Unless you’re a professional pastry chef, you probably make just a couple of pies a year — at most. As we head into peak ...

Many of the pastry chefs we spoke with encouraged everyone to try a from-scratch version, which can also be made in advance and frozen. But you’re already reading this story, so their pleas are ...

In order to bake frozen pastry shells without thawing fully, let your frozen shell rest at room temp while your oven preheats. You may also need to add 5 or 10 minutes to the baking time.