BritoMom's Oven-Barbequed Shrimp

This is a classic. Pure comfort food. Especially when served with comfort beer. Provided you are someone who likes beer, it is a crime to not drink beer with this dish. It is definitely a crime against nature not to eat this with a big loaf of sourdough bread, thickly sliced.

This is a messy, messy dish. The only sane way to eat it is to cover a table with layers of newspaper. Serve the shrimp in bowls, make sure everyone has lots of bread to dip in the sauce and have plenty of beer chilled & ready.

• 2 lbs unpeeled shrimp (medium to large)
• 1 lb butter
• 1 tablespoons poupon mustard
• 1 ½ teaspoons chili powder
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• ¼ teaspoon basil
• ¼ teaspoon thyme
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 1 small onion, grated
• ¼ cup of Old Bays seasoning
• 1/2 tsp tabasco (or to taste)
• 1 tsp liquid smoke (and not a drop more or it will be disgusting - the recipe doesn't work without it, though)

Melt butter in a skilled then add all spices. Preheat oven to 375°. Put shrimp in a baking dish (I generally use my big lasagna pan) and cover with butter & spice mixture. Cook for approximately 20 minutes. Start checking to see if it's done at about 15 minutes. The worst thing you can possibly do is overcook this.

BritoMom's Blue Cheese Ball

So, when I moved into my first place post-grad school & finally had a decent kitchen again, my mom gave me a recipe box filled with my favorite recipes of hers. While searching for the white lasagna, I decided there were a couple more I had to share. This is a classic Britofamily appetizer, used for anything from football weekends to cocktail parties to just being in the mood.

• 12 oz cream cheese
• 2 oz blue cheese (Maytag or val & my favorite new blue: Hook's Blue Paradise - paradise is an understatement)
• ¼ tsp garlic salt
• 1 tablespoon green pepper, very finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon pimento, diced
• ½ cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts

Let cheeses soften. Mix all ingredients together and shape into a ball. Roll ball in the chopped nuts.

BritoMom's White Lasagna

So, val & I were on the phone talking about white lasagna. I realized, with utter horror, that I'd never posted this marvelous, marvelous recipe. Very easy to make. Though mushrooms are a main ingredient, anti-mushroom folks have marveled. Oh! And the cottage cheese is crucial. I tried it with ricotta once and it was all kinds of wrong.

I've played with this over the years. If you're in a garlicky sort of mood, you can abuse the quantity of garlic in it. Chicken and veal are both lovely additions. Playing with different mushrooms works, though I like it best if other varieties (baby bellas are awfully nice) are mixed with the standard button mushroom.

lasagna base

• 8 oz lasagna noodles
• 1 ½ lbs small curd cottage cheese
• 16 oz grated mozzarella
• 4 oz shredded parmesan (Using parmigiano reggiano is especially worth it in this dish. Well, I'm rather fantatically obsessed with this type of parmesan that cheese & think it's always worth it. So, if you haven't tried it, try it. Seriously. You can just nibble on it alone! Especially if you have a nice red wine to sip along with it.)

creamed mushrooms

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 lb mushrooms washed & sliced
• 3-4 cloves of garlic minced finely
• 2 ½ cups milk
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• ¼ cup flour
• ⅓ cup finely chopped parsley

Sauté mushrooms in butter & lemon juice until most of the liquid is absorbed. Add flour and continue cooking for about 5 more minutes. Add milk and parsley, stir frequently until nicely thickened.

In a greased 13x9x2 pan, layer noodles, cottage cheese, creamed mushrooms, mozzarella & parmesan.

valeriel's Corn Salad

val sent me this recipe last fall! Around Thanksgiving! I filed it safely in the recipe folder and then never got this up. I am appalled with myself. Thankfully she gave me a hard time about this & I was able to find it. Whew!

val writes: One could certainly make this salad and eat it right away, but it is really, really MUCH better after it sits over night. The flavor meld together wonderfully and the Miracle Whip twang disappears! Also, I used quite a bit of salt to season the salad, but thank goodness, it didn't turn out too salty.

