When deciding what to make for supper, I'll flip through my cookbooks looking for something tasty and simple. It's very rare that I'll attempt anything with a meringue, anything that involves separating eggs or allowing dough to rise and I won't begin to attempt anything that involves a water bath. Gravy? Forget it! I easily shy away from anything tricky or difficult for fear of failure. It's easier to just prepare a simple dish than to take a chance on something that could be really fantastic with a little daring and adventure.

Recently, my Aunt Catherine gave me a copy of her church cookbook. Most of the contributors were women in their late sixties and seventies who've been cooking for decades. The recipes all sounded absolutely delicious but I went through mentally crossing them off my list of potential dishes simply because they involved some slightly complex techniques. I started to think about the kinds of recipes I would contribute if my church were to make a cookbook and I'm afraid they would pale in comparison to the daring, impressive and delicious creations Aunt Catherine and her friends created. I'm sure my friends, family and houseguests would enjoy it if I stepped out of my comfort zone to attempt one of the jaw-dropping dishes great cooks have been preparing for years.

I suppose you could say that my New Year's resolution is to become more well-rounded in the kitchen (and I don't mean my waistline!) In my attempt to become a classic cook, I could take a page from Julie and Julia and cook my way through the entire Julia Childs Art of French Cuisine. However, my pocketbook and calendar will not allow such a thing so I must broaden my culinary horizons one classic, albeit more difficult, recipe at a time.

Lemon Meringue Pie with handmade crust
Makes 1 9-inch pie

Crust:
1 ¼ c. sifted flour
½ t. salt
1/3 c. vegetable shortening or lard, chilled
¼ c. ice water

Filling:
½ c. cornstarch
1 ½ c. sugar
¼ t. salt
1 ¾ c. cold water
1 t. finely grated lemon rind
4 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1/3-1/2 c. lemon juice
2 T. butter

Meringue:
3 eggs whites, at room temperature
¼ t. cream of tartar
1/8 t. salt
6 T. sugar
½ t. vanilla

For crust: Preheat oven to 425. Place flour and salt in a shallow mixing bowl and cut in shortening with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle water over surface, 1 tablespoon at a time, and mix in lightly and quickly with a fork, just until pastry holds together. Shape gently into a ball on a lightly floured pastry cloth, then flatten into a circle about 1" thick, evening up rough edges. Using a lightly flour, stockinette-covered (one of those little slip on rolling pin covers) rolling pin and short, firm strokes, roll into a circle about 3" larger than the pan, lay rolling pin across center of pastry circle, fold half of pastry over pin and case into pan, press dampened scraps of pastry on top. Trim overhang under even with rim and crimp or flute. Prick bottom and sides of pastry well with a fork. To minimize shrinkage, lay a large square of wax paper over crust and fill with uncooked rice. Bake pastry 10-12 minutes, just until tan. Lift out paper and rice.

For filling: Reduce oven to 350. Mix cornstarch, sugar and salt in a heavy saucepan, slowly blend in water, and heat, stirring constantly until thickened and smooth. Mix in lemon rind and cook, stirring, 2-3 minutes. Blend a little hot mixture into yolks, return to pan and cook and stir over lowest heat 2-3 minutes; do not boil. Off heat, stir in 1/3 c. lemon juice and the butter. Spoon filling into pie shell.

For meringue: Beat egg whites until frothy, using a rotary beater or electric mixer at moderate speed; add cream of tartar and salt and continue beating, adding sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. When all sugar is incorporated, add vanilla and beat hard (highest mixer speed) until glossy and peaks stand straight up when beaters are withdrawn. Spoon about half the meringue around edges of warm filling spreading so it touches pastry all around. Pile remaining meringue in center, then spread to cover all filling, pulling into peaks with the back of a spoon or swirling around.

Bake pie 12-15 minutes until touched with brown. Cool pie at least 2 hours before serving.

Rich Dinner Rolls
Yield 2 ½ dozen rolls
1 c. scalded milk
¼ c. sugar
1 t. salt
¼ c. butter
½ c. warm water
2 packets active dry yeast
2 eggs, lightly beaten
5 ½ c. sifted flour
½ T. melted butter

Mix milk, sugar, salt and butter in a small bowl, stirring until sugar dissolves; cool to lukewarm. Pour warm water into a warm large bowl, sprinkle in yeast , and stir until dissolved. Stir in milk mixture, eggs and 2 cups flour, beating with a wooden spoon until smooth. Mix in enough additional flour, a little at a time, to make a soft dough (it will be sticky but should leave sides of bowl clean.) Knead on a lightly floured board 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic; shape into a ball, place in a greased large bowl, turning to grease all over. Cover with cloth and let rise in a warm, draft-free spot until doubled in bulk, 30-40 minutes. Punch dough down. Shape as desired, place rolls in greased pans, cover and let rise about ½ hour until doubled in bulk. About 15 minutes before baking, preheat oven to 375. Brush tops of rolls with melted butter and bake 15-20 minutes until lightly browned and hollow sounding when tapped. Serve hot.

Crème Brulee
Yield: 6 servings
3 c. heavy cream
1/3 c. superfine sugar
½ t. vanilla
6 egg yolks, lightly beaten
3/4 – 1 c. light brown sugar (not firmly packed)

Cook and stir cream, sugar, vanilla and yolks in the top of a double boiler over simmering water 7-10 until mixture coats a wooden spoon. Pour into an ungreased shallow 1 ½ quart casserole and stir 1-2 minutes. Place wax paper directly on surface of the mixture, cool to room temperature, then chill 1-2 hours. Preheat broiler. Sprinkle a ¼" layer of brown sugar evenly over crème, set casserole in a shallow bed of crushed ice and broil 6"-8" from heat about 3 minutes until sugar melts and bubbles (watch carefully so it doesn't burn.) Remove from ice, chill 10-15 minutes, then serve. Be sure to include some of the crackly topping with each portion.

Pan Gravy
Yield 2 cups
2 c. hot water, vegetable cooking water or beef broth or any combination of the three
¼ c. roasting pan drippings (round out as needed with bacon drippings or butter)
¼ c. unsifted flour
Salt
Pepper

Pour water into drained roasting pan and stir, scraping up browned bits (heat, if necessary, to loosen bits.) Pour drippings into a large skillet, blend in flour and cook and stir over moderate heat until light brown. Add water mixture and heat, stirring, until thickened; reduce heat and simmer 3-5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

All recipes from the Doubleday cookbook.