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1
Blend together flour, butter, shortening, and salt in a bowl with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until most of mixture resembles coarse meal with small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps.
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2
Drizzle evenly with 2 tablespoons ice water and gently stir with a fork (or pulse in food processor) until incorporated.
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3
Squeeze a small handful: If it doesn't hold together, add more ice water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, stirring (or pulsing) until just incorporated, then test again.
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4
(If you overwork mixture, pastry will be tough.)
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5
Turn out mixture onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions.
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6
With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion.
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7
Gather dough together with a pastry scraper and press into a ball, then flatten into a 5-inch disk.
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8
Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.
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9
Roll out dough with a floured rolling pin into a 12-inch round on a lightly floured surface and fit into pie plate.
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10
Trim excess dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang, then fold overhang under pastry and press against rim to reinforce edge.
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11
Decoratively crimp edge and lightly prick bottom and side with a fork.
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12
Chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
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13
Preheat oven to 375F.
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14
Line chilled shell with foil and fill with pie weights.
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15
Bake in middle of oven until pastry is pale golden along rim and set underneath weights, about 20 minutes.
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16
Carefully remove foil and weights and bake shell until pale golden all over, about 10 minutes more.
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17
Cool completely in plate on a rack.
