My aunt's comment about my pie crust changed everything

So I've been making apple pie for like 10 years and always thought my crust was fine. Then my aunt came over for Thanksgiving last year and said it was tough and chewy like a cracker. She told me I was overworking the dough and that my butter was too warm. So I tried her trick of freezing the butter and grating it into the flour, then barely mixing it. Now my crust is flaky and light and I actually look forward to rolling it out. Anyone else get feedback from a family member that totally shifted their baking game?

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shah.ben1mo agoProlific Poster

My cousin gave me the same kind of advice about my meatloaf three years ago and it completely changed how I cook. I always wondered why mine came out dry and dense, and she just casually said I was packing it too tight and not adding enough moisture. That one tip about using a light hand and adding a little milk changed EVERYTHING for me. It's funny how the smallest adjustments from someone who knows what they're doing can make such a huge difference. It makes me think there's a lesson there about not getting too stuck in your own routine, you know? Sometimes the people closest to us see things we're blind to because we've been doing it the same way for so long.