What gives? Bulging bottom crust

S

shaun-in-to

Well-known member
I've frequently made a plum galette (Rustic Plum Pie, Gourmet, Sept. 97) with consistently great results. When I recently made it, though, following the recipe exactly, the bottom crust domed up and didn't cook -- I'm not talking bubbles, I'm talking the whole bottom inside the first inch or so. So we ate the scraps and I promised to make it again. Which I did today, and the exact same thing happened! (I pushed it down with a wooden spoon and put the pie plate right on the baking stone to cook it a bit.)

There's plenty of fruit to weigh down the crust; I'm using the same Pyrex dish I always use for pies; I haven't made any changes to the recipe; and this time I made sure the dough was well patted into the pie pan to make sure there were no air bubbles lurking there to begin with.

What can cause this -- or more importantly, how can I prevent it?

 
i'm not a baker, but i know a tad about physics...

something between the bottom crust and the pie pan seems to be swelling up.

1. is it possible that you hadn't dried the pan completely?

2. in any case i think that it might help to pierce the bejabbers outta the bottom of the crust before adding the fruit.

good luck. if it works, please email me a slice.

 
I agree with rvb. Piece the crust before adding the filling. And if it swells up anyway pierce

to deflate. If either the pan or the dough is too moist, it would form a seal to trap steam under the crust.

I've had this happen when I'm making a pizza-like tart. I just stab it.

 
i usually dock a crust, too. isn't it strange when a recipe messes up even though you've made it a

zillion times before? frustrating!

 
I'll try pricking it next time, though the filling

is very juicy -- I'd worry about the juices soaking the crust and then it wouldn't cook properly. But it remains a mystery. Thanks for the ideas. Three strikes and it goes in the garbage (well, the recycling).

 
You could also try prebaking the crust. Pierce it, weight it, then bake until almost done. Brush

with egg white, and finish baking. Then add the filling, shield the edges, and bake until the filling is done.

 
That wouldn't work --

The rolled-out dough is placed in the pie pan, the filling is poured in, and then the untrimmed overhang is folded over the fruit -- a free-form galette but made in a pie dish.

I've had bottom crusts bubble occasionally (even if pricked and/or blind-baked with weights) but never the whole thing dome up like it was baked on top of a bowl.

 
Shaun, maybe it's our weather. My plum galette is doing the same thing & I dock like crazy. What I

have been doing is opening the oven when I see it starting, and go in to knock holes in it again. That works.

If my 'while baking' docking is a bit sloppy, I patch it after baking before it cools, with a little leftover crust.

I haven't had any trouble with the filling seeping through after but do admit I was worried about it to start with, as well.

(too bad the raspberries are over, isn't it? Plums are good, but there's just nothing like the tartness of raspberries against the sweet pastry cream)

 
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