Back when I first started making pies I always used an oil crust, I liked it. I may try again, using coconut oil, you've inspired me. Supposedly coconut oil is good for you if you have a lot of issues with gut bacteria, which I do. I don't like it for cooking when sauteing and the like, but I may try some baking applications.

By the way, the bottom crust was just as good as the top.

I use coconut oil as a leave in conditioner for my beard.

Smells like ladies lying in the sun.

As a long time user of coconut oil, you use the same techniques making pastry with coconut oil that you would any other fat, and you can often use up to 25% less and get the same results for a lower fat pastry.

Coconut oil can be used either as liquid for an oil crust recipe, or you can refrigerate or freeze coconut oil to make it solid and use it as you would a solid fat. If you use a food processor, be sure to freeze the coconut oil in 1 teaspoon portions, and blend it in short pulses. If you are using it as a liquid fat, follow an oil crust recipe for best results.

When using it as a solid fat, add half of the fat to the flour mixture and blend until it is well distributed. This portion of the fat will coat the flour. Where fat coats the flour, the liquid can't penetrate and less gluten will form - hence the term short-crust pastry. The fat shortens the strands of gluten. This also is the tenderizer.

Since a good pastry is a combination of tenderness and flakiness, the second half of the fat should be hard and solid when added. Grate hard refrigerated or frozen coconut oil on the big holes of a box grater and add it last to the pastry mixture. Work quickly if you have a kitchen temperature 75-degrees F or warmer. Mix the second addition lightly, leaving some larger chunks of the fat. This fat will create the layers of flakiness. Where there are large chunks of fat, the fat will melt and turn into steam in the oven. The steam lifts the layers of pastry to create flakiness. Now add the liquid. This same technique works with any hard fat. Any hard fat can be melted and used in an oil crust pastry. However, oil crust pastry tend to be tender and mealy, rather than flaky.

Be sure to refrigerate the pastry before rolling it out so the fat hardens and the gluten relaxes.

This time of the year my coconut oil is very soft/mushy due to the warm ambient temperature (coconut oil becomes liquid at 77-degrees F), while in the winter it's completely hard in my 62-degree kitchen.

If you have LouAna brand coconut oil available (I can get it at Wal-Mart and my Kroger-associated Dillons store), it has NO coconut flavor, so it works well for applications you don't want that slight coconut flavor.

Congratulations on your coconut oil adventure. I've been using it for about 20-years now and haven't had shortening or cooking oil in my home for even longer than that.

-Grainlady

Grainlady, thanks for the hint on refrigerating part of the oil to harden and adding later, this is a great idea, I'll try it. And yes, I used LouAna, don't know why it was liquified or if that is the normal way it comes. The first coconut oil I bought was solidified and wasn't refined, it had the aroma of coconut but I didn't mind that at all. I've also been using it to make french-fries - the country way in a skillet - and they are really good, the grandkids say they are the best. That's pretty much the only frying I do though. I grew up with mostly fried foods and although I love fried anything my aged gut doesn't.

ritaweeda-

The temperature the coconut oil is stored in is going to determine how soft/hard the coconut oil is. Anything warmer than 70-72degrees F or so, and it will get progressively softer until it liquefies at 77-degrees F.

There is a learning curve working with coconut oil because it's nice and soft in the summer and hard in the winter. When it's hard, I scrape it out of the container using a spoon or wide butter knife. The friction from the scraping action will soften it enough to be able to press it into a measuring cup or a push-through measuring cup.

You also need to make sure you use room temperature ingredients when working with coconut oil. If you add a cold-from-the-refrigerator ingredient (egg, milk, etc.) it will cause the coconut oil to solidify if you are mixing a batter and you'll end up with chunks of solid coconut oil.

-Grainlady

I'm seeing it sold in stick form now to keep in the fridge, just like butter.
(i predicted that one)

Our last batch of pie crust that we make ahead and keep in the freezer, DH used coconut oil at my request. The recipe called for it to be fridged.
It was very good for fruit tarts and quiche, empanadas and artichoke pies.
Didn't really miss the butter.