NEW, 8-Slice Pie Cutter Press, 18/8 Gauge Stainless Steel, Commmercial Grade, Side-Handles

Product Information

For a classic tool that will get plenty of use year-round, we suggest the Nordic Ware Lattice & Hearts Pie Top Cutter, a reversible pie-top cutter that performed exceptionally well in testing. If you're looking for a pastry wheel, opt for the Norpro Stainless Steel Ravioli/Pastry Wheel, which is actually two pastry wheels in one. How We Tested Get a creative flair with your pie crusts by using this nifty tool. From beautifully crimped edges to fancy themed shapes, among other designs and uses, pastry chefs and home bakers enjoy adding a special finishing touch to their delicious pies and pastries. This cutter provides a little versatility when it comes to cutting pie crusts and pasta, with both a straight-cutting wheel as well as a fluted cutting wheel for a slightly more decorative cut. It's suitable for slicing through pie dough, pasta, or any other relatively thin or lightweight pastry dough like puff pastry or Danish dough.

This may be a small tool, but it’s been made to last a lifetime. Wash and dry it by hand to preserve the olivewood handle. We did notice that the wood seemed a little dry straight out of the box and a little mineral oil rubbed into the handle might help extend its life. This set of four very different leaf designs provides the perfect embellishment for pies in any season. The cutters can be used to imprint on dough or to cut shaped, detailed leaves to add to pie crusts. The punches were so easy to use, that they ended up being one of our favorite ways to get creative with our pie crusts. The blades or wires of most pastry blenders are made of stainless steel, which prevents rusting, and we recommend steering clear of other materials. The handles are made of wood(s), plastic(s), and rubber—it comes down to your preference. Plastic and rubber will most likely be dishwasher safe if ease of cleaning is important to you. Wooden handles tend to make the pastry blender look more authentic with an heirloom-like feel (making them a nice gift) and have the potential of lasting much longer.Pie makers are very easy to use, designed specifically to be super simple and convenient. Many pie makers come with a reversible cutter, so you can measure your pastry perfectly. With all of this pie-making practice (including recipe fails!), I’ve learned which kitchen tools are most helpful for making homemade pies. And I’m so happy to share it all with you. A pie maker with a crimped edge is also a great option. This gives your pies a traditional look, and it helps you get that wonderful crispy crust! Other good features to look out for are non-slip feet and a cool touch handle. Once cut, the lattice will expand to cover the width of the pie, but the length will stay the same. Plan accordingly, by making sure your dough is as long as you need it to be to cover the surface of your pie, although it only needs to be about half as wide. We found the lattice easy to stretch over the pie with attractive results, but don't worry if it takes one or two attempts to master. The wheels and accordion construction are very sturdy and tighten into place without any wobbling, but since there are more moving parts, it's also more likely to be damaged if not treated with care. With long-term use, we noticed that the wingnut used to tighten and hold the accordion at the desired width may not get quite as tight over time. To keep it strong, completely loosen the wingnut when resizing and avoid collapsing or stretching the accordion while the wingnut is tightened, even a small amount. We also noticed that taking care to protect the wheels over time will help this tool stay precise. While this cutter is made of stainless steel and can be run through the dishwasher after an especially messy project, it’s best to wash it with a dish brush by hand in hot, soapy water.

We used these cutters to make an organic-looking top pie crust of layered leaves on top of a 6-inch small pie, as well as decorative elements on top of several larger pie crusts, and we were incredibly impressed with how well they work. The cutters cleanly punch even delicate branches holding the leaves together without tearing. We've used these cutters often since our initial tests, using them on both store-bought and homemade pie dough, and across several different types of pies for decoration. We continue to be impressed with the decorations they make, and how surprisingly well they've held up over time. There are a lot of options in the Lakeland range when it comes to finding the perfect cookie cutter. But there’s no need to get overwhelmed! This useful kitchen tool is known by three different names. The official name is “pastry blender," for the job it was originally designed to perform. Other names you may hear it referred to are “dough blender” and “pastry cutter" (although these are technically inaccurate). What can a pastry blender do? It can cut butter into pastry dough, mix biscuits (like Copycat Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits) or cookie dough, smash up ground beef into pieces in a hot pan, mash cooked potatoes, and even help make good guacamole. It can mix a streusel topping, chop whole canned plum tomatoes into smaller pieces for a spaghetti sauce, dice boiled eggs for an egg salad, and blend the ingredients for hummus.

