the dough into strips is extremely sharp. You can also use a pizza cutter if you have one on hand. Once the strips are cut, chill them in the refrigerator to ensure easier workability (thinner dough strips get warmer quicker, which makes placing them in the desired pattern a lot more difficult). Along with lattice tops, you can also sprinkle some graham cracker crumble over the pies for a simpler and faster alternative. This will ensure that your mini pies are photo ready and perfectly shaped for any occasion or gathering.