• 2 cans whole kernel corn (very well drained)
• 4-6 stalks green onion, chopped
• 1-2 big firm tomatoes (well drained), chopped
• 2-4 T Miracle Whip
• 3-4 oz. Bacon bits (hold out enough to sprinkle some across the top when you're done!)
• salt
• tsp pepper
• crushed red pepper

Mix the vegetables together, making sure they drain well, so that the salad won't be runny or soggy. I would chop the tomato and onion about the same size as the corn. Add the Miracle Whip one tablespoon at a time so the salad won't end up being runny. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Joann uses a smidge of crushed red pepper for color not to make the salad spicy. Sprinkle the top of the salad with the remaining bacon bits. Voilá!

Top Chef's "Chino Latino" Seafood Sausage

This meal, created by Brian, won a recent Top Chef elimination challenge & I've appropriated it from the Bravo website. This sounds so very delicious & will be one of the first things I make for myself once my bionic esophagus heals. Leanne Wong demonstrates the basics of making the sausage on this short webcast. I highly recommend watching it. I've also added some hyperlinks to some of the more unusual or possibly obscure ingredients.

SAUSAGE:
1 Corvina seabass or any other seabass (1/2" cubed)
1/2 lb Black Tiger shrimp
1/2 lb scallops
1 T garlic chopped
1 T ginger chopped
1 bunch green onion – chopped
1 bunch cilantro – chopped
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 T sesame oil
2 T red wine vinaigrette
2 T soy sauce

SWEET CHILI GLAZE:
1 cup Sambal chili paste (available in the international section of many grocery stores)
1 cup honey
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
2 T corn starch
2 T water

JICAMA SLAW:
1 jicama – peeled, julienned
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1 carrot peeled, julienned
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

GINGER VINAIGRETTE:
1/2 cup shallots
1/2 cup ginger, peeled
1/2 bunch cilantro
1/4 cup Sriracha (available in the international section of many grocery stores or Asian specialty grocery stores)
1 cup canola oil
2 T soy sauce
1 T sesame oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1. For the Sausage: Combine all ingredients in food processor and Pulse until smooth. Form patties or pipe onto plastic wrap and form links.
2. For the Sweet Chili Glaze: Combine water and corn starch until smooth. Combine the first 3 ingredients in a small sauce pot and bring to a boil. Whisk in the cornstarch slurry and boil for 3 minutes. If this is too hot add more honey. If you like the glaze to be hotter add more sambal. If you like it thicker, add more slurry. Brush the sausage with the sweet chili glaze during BBQing.
3. For the Jicama Slaw: Combine all.
4. For the Ginger Vinaigrette: Combine all but canola oil in a blender. Slowly drizzle in oil with blender on high. Combine with slaw.
5. For Plate up: Serve the sausage with the jicama slaw on the side.

deekay's Cream Cheese Penguins

I'm crediting deekay with this recipe because while I'm not sure she's ever made it, she was the one who told me about it & was shocked that I'd never seen or heard of them. I've got to make these sometime, if only because they're so very ridiculously cute. Ingredients

• 18 jumbo black olives, pitted
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 18 small black olives
• 1 carrot

Directions

1. Cut a slit from top to bottom, lengthwise, into the side of each jumbo olive. Carefully insert about 1 teaspoon of cream cheese into each olive. Slice the carrot into eighteen 1/4 inch thick rounds; cut a small notch out of each carrot slice to form feet. Save the cut out piece and press into center of small olive to form the beak. If necessary cut a small slit into each olive before inserting the beak.
2. Set a big olive, large hole side down, onto a carrot slice. Then, set a small olive onto the large olive, adjusting so that the beak, cream cheese chest and notch in the carrot slice line up. Secure with a toothpick.

Britomart's Miraculous Peanut Butter & Banana Smoothie

Okay, so it was probably only miraculous to me in that it was one of the only things that kept me going while I was on that interminable puréed food diet. This was yummy enough that I'd make them for BritoDad, too. He said they tasted nothing like a smoothie & everything like something he'd get at Dairy Queen & feel guilty about.