Pie Maker FAQ

If you don't have a pie crust cutter that crimps the edges for you, grab a fork and press the fork prongs down onto the rim of the pie dish. Do this all the way around the rim. You can also use your fingers to seal and make a design on the edge of the pie crust. We sliced dozens of pieces of pie dough with both the straight and fluted wheels on this cutter. The wheels are a little looser than some of the other pastry wheels we tested but performed well in both instances without veering off-course. The wheel guard that attaches to the handle is a little longer because it's protecting two wheels instead of one. We noticed that if you tend to hold the cutter at a low angle, the guard may drag in your dough while you're cutting. If that happens, you'll know to hold the cutter at a slightly higher angle for perfectly clean cuts. If you have any experience molding fondant decorations into silicone molds, you've already got a good idea of how easy it is to produce impressive 3-dimensional shapes this way. Williams Sonoma has created a silicone mold specifically for molding pie crust strips, outfitted with five designs that would otherwise be difficult and time-consuming to create by hand. The fondant cutter is what you see me use in the video below, but the wavy side of a pastry wheel can do the same thing. A pastry wheel is very handy because you can use the scalloped edge to make a pretty wavy design, or you can use the flat edge for a traditional lattice pie crust. We need both a wavy cutter (for the lattice) and a flat cutter (for the braid strips) for this particular pie design. I also used a pie punch to add apple shapes, but you can use any cookie cutter or pie punch shape. As you can see, this is a great tool to have in the kitchen whether you’re a beginner home cook or a pro. It can replace some of the work done by food processors or electric mixers, which is helpful if the power ever goes out or if more than one person is cooking at the same time.

Why not add a fun design to the top of your pie to make your dinner guests smile before you slice into your masterpiece? Or perhaps a cute animal shape or a fun picture? And why not try some letters and add one of your guests’ names or even a “Happy Birthday” message to the top of your pie to really make it stand out! Planning a themed party?

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Planning an under-the-sea theme? You’ll find fish shapes and even seahorses. Got a more general animal theme? You’ll see cutters in the shape of bees, owls, elephants and everything in between. We’ve even got a crown cookie cutter if you’re opting for a royal theme and want your cookie to match up! Always take your time when working with pie dough. It’s not a race! Treat the dough with a little TLC. You are not angry at the pie dough (but maybe you are LOL). Don’t roll it out too forcefully or rush through a decorative topping. Set aside enough time to really concentrate on it. Put on some music or invite some friends or family to join you, and enjoy the process. I promise it’s worth it! It is a little heavier than other cutters, so it may not be ideal for those with limited hand strength. But the curved wooden handle is easy to hold onto and the weight is what helps push the cutter through the dough. It can be washed in the dishwasher if it's especially messy after use, but should be washed by hand and scrubbed with a brush and warm, soapy water to extend the life of the wood handle.

Each of the pie crust cutters we selected was sent to our baking expert's home kitchen for extensive testing in a realistic setting at the height of pie-making season in November 2021. We made and baked more than 30 pies with these pie crust cutters, testing how easy or difficult it was to use each cutter and how well they stood up to peak-pie season use. Slicing, punching, and rolling chilled pie dough with each cutter side-by-side gave us a clearer understanding of the different ways each of these tools can be used. Our expert has continued to use many of these cutters since initial testing to give us a more in-depth view of their quality over time. Essentially, you're getting two reliable pastry cutters for the price of one with this tool, and we think it's a great deal. Since our initial tests, this cutter has come in handy on a few occasions when testing out different pie crust styles. We like that it hasn't gone down in quality with use, noting that the wheels are about the same level of tightness as they were right out of the box, and the materials have stayed sturdy and shiny over time with regular hand-washing.For many years, I used only salt and nutmeg to season the dough, so one day, I decided to add a little quantity of sugar to see if there would be any difference. Lo and behold, it tasted much better! Egg Less powerful pie makers will take longer to preheat, and your pies may take a little longer to cook. Pie Maker FAQ How to use a pie maker? Karen Resta, the original author of this roundup, is a writer specializing in food culture and history, cooking, pastries, and restaurants. She's also a former pastry chef and has traveled to Budapest, Kyiv, and Paris during their fashion weeks as a photographer and writer, always finding the best authentic pastries along the way. She now spends a lot of her free time baking at home and recommends quality within your given budget. Having the right tools available and knowing how to use them well (it can take practice, like anything else) makes all the difference, and she curated this list with that in mind. We liked that the cutter was especially easy to use, on par with a cookie cutter. The crust cutter is constructed in the shape of a flower, but the fluted outer edge is just a decorative way to hold the petal shapes of the cutter together and doesn't actually cut through the dough. The cutouts can be used to decorate the top of the crust in addition to the decorative vents the cutter makes. This sunflower cutter is easy enough to use for little hands, making your next pie-making session a little more fun for everyone. Given how unfussy this cutter is, we found that you could cut dozens of lattice crusts without having to do much more than pop out any leftover diamond pieces from the cutter holes. When you've finished a rinse in warm soapy water is enough to clean this cutter off, but it's not made for dishwasher use.