Who among pie lovers is not on an eternal quest for the perfect pie crust? Penelope, too. After trying recipes that left a bitter taste in her mouth, or an underdone crust or overworked dough, this is the one that finally succeeded. And more than once.

• 3 cups sifted flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 8 oz butter
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup milk

Sift the flour into the bowl of an electric mixer. Most recipes don’t require it, but flour likes to be sifted. Besides, it’s like watching snow falling. Quiet yet merry.

Add in the salt. Cut the butter into bits and put them in, too. Use the paddle attachment on an electric mixer, setting it on low, and not any higher than number 2. Mix until the dough becomes the texture of fine cornmeal. It doesn’t take long, so don’t start working on your scrapbook.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg and the milk. Stream it into the flour mixture, increasing the speed until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl and forms a ball.

That’s it. Don’t overwork the dough. It still has to be rolled out.

Divide the dough into three balls. Put two in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes, and one in the freezer for whenever. Penelope heard from a well known chef (who shall remain nameless) that the freezer dough could be taken out ten minutes before using it. But a lot of irate pie rollers ruined their manicures fighting with still-frozen dough. So the out-of-the-freezer time depends on the strength of your hands and the state of your manicure. Anyway, when the dough in the fridge is sufficiently chilled, lightly flour a board and roll it out.

Pie crust ingredients from “Apples, A Country Garden Cookbook” by Christopher Idone, Collins Publishers, San Francisco, 1993