• 1 banana, sliced
• 2 generous tablespoons of peanut butter (I used Trader Joe's which is a lovely mix between natural peanut butter & the mainstream processed stuff.)
• Couple generous scoops of vanilla yogurt
• 1/2 C soy milk (or normal milk)
• 3 or 4 ice cubes

Optional healthfoody additions (utterly unnecessary, but awfully good for you)

• 1 tbsp of Brewers Yeast
• 1 tbsp of flax seed oil

Put all ingredients in a blender and puree the heck out of them until the ice cubes have been throughly defeated and pulverized.

MartianIceQueen's Sweet Potato Maple Muffins

This recipe comes from the New Basics cookbook. I haven't tried these yet, but Martian reports they're divine. And I trust her in all things.

• 1 sweet potato
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• pinch of salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves
• 6 Tbsp (3/4 stick) butter at room temp
• 2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3/4 cup maple syrup

(I substitute 1 1/8 tsp Penzeys Baking Spice mix for the allspice and cloves)

1. Bring saucepan of water to a boil, add sweet potato, and simmer until tender. Drain and allow potato to cool slightly, then peel and cut into several pieces. (I usually just use leftover roasted sweet potato)
2. Puree potato in a food processor until smooth; you should have 1/2 cup. Set aside.
3. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line muffin tins. (the recipe says to use 2 eight-cup tins; I use a standard tin with 12 cups)
4. In a large bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, allspice, cloves.
5. In another bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar together. Add eggs and beat well. Stir in milk, maple syrup, and sweet potato puree; mix thoroughly.
6. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour potato mixture into it. Stir just until ingredients are incorporated - do not overmix.
7. Fill the cups about 2/3 full with batter (I just fill 'em until the batter runs out). Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Transfer the muffins to a wire rack and allow to cool.

digmom's Pork & Black Bean Chili

digmom casually mentioned making this in the Hizzy & a number of us pounced on her, demanding a recipe. Rather than counterattack, she kindly shared.

• 1 large boneless pork chop, if fresh slice into thin strips; if frozen, slice into small chunks
• chili powder
• olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 jalapeño peppers, minced
• 3 bell peppers (1 green, 1 red, 1 yellow) chopped into large pieces
• 2 cans black beans, drained
• 2 cans minced tomatoes
• salt

Slice pork chop into thin strips (or chunks, if frozen) and sprinkle it with chili powder. Cook it in a pan with some olive oil over medium heat until almost cooked. Put pork and juice into a bowl and set aside.

In the same pan, sauté one yellow onion, chopped, and two jalapeños, minced. Sprinkle with chili powder. When starting to get soft, add the chopped bell peppers and sauté until peppers turn bright colors. Add two cans of black beans, two cans of diced tomatoes, then add the meat & reserved juices. Add chili powder and salt to taste. Cook at a low boil until it gets to a consistancy you like, or you get too hungry to wait.

Keckler's Balsamic Mary

I have appropriated this from one of Keckler's Top Chef recaps. It will be one of the first alcoholic beverages once I'm allowed to have citrus, tomatoes & alcohol again. Feel free to make and describe in loving detail so that I may live vicariously through others in the meantime...

• 2 ounces Hangar One Kaffir Lime Vodka (or vodka of your choice)
• 1 lb ripe Heirloom tomatoes
• 1 pinch celery salt
• 1 pinch Kosher salt
• 1/4 freshly ground black pepper
• 3 dashes Chipotle Tabasco Sauce
• 2 dashes Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh horseradish
• 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 3 boccaccini mozzarella balls, for garnish
• Celery stalk, for garnish

Pierce the bottoms of each tomato with an "X" and bring a large amount of water to a boil. Toss the tomatoes in and leave them for thirty seconds. Pull the tomatoes out and shock them in a large bowl of ice water. Peel off the skins, cut out the stem, and cut the tomatoes into chunks. Puree the tomatoes in a blender and measure out six ounces. It's up to you if you want to strain the six ounces or not. It doesn't change the flavor, just the thickness of the end result. Store the rest of the juice in the fridge in an airtight container. (Brit note: If you don't have time to do this, or it's not the season for tomatoes, V-8 or any good tomato juice should substitute just fine.)

