Spice Up Regular Pie Crust With An Ingredient Already In Your Pantry

Though amateur bakers often focus on the ingredients needed to fill a pie, experienced professionals know that pie crust is an equally important aspect that can transform recipes made at home. Just a spoonful of cinnamon powder brings natural warmth and sweetness to pie dough. This is the kind of upgrade that can bring new life to old favorite recipes. The flavor of cinnamon can hold ground when paired with more buttery or fruity fillings to make dessert pies. Your favorite pecan, apple, and sweet potato pies can truly shine when nested into a cinnamon-enhanced crust. Not only does the addition smell good, but it tastes good, too.

Estimate mixing 1 teaspoon of cinnamon per cup of flour if you're making pie crust from scratch. You can always adjust to taste and add an additional spoonful in future recipes. If you're not sold on the idea, try the quick upgrade using leftover scraps of dough. Turn the pieces into sweet treats with a quick dusting of cinnamon and sugar before baking. Top with honey, jam, or preserves, and you'll be sold on the idea. 

If you are working with store-bought pie crust, simply sprinkle cinnamon on top of the pie crust before placing it into the oven to bake. "I add cinnamon or a British mixed spice for my pecan pie crust at Thanksgiving! So good! Nutmeg and vanilla bean is also really amazing!" suggested one baker on Reddit.

Once you've experimented with adding cinnamon to pie crust, there are a variety of herbs and spices you can add to pie crust to step on the pedal of flavor for your baked goods. "A fancy French restaurant I worked at would add nutmeg and cayenne to the crust of the apple pie and it was divine," explained a Redditor. Two or three passes of fresh nutmeg on a microplane can coax new dimensions of taste in the crust. For savory recipes, consider cinnamon paired with sage, rosemary, or Herbs de Provence. Chinese five-spice powder or chai spices can also add earthy, warm notes to baked goods. For those looking for a quick upgrade that requires little effort, cinnamon powder is a reliable ticket.