Thanks for the questions. It's hard to know sometimes what points need to be spelled out.

So when rolling out with plastic, there's plastic top and bottom and no bed of flour. This makes for a relatively clean workspace and also saves a lot of wash water, though it does send plastic to the trash. I haven't found thin enough silicone. Bread wrap (beeswax impregnated linen) might work, but it's probably not smooth enough and likely too thick.

Anyway, you chill the crust after rolling, either in the fridge or with ice packs, especially when starting with warm butter. I learned from Stella Parks at Serious Eats that the big secret to handling any kind of crust was to chill it all along the way, chill the bowls and tools, chill the work surface (ice packs on counters). Cold is your friend. After that, just remove the top layer of plastic, invert over the dish, and lay it in. For something as friable as graham cracker, you could also put the dish on top and invert them together. The partial advantage of that is that it's for sure centered, but it takes about 5 hands to do, and it's hard to get those hands under the whole crust, because it'll bomb if you just have one hand and it droops, and if you lift the mat as well, and it seals to the dish, then it won't drop in gracefully and fit down in the bottom and up the sides. Some people have the trick and do it that way. They may have bigger hands than I. :) In general, when one flips the crust on plastic right--dish right next to them--and it's centered enough, you just let the center sag into the dish, lay the edges up the sides, and ease the sides into the corners and flat. When it's in position, gently pull off the plastic, and smooth out any oopsies.

So, the first 5 TBSP were melted, and got sucked up super quickly. The latter 3 TBSP were in a Pyrex cup (same as the first batch) in the microwave, when the MW committed harakiri. It was 30 years old and had had many lives, and was only in the kitchen because my speed oven needs fixing (and I hadn't yet put powdered dyes in it, which would have made it ineligible for food). So I put put hot (sink) water in a double sized ramekin and set the dish of butter in that. Ergo, softened. I liked it better than the melted. It combined well and had more body, less will to escape. But this is an unimportant detail. So long as the crumbs are moist enough to stick together there's no problem—specifically, yes, the extra butter makes it moist enough to hold together. A bit of water might have done the trick, but with water one would have to worry about it going mushy since crumbs collapse when wet (and wouldn't have turned into caramel!), whereas flour turns to glue. For GF, one uses egg for both moisture and glue. And it's a disgusting sloppy mess, but the plastic wrap method gets it rolled and into the dish.

ETA: It occurs to me that the liquid of the melted butter might make the sugar more liquid and work to hydrate the crumbs, and thereby not roll out so dry. There's no way I could have endured a whole quarter cup of sugar with these graham crackers! Sally might use graham crackers more like what I thought they should be like. In the end, the crispy caramel crust, while not what I'd usually make, bears repeating.

I use this rolling method for all my crusts. It's so much easier! I finally figured out that a lot of people were developing gluten as they rolled, and were making thicker crusts, both of which made them easier to manhandle. My preference is thin, but still flaky (regular flour crust) which requires not beating up the crust so much while rolling. But then for other non-gluten crusts, one can use the same method, and be clean and easy with the whole thing.

"In general, when one flips the crust on plastic right--dish right next to them--and it's centered enough, you just let the center sag into the dish, lay the edges up the sides, and ease the sides into the corners and flat. When it's in position, gently pull off the plastic, and smooth out any oopsies."

I can see how that could work. However, I can also see major oopsies with myself. Thanks for such good and detailed info. "Crispy caramel crust" sounds pretty darn tasty to me.

I don't think I've ever added more than just a couple tablespoons of sugar to a graham cracker crust. Definitely about 6 tablespoons melted butter. I just press it in without any trouble. Sometimes I use the bottom of a glass or measuring cup to press the crumbs and ensure the crust is an even thickness all over..

Totally agree with not overworking/rolling a pastry crust...and keeping everything COLD.

Even with this funky graham cracker, the rollout did adhere well to the plastic. If I'd kept an eye on it there would have been minimal fuss, but I was a bit distracted. For graham cracker the likely oopsies are cracking, which is nothing a little pat can't fix. It's worse with regular pastry. Also, touching the crust wrong or with the wrong tool and pulling a bit up.

An important must do with this method: Either get some extra wide wrap (which is easy if you have a place to keep it) or mind the overlap, especially when you're lifting. About 6" overlap is best and make sure that the two sides are stuck to each other. When lifting, don't let the overlap sag or it's sure to crack along the seam.

I have never, ever, had a pastry crust successfully rolled over my rolling pin or folded into quarters, and made it neatly into the dish. Never. Thin and flaky doesn't do that! The plastic method may sound complex, but it's really easy. I wish I could have taken a picture of the moving of the crust to the dish, but there were no minions to be had.

Thanks for the tutorial! I'm amazed at the perfect circle you were able to roll with no wavy edges, or did you cut it? I sometimes use parchment for rolling. Nothing sticks and it's more environmentally friendly than plastic. Though I seldom make anything with a graham cracker crust anymore, when I do, I'll probably stick to pressing it in. I seem to be able to get it reasonably even using that method.

Olychick, no need at all to change your method! I was just trying to show an alternative. Parchment doesn't work well because nothing sticks. Everything slides around. I've often wanted thin clear silicone but never found any, but just now, I might have found some on Amazon! If it worked it would solve the environmental plastic thing. I do put it in the recycling bin, but I think with that China argument a few years ago they probably don't actual recycle it anymore. I don't know for sure.

I've gotten a lot better at rolling in the last ten years, but it really started getting better when someone--I think FOAS--found some new old stock of pastry rings being sold on Amazon. See the yellow circle in the picture with the bowl? Funny that the only picture it made it in isn't one of the rollout! (Not on purpose.) There are some different ones on Amazon, called "molds", same idea, but expensive. The ring goes on top of the wrap, and is repositionable, which makes it much better than the circle on the pastry mat. You also roll right over the ring, which makes the thickness more even. I probably don't need them anymore. They're like training wheels. I spent decades, since childhood, fighting with dough before the rings! My rolling out has improved enough, I probably can freehand, but since I have them, I use them.

I had the last bit of the wine and cheese pie for breakfast today. :) It was really good. I do think there could have been less butter in the crust. I was just trying to make it hold together because the crackers were so dry! It tasted really good, though, and it was very serveable without crumbling away. Not that one would most day be soaking the crust with brie. :)