Combine all ingredients except the garnishes in a cocktail shaker with ice and stir. Fill a 16-oz glass halfway with ice and strain cocktail into glass. Garnish with three toothpick-speared boccaccini balls and the celery stalk.

If you can find it, you might want to use the newest in celery cocktail garnishes: the edible straw. The hollow celery -- a horticultural mash-up of ordinary celery and a wild hollow strain -- is called Dandy in the produce section of your nearest grocery store.

Now, the lycopene in tomatoes is supposed to lower cholesterol, but if that's not a problem for you, use a garnish unique to Bloody Marys in Minnesota: a Slim Jim.

To make this virgin, replace the vodka with the same amount of fresh squeezed lime juice.

Makes 1 drink.

adharas' Sweet Potato Fries

I was on a sweet potato kick this summer and Martian is always on a sweet potato kick, so adharas sweetly shared this recipe with us.

• 1/2 lb sweet potatoes, cut into fries
• 1 T grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/t extra virgin olive oil, (I used a splash)
• garlic powder
• cayenne, pinch
• 1/8t paprika
• salt
• pepper

Preheat oven to 450. Toss potatoes with everything else. Put in single layer on baking sheet. Bake 8 mins, flip potatoes, bake another 12 mins or so, till tender and browned in spots.

Serve immediately.

Snuggle Muffin's Victoria Cake

Snuggle made the loveliest cake recently. I'm quite sure it will taste as good as it looks.


Cake

• 150g (6 oz) butter, softened
• 150g (6 oz) caster sugar (superfine sugar)
• 3 medium eggs
• 150g (6 oz) self raising flour
  
• 3-4 drops vanilla extract
• jam (strawberry, raspberry or damson)
  

Butter Cream Frosting

• Approx. 50g (~2 oz) butter, cold (unsalted if you have it)
• Approx. 100g (~ 3.5 oz) icing sugar (powered sugar/confectioner’s sugar)
• A few drops of vanilla extract
• A little water or milk

Optional:
A few handfuls of strawberries

Heat the oven to 180oc, 350of, Gas mark 4, and grease and line two 18cm (7inch) sandwich tins. Cut up the softened butter and beat until soft. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Mix in one egg at a time adding a little of the flour each time. Add the vanilla extract and the rest of the flour and stir in well.

Pour into the prepared tins and bake for 20 -25 minutes.

When completely cool spread jam (strawberry, raspberry or damson work well) on to both halves of the cake and make the frosting.

To make the frosting add the sugar, butter and vanilla extract to a food processor or beat with electric mixer until combined into a stiff paste. The measurements are approximate so use your own judgment. While it’s mixing it might look like it’s turning into scrambled eggs; it isn’t, it just takes a little while to blend, but it will. If it’s too stiff add a bit of the milk or water. Spread the frosting on to the bottom half of the cake with a pallet knife (or plastic spatula), which you can run it under some water first to make it easier to spread the frosting smoothly.

If you would like, you can slice up some of the strawberries and place them on top of the frosting before putting the top half on.

sylph's Peach Ice Cream

I need to buy an ice cream maker.

• 5 cups ripe peaches, peeled and chopped
• 6 eggs, lightly beaten, at room temperature
• 2-1/2 cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon amaretto
• dash of salt
• 4 cups half and half
• 3 cups heavy cream (whipping cream)

In a blender, purée 3 cups of the peaches. Mash the remaining 3 cups of chopped peaches with a potato masher. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, flour, vanilla and salt until well blended. Set aside.

In a large, heavy saucepan over low heat, heat the milk and cream, just until it begins to steam. Pour a little of the heated mixture into the egg and sugar mixture, and stir. Then pour the bowl of egg/sugar/milk mixture back into the heavy saucepan. Continue to cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thick and smooth. Remove from heat, and refrigerate the mixture for several hours or until well chilled.

