Makes enough dough for 1 large (11- or 12-inch) quiche shell.
• 1½ cups flour
• ½ to ¾ tsp. salt
• ½ cup butter, well chilled
• scant ⅓ cup ice water
1. Sift together the flour and the salt. Slice the cold butter rapidly and drop the slices into the flour. With a pastry blender or two sharp knives, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse corn meal.
2. Sprinkle the ice water over the flour-butter mixture and stir it in very quickly with a fork, until the dough gathers together. Form the dough into a ball, wrap it in wax paper or foil, and chill it for about 2 hours.
PREPARING A QUICHE OR TART SHELL
1. On a lightly floured surface, roll the chilled dough out in a circle about 2½ inches larger than your quiche pan. (I like to use an 11- or 12-inch pan.) Roll the circle of dough loosely around your rolling pin and unroll it over the quiche pan, centering it as well as possible. Press the sides in against the rim of the pan, pushing the extra dough down a bit to make an edge that is slightly thicker than the bottom. Trim the dough off with a sharp knife, about ¼ inch above the rim of the pan.
2. Using a pastry crimper or the blunt end of a kitchen knife, crimp the ridge of dough neatly just above the rim of the pan. Prick the bottom of the shell all over with a fork, and chill the shell for ½ hour.
PREBAKING A QUICHE OR TART SHELL
1. Line the inside of the pastry shell with a piece of aluminum foil and fill it with dried beans or rice (which can be kept in a jar and reused for this purpose forever).
2. Bake the shell in a preheated 450-degree oven for about 8 minutes, then remove the beans and foil, prick again with a fork, and return to the hot oven for another 4 to 5 minutes, or until the bottom of the shell begins to color. Allow the shell to cool slightly on a rack, then fill and finish baking according to recipe.
