I will not take credit for this perfect pie crust recipe. Thank Kate McDermott-Art of the Pie® for this recipe. 
I recommend her best selling book "Art of the Pie"  www.artofthepie.com.” 

2-1/2 cups (363g) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp (3g) salt
*8 Tbs (112g) of Kerrygold or other salted or unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon size pieces
*8 Tbs (112g) leaf lard (where to get it: https://fannieandflo.net/ )very cold shortening can be substituted for lard
8 Tbs (118g) of ice water (This is an average but sometimes the dough takes more or less.)
*(For ALL BUTTER dough use 14 Tbs (196g) of Kerrygold or other salted or unsalted butter for your total fat)

1. Put all ingredients but the ice water in a large bowl.
2. With clean hands, blend the mixture together until it looks like coarse meal with some lumps in it that looks like cracker crumbs, peas, and almonds. The lumps make flakey pies.
3. Sprinkle ice water over mixture and stir lightly with a fork.
4. Squeeze a handful of dough together. Mix in a bit more water if it doesn’t keep together.
5. Divide the dough in half and make two chubby disks about 5 inches across.
6. Wrap the disks separately in plastic wrap and chill for about an hour.
7. Take out one disk and put it on a well-floured board, pastry cloth, parchment paper or plastic wrap.
8. Sprinkle some flour onto the top of the disk. Thump the disk with your rolling pin several times.
9. Turn it over and thump the other side.
10. Sprinkle more flour onto the top of the crust if needed to keep the pin from sticking and roll the crust out from the center in all directions.
11. When it is an inch or so larger than your pie pan, brush off the extra flour on both sides. Fold the dough over the top of the pin and lay it in the pie pan carefully.
12. Donʼt worry if the crust needs to be patched together; just paint a little water where it needs to be patched and “glue” on the patch piece.
13. Put the filling in the pie and repeat the process with the other disk.

 
Notes
This recipe will make one double-crust pie or two single-crust pies for 9" pie pans. Leaf lard is available at some butcher shops, farmers markets and also by mail-order. It will take about 5-7 minutes to put the dough together. Minimum chill time is 20 minutes but 1-2 hours is great. After chilling, dough discs may be frozen for up to 1 month. Be Happy and Make Pie!

Back when I lived in my first apartment in Hoboken, NJ I taught myself to cook. My dad gave me my first cookbook-Jaques Pepin's "Everyday Cooking". I would recommend this book to anyone. The recipes are easy, elegant, and delicious. Pepin is an amazing teacher and my go-to chef for cooking technique. 
The filling of thinly sliced apples is easy to do and the layering of the slices creates a beautiful tart. Be sure to use a firm, baking apple so the slices hold up and don't get mushy. I like Granny Smith and Honey Crisp apples for my tarts. 
The Pate Brisee dough is easy to make, freezes well, and can be used for any pie recipe. 
This Apple Galette recipe is a favorite of mine and I have shared it with family and friends for over 30 years! I hope you love it too. ​

Apple Galette
Recipe From:  Jacques Pepin “Everyday Cooking”

Makes 8 servings
1/2 recipe pate brisée (see recipe below or use 1/2 recipe of the Basic Crust recipe from "Art of the Pie"
5 large granny smith apples (or other firm cooking apple variety-Mutsu, Honey Crisp, Pink Lady, Jonagold, Northern Spy)
1/4-cup sugar
3 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
4 tablespoons apricot preserves
1 tablespoon Calvados or Cognac (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
 
1. Make pâte brisée (recipe below or Basic Crust recipe from "Art of the Pie" ). Roll out the dough 1/8 to 1/16 inch thick, in a shape that fits roughly on a cookie sheet—approximately 16 X 14 inches using the Pate Brisse recipe below. If using the Basic Crust from "Art of the Pie", roll out dough to 14 inches. (The best cookie sheets are made of heavy aluminum that is not too shiny.) If the dough is not thin enough after you lay it on the cookie sheet, roll it some more, directly on the sheet.
 
2. Peel (or not as you like) and cut the apples in half, core them, and slice each half into 1/4-inch slices. Set aside the large center slices of the same size and chop the end slices coarsely. Sprinkle the chopped apple over the dough.
 
3. Arrange the large slices on the dough beginning at the outside, approximately 1 1/2 inches from the edge. Stagger and overlap the slices to imitate the petals of a flower.  Cover the dough completely with a single layer of apples, except for the border. Place smaller slices in the center to resemble the heart of a flower.
 
4. Bring up the border of the dough and fold it over the apples.
 
5. Sprinkle the apples with the sugar and pieces of butter, and bake in a 400-degree oven for 40-50 minutes, until the galette is really well browned and crusty.  Do not remove the galette from the oven too soon; it should be very well cooked. It should be very crusty, thin, and soft inside. Do not worry about the discoloration of the apples after you peel and arrange them on the dough. The discoloration will not be apparent after cooking. 
 
6. Slide it onto a board. Dilute the apricot preserves with the alcohol (or use 1 tablespoon of water if the jam is thick and you prefer not to use spirits) and spread it on top of the apples with the back of a spoon. Some can also be spread on the top edge of the crust. Follow the design so that you do not disturb the little pieces of apple.

Serve the galette lukewarm, cut into wedges. 

Pate Brisee
Recipe From:  Jacques Pepin “Everyday Cooking”
 
Makes Enough for 2 Galettes
3 cups all-purpose flour (dip the measuring cup
into the flour, fill it, and level it with your hand)
1 cup (2 sticks) sweet butter, cold, and cut with a knife into thin slices or shavings
1/2 teaspoon salt
Approximately 3/4 cup very cold water
 
“In a well-made pâte brisée the pieces of butter are visible throughout the dough. If the pieces of butter get completely blended with the flour so that they melt during cooking, the pastry will be tough. The flour and butter must be worked and the water added as fast as possible to obtain a flaky pastry. If you work the dough too much after adding the water, it will be elastic and chewy. If you use too much butter and not enough water, it will resemble sweet pastry dough and will be hard to roll thin and pick up from the table; it will be very brittle before and after cooking, sandy, and with no flakiness.

This is deceptively simple dough. You may get excellent results one time and an ordinary pastry the next. Try it a few times to get a feel for it. Wrapped properly, it can be kept in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 days, or it can be frozen.”
 
1.Mix the flour, butter, and salt together very lightly, so that the pieces of butter remain visible throughout the flour.
 
2.Add the ice-cold water and mix very fast with your hand just enough that the dough coheres.
 
3. Cut the dough in half. The pieces of butter should still be visible. Refrigerate for 1 or 2 hours or use it right away. If you use it right away, the butter will be a bit soft, so you may need a little extra flour in the rolling process to absorb it.

For one galette, roll half the dough between 1/8 and 1/16 of an inch thick, using flour underneath and on top so that it doesn't stick to the table or the rolling pin. When the dough is the desired shape and thickness, roll it onto the rolling pin and unroll it on the pie plate, tart form, or cookie sheet that you plan to use. Repeat with the other half or reserve for later use. Bake according to the instructions for the particular recipe.