Basic Recipe Limburgian Pie Dough

Basic Recipe Limburgian Pie Dough

Today I’ll be sharing a basic recipe for traditional Limburgian pie called a “vlaai”! Limburg is the only part of the Netherlands that is not entirely flat and is the one of the few parts of the Netherlands that is not completely flat and is often described as going abroad without leaving the country. It is the southernmost province of the Netherlands, known for its beautiful nature and hills, but also for their pies.

There are many different types of fillings that you can find here!

Ingredients

(Double crust for a 28 cm pie)

  • 500 gr flour
  • 50 gr sugar
  • 1 1/2 tl vanilla sugar
  • 20 gr fresh or 8 gr dried yeast
  • 200 ml whole milk
  • 1 egg
  • 100 gr butter
  • pinch of salt

Start by warming up the milk until it feels lukewarm, this can be done in the microwave or in a pan. Don’t make the milk hot, because then the yeast will die. 30°C is ideal, but if it feels nice and warm it is fine. Add the sugar, stir and set aside.

Sift the flour onto a clean surface, sprinkle the dry yeast(if you’re not using fresh yeast) over it and make a sort of crater in it. Make sure you have a solid wall, otherwise your entire counter will flood!

In this crater you add a dash of milk, the egg and fresh yeast(if you’re not using dried yeast) that you stir well with your fingers. Slowly add the rest of the milk and the butter and always bring in a little flour when you mix. Add the salt when everything is combined. Knead this well until the dough no longer sticks but feels moist and elastic. If it is not yet elastic after 5 minutes of kneading, you can add flour or milk to get the right consistency. Form a ball of dough.

Dust a bowl with flour and put the dough in it. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and let it rise in a warm place for about half an hour. The dough must be approximately doubled in size.

Grease the pan! You can cut a circle of waxing paper and put it in if you want to make sure that the pie comes out nicely, but if you grease the pan properly, this is not necessary.

Remove the dough from the bowl and divide it into two pieces. About two-thirds for the bottom and one-third for the top. Roll out the largest ball into a circle that is large enough for your pie pan. Gently roll the piece around your rolling pin and roll it out over the pan. Use your rolling pin to “cut” the excess dough. Make a few holes in the bottom with a fork so that steam can escape.

Fill your pie with your favourite filling.

On to the lattice cover! Because I am a “lazy” baker and bake a lot of pies, I have bought a pie grid to save time. Now I roll the dough in the right thickness and to the right size and roll it over the grid. What remains is a nice, even grid.

If you don’t have a pie grid, any other shape is good too! Be creative or make a simple flat cover. Make sure there is enough holes for the steam to escape. You can use a cookie cutter to cut out hearts or stars, for example, but you can also put crumbs over it. Not every pie needs a top.

Happy Baking!



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