Butter and Lard Pie Crust

Combine the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Place the top on and pulse a couple of times to combine the dry ingredients. Remove the top and scatter the butter and lard pieces over the flour. Put the top back on and process in short pulses until the fat and flour have formed small clumps.Begin adding the ice water through the feed tube, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing quickly until the dough begins to form a ball.

Turn the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Bring the ends of the wrap up over the ball of dough and press gently, forming the dough into a disk.Refrigerate the dough at least 30 minutes.Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator and unwrap.Cut the disk in two pieces, one slightly larger than the other. This is because the bottom crust requires more dough than the top crust. Re wrap the smaller piece of dough and return it to the refrigerator. Roll the larger piece of dough out on a lightly floured board until it is slightly larger than the pie plate. When the crust is rolled to the proper size, gently drape one end of the crust over the rolling pin and lift it.Slide the pie plate underneath and lower the crust into the pan.Press the dough gently and quickly aginst the sides of the pie pan.Trim the edges of the dough even with the edge of the pie plate.

Before filling or pre baking, return the crust to the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
After you have filled the chilled crust, remove the smaller piece of the dough from the refrigerator. Unwrap and roll it out on a lightly floured board to slightly larger than the top of the pie.Drape the crust over the filling and crimp the edges to seal.Make a few cuts in the top crust to vent steam when baking. bake according to the directions for the type of pie you are making.