In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the flour, salt, and sugar until combined. Add the butter (and sour cream if using) and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal, with larger chunks of butter remaining. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of ice water over the mixture and pulse until it just comes together without being wet, sticky, or crumbly. Do not over mix. If the dough doesnt hold together when pinched between your fingers, add another tablespoon of water and pulse.

Place the dough on a large sheet of plastic wrap. Shape the dough into a disk, wrap well in the plastic, and chill in the fridge until firm, at least 1 hour or up to 3 days. Make ahead and freeze, well wrapped in plastic, for up to 2 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight. The dough is now ready to be rolled out and baked.

Vodka: Kitchen scientists claim that by substituting a portion of the water with vodka, you prohibit gluten development making a tender, flaky crust. I added 2 tablespoons of cold vodka and reduced the water to 2 tablespoons. The texture was surprisingly crumbly but still easy to work. Baked up flakey and very tender. Didn't find the difference to be revolutionary. Id probably skip the vodka trick.

Sour Cream: Sour cream acts as a tenderizer in baked goods and I was curious to see if it would significantly affect the texture of pie crust. I added 2 tablespoons of sour cream to the control recipe along with the butter, keeping everything else the same. The dough itself was very soft and slightly sticky, but easy enough to work with. My circles of sour cream pie crust puffed up to a surprising height. The texture was ultra light, puffy, and flaky, almost like puff pastry. The flavor was also fantastic. Beyond the classic control and by hand recipes, this was my favorite pie crust