Rolling Out the Dough

When you watch a seasoned pie baker move with sure, fluid grace, rolling out pie dough looks easy. Some swear by a pastry cloth and/or a cloth cover for the rolling pin (the grandmother of a friend used to cut off one foot of a clean, thin white cotton knee sock, and use the tube part to cover the pin). I find that if you keep everything lightly floured—your board, your dough, even your rolling pin—you don’t need to bother with the cloth or the sock. And while the coolness of a marble surface is helpful, I roll out all of my doughs on a butcher-block countertop.