Rolling Perfect Dough

1. Let refrigerated dough rest at room temperature about 20 minutes to soften before rolling.

2. Flatten the dough ball with your hands, pinching to close any cracks. Place dough on floured surface, dust dough generously with flour. Tap the top of the dough with a rolling pin to flatten the dough further.

3. Roll the dough, moving the rolling pin outward from the center of the dough to the edges, "pressing with firm but consistent pressure." Turn the dough over after a few rolls, dust with flour and continue. Give the dough a quarter turn occasionally to help prevent sticking; dust with flour as needed.

4. "You want the dough to flow smoothly from under the rolling pin. As the circle gets bigger, keep guiding the rolling pin out from the center, as opposed to rolling back and forth. Think of the dough as a bicycle wheel, and the spokes as the lines to follow while rolling."

5. Stuck dough? "Use a pastry scraper to slide gently underneath the edges and loosen the dough from the counter. Carefully fold the dough back and throw some more flour over the countertop. (It's OK to use plenty of flour; just brush it off at the end.)"

6. To move rolled dough to a pie or tart pan, fold in half and then in quarters. Or roll it up on the rolling pin and unroll where you want it. Refrigerate the rolled dough before finishing your pie or tart.

- From The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters.