Swapped butter for shortening in my pie crust and wow what a difference

I always used butter because everyone says it tastes better, but my crusts kept shrinking. After 4 tries my grandma finally told me to swap half the butter for shortening. Tried it with an apple pie last Sunday and the crust held its shape perfectly and was still flaky. Has anyone else dealt with pie crust shrinkage or am I the only one?

3 comments

3 Comments

milap351mo agoMost Upvoted

That "always use butter" thing is just one of those old school rules people never question, and I've noticed the same stubbornness with things like only using cast iron or refusing to preheat an oven properly. Once you find what actually works for you in the kitchen it totally changes everything.

aaron_wilson171mo ago

Buddy of mine did the same and said it saved his holiday pies.

the_sarah1mo ago

I've read that adding a little cornstarch slurry works just as well for thickening without changing the flavor. Sounds like your buddy cracked the code on that one.