A classic Russian pie dough made with basic ingredients, great for pies, tarts, cookies and other desserts.
- 2-3 egg yolks
- 3/4 cups sugar, granulated
- 1 cup butter, unsalted, room temperature
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 Tbsp vinegar
- 2.5 - 3 cups 440 g - all purpose flour
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With a whisk in a large bowl whisk together 2-3 egg yolks, 3/4 cups sugar, and 2 sticks room temperature butter until smooth, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. *Tip: use a mixer with whisk attachment to speed up the process*, add 1/4 cups sour cream, 1 tsp vanilla, then combine the 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1/2 tablespoons vinegar and add them as well. Lastly, add the 2 tsp of baking powder and whisk until smooth again.
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Add 2.5 cups flour and mix together with a spoon, then with your hands. Gently knead the dough to bring it together. Add another 1/2 a cup or so to make a soft dough that does not stick to hands.
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Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour for best results, or use right away.
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To make Pirog that would have just the Pirog base, filling and then topped with meringue use a 12 in x 17-inch baking sheet and spread the filling evenly along the bottom of the pan.
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If you would like it to have lattice covering the filling then use a 9-inch x 13-inch cake pan and use only 2/3 of the dough for the base and 1/3 of the dough for the lattice.
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To spread the dough along the bottom of the pan you can use your own hands or the bottom of the measuring cup.
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With this portion of the dough, you can also make two 9.5 inches round pirogy's. If you are making Pirog it with a filling that is somewhat runny you can make a dough border to prevent the filling from spilling and burning the bottom of the crust. It might be easier to line the dough with plastic wrap and then use a measuring cup to press down the dough into a base.
The dough can be refrigerated up to 3 days before baking.