The Store-Bought Pie Crust Ina Garten Actually Approves

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When the Barefoot Contessa — also known to an adoring public as the culinary celebrity and cookbook author Ina Garten — famously said that "store-bought is fine," that should have been enough to slake the nerves of home kitchen shortcut seekers everywhere. But some home cooks still debate whether their recipes are truly homemade when a little pre-packaged assistance is in play. Pies can be a particular source of consternation. When you use, for example, frozen crust and canned filling, have you truly crafted a confection of your own? We say yes, but if you're still truly grieved by this sweet dilemma, break out a Garten-approved pie shell and put your conscience to rest.

"I use Wholly Wholesome, but you can use any good quality frozen pie crust," Garten wrote in reply to a question posted to her Instagram page. "Just make sure to defrost it overnight in the fridge before baking!" A two-pack of Wholly Wholesome rolled dough sells for about $10 online. This is, of course, quite a bit more than the absolute cheapest store-bought pie crust we could find. But Garten's blessing is worth the extra spend.

As with scratch-made crust, the constitution of rolled dough is a primary concern. It can be about as delicate as wet crepe paper, and is thus very liable to tear. If you have made some yourself, you might have extras, but when rolled dough comes out of a box, there's less room for error. Rolling or unfolding the sheet directly into your pie tin is a bit safer in this regard than relocating it in its full form. A pinch of flour and water mixed together can also act as a kind of pastry spackle to help stabilize it.

Another readymade pie crust peril is also what makes it necessarily versatile: Blandness. While your own recipe might include something like a bit of zippy lemon zest or vanilla extract, the grocery stuff is intended to be plain. This neutrality makes it an ideal canvas to zhuzh up with a brush of melted butter, a sprinkle of sugar and cinnamon, or some finely crushed nuts, depending on what lies inside.