Hallie looks back at Chicken Marengo

HALLIE EPHRON: Decades ago, when I was newly married and inviting friends to dinner, in the days before you could search the Internet for recipes, my go-to cookbook was The Joy of Cooking, and my go-to dish was Chicken Marengo. (Chicken with wine, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, and olives.) It's nearly impossible to screw up. And the Joy's recipe format (short, clear) is super accessible.

You can see from the stains on the page how many times I must have made it.

Then I got fancier with Julia Childs’s coq au vin (begin by rendering pork fat… and making my first acquaintance with shallots instead of onions).

On to Julia’s bouillabaisse (hello saffron threads), Michael Fields grilled butterflied leg of lamb with Greek lemon sauce (has to be marinated overnight), and on to the sublime New York Times lobster bisque.

All the while I have not been able to master the simplest things -- like fried chicken, and consistently crisp bacon, and brownies, and pie crust. Bread I've barely attempted. I'm sure it's because I had no one to watch in the kitchen (my mother didn't cook)... there are certain things you just can't get out of a book.

In your "salad days" did you have any go-to recipes for company, and how were you with the supposedly more straightforward stuff.