Add 1 1/2 cups flour, salt and sugar to a medium bowl. Stir just until combined.
Add butter cubes over flour and mix briefly with a fork or spatula to coat the butter with flour.
Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry blender, working mixture until the flour has a coarse, mealy texture similar to fresh bread crumbs. About 1 – 2 minutes.
Add remaining 1 cup of flour. Work butter and flour with the pastry blender until flour is evenly distributed. Dough should be crumbly with pea-sized pieces.
Sprinkle 4 tbsp of ice water over mixture. Using a rubber spatula, press the dough into itself. The crumbs should begin to form larger clusters. If you pinch some of the dough and it holds together, it’s ready. If the dough falls apart, add 2 to 4 more tablespoons of water at a time and continue to press until dough comes together. In my latest attempt it took 10 tbsp of ice water for it to come together.
Remove dough from bowl and place in a mound on a clean surface. I like to do this on a piece of parchment paper to help with cleanup.
Remove dough from bowl and place in a mound on a clean surface. I like to do this on a piece of parchment paper to help with cleanup.
Press the dough together just enough to form a ball. Then, cut ball in half then form each half into discs.
Wrap each disc with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour, and up to 2 days. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months (just thaw it overnight in the fridge before using).