The hardest half about internet hosting isn’t creating the proper menu or designing a stunning tablescape; it’s grocery purchasing. Choosing out the appropriate components could make or break your vacation feast, particularly in terms of dessert.

For those who’ve dedicated to creating a pie, tart, or pastry for Thanksgiving however are feeling a little bit careworn, it can save you your self a while and power by shopping for pre-made dough on the grocery retailer. 

There are dozens of pie crust and pastry dough choices lining the freezer aisles now, making it difficult to determine which one will yield the golden, flaky outcomes you need. (We’ve even examined a number of store-bought pie crusts ourselves, and the winner of our style take a look at is a dependable selection that received’t allow you to down.)

This yr, we determined to seek the advice of an knowledgeable to see if we have been overlooking any glorious choices. So we reached out to Sofia Schlieben, the company pastry chef at hospitality group JF Eating places and a pastry chef with over a decade of expertise at esteemed eating places, for her suggestion.

Schlieben had one clear suggestion for us, and it’s a reputation some baking aficionados might already be aware of: Dufour Puff Pastry. Since 1985, this New York Metropolis-based model has been serving to house bakers save time by offering an ultra-rich, layered puff pastry dough that’s accessible proper within the freezer part of your grocery retailer. 

“Dufour puff pastry is a real NYC establishment,” Schlieben says. “Dufour has completed such a fantastic job sustaining the identical requirements it had when it opened as a household enterprise.”

What makes Dufour completely different?

In response to Schlieben, Dufour stands out as a result of it’s one of many few manufacturers that makes use of actual butter in its dough. The award-winning product is made in the identical method as it could be in knowledgeable kitchen by including an enormous block of butter to the middle of the dough. The dough is then folded across the butter and rolled out a number of occasions, creating dozens of skinny, delicate layers of dairy sandwiched contained in the dough.

In distinction, many different store-bought puff pastries and pie doughs depend on vegetable shortening to create their signature layers. Whereas these nonetheless produce flaky outcomes, they lack the identical depth of taste, and also you’ll style a noticeable distinction if you get pleasure from Dufour.

“It’s a product used equally at house and in skilled kitchens. Folks gravitate towards it due to its consistency and high-quality components,” Schlieben notes. “Puff pastry and pie dough are a labor of affection that require cautious consideration at each step, and though it’s actually solely three components, each must be the best high quality.”

Schlieben additionally appreciates that the model is considerate in regards to the product’s building, all the way in which all the way down to the packaging. “Some manufacturers use skinny tubes, however the wider flat field [Dufour] makes use of means the product is folded much less, and due to this fact the integrity of the puff is undamaged,” she explains. “That’s not as necessary for pie dough, however it turns into more and more necessary for pastries like vol-au-vents or mille-feuille.”

How are you going to use Dufour?

Whereas it’s not labeled as “pie crust,” you’ll be able to certainly use puff pastry for pies. It’ll make gloriously ethereal high crusts, and when you use it for the underside crust, simply ensure that to blind bake the dough first to stop it from getting soggy.

One other advantage of utilizing this model is that it provides a couple of completely different merchandise to satisfy all of your dessert wants. The usual puff pastry is the model’s signature, however it additionally provides vegan, dairy-free, and gluten-free pastry choices to regulate for various dietary wants. (Though you need to notice that vegan and dairy-free choices received’t use actual butter.)

For those who’re making a savory quiche or candy tart in your celebrations, the model provides pâté brisée-style tart shells within the freezer part, which produce a crisp and tender shortcrust pastry.

“It’s all the time a simple attain for me on a time without work as a result of I do know precisely what I’m going to get and that it will likely be nice,” Schlieben emphasizes. “It’s merely scrumptious.”