Add the puréed peaches to the chilled mixture, stir well, and pour into a 5-quart ice cream freezer can. Turn on the ice cream freezer or crank it by hand for 5 minutes. Then, carefully remove the top of the can and the dasher, and add the reserved 2 cups of mashed peaches, mixing them in with a long spoon. Put the dasher back in and the top back on, and continue freezing according to the manufacturer's directions. Allow ice cream to ripen for at least an hour. Makes about 3-1/2 quarts.

blue artemis' Chicken and Potato Enchiladas

Here are some yummy sounding enchiladas from our queen of the cookfest! Amounts are a bit approximate, but the details should sort it all out!

• 2 chicken breasts
• 3 medium potatoes
• oil
• seasoned salt
• chicken broth
• monterey jack or ranchero cheese
• corn tortillas
• salsa
• green beans (optional)

You cook chicken, and then shred it. Set that aside. Peel and cube potatoes. Fry them in a bit of oil, until they are all coated (season with seasoned salt). I then throw in a bit of chicken broth (usually from where I cooked the chicken) and cover them and let them cook until they are tender (stir occasionally so they don't stick). Once they are done, mix in the chicken, and set aside. You should also have some cheese (monterey jack or ranchero, or whatever, really). I also like a can of french cut green beans.

You then have two small frying pans on the front of the stove. In one, heat oil to fry corn tortillas. In the other, heat the salsa you are going to use.

Once the oil is hot, take a tortilla, place it in the oil to fry for about 30 seconds, then turn it over for another 30 seconds. Then take that tortilla (let it drip a bit over the oil) and dip it in the salsa, turning it over to coat. Now is the messy part, where you put the tortilla on a plate put some of the chicken/potato mixture in it, add some green beans if you like, then sprinkle some cheese and roll it up. You can put more cheese on top. Repeat until you have enough enchiladas to feed everyone.

dreamy's Cobb Salad

Three thousand years ago, while the dinosaurs still roamed the earth & I still updated this blog regularly, I belatedly discovered Cobb salads & fell in love with them immediately. Most mocked me for this. dreamy sent me a recipe from Eating Well. dreamy rocks.

• 3 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons finely minced shallot
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 10 cups mixed salad greens
• 1/2 pound shredded cooked chicken breast
  
• 2 eggs, hard-boiled, peeled and chopped
  
• 2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 large cucumber, seeded and sliced
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

Whisk vinegar, shallot, mustard, salt and pepper in a small bowl to combine. Whisk in oil until combined. Place salad greens in a large bowl. Add half of the dressing and toss to coat.

Divide salad greens among 4 plates. Arrange equal portions of chicken, egg, bacon, tomatoes, cucumber, avocado and blue cheese on top of the lettuce. Drizzle the salads with the remaining dressing.

bibliosylph's Sweet Potato Pie

sylph posted in the Hizzy, "here is Jeff Smith's sweet potato pie recipe, which is the only one I've ever used. It's from The Frugal Gourmet Cooks American, which was one of his most enjoyable TV seasons, for me.

"Sometimes I drizzle a little maple syrup on this before baking. The parentheses are mine."

* 2 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
* 4 tbs butter
* 3 eggs, beaten
* 1 cup sugar (brown is nice, but alters the texture slightly)
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 1 tsp nutmeg (you may sub. cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, or ginger)
* 1 tbs lemon juice
* 1/2 cup bourbon (the alcohol, of course, evaporates during baking.)

Mix all the ingredients together and place in an unbaked pie shell. Place in a preheated 400 degree oven, and immediately turn the oven down to 325. Bake for about 45 minutes until the center of the pie is set. You can test by inserting a table knife into the center of the pie to see if it comes out clean.

If you have leftover filling, you can bake it in a baking dish and serve it as a pudding.

MartianIceQueen's Scones

How tempted was I to name this recipe "Martian Scones"? Heh. I've had these & they are divine. Martian uses dried cherries and I can't imagine them any other way. (Also? I hate raisins in scones & don't know that I've ever had currants.)

Preheat oven to 425. Position rack in center of oven.

Whisk together in large bowl:

• 2 C flour
• 1/3 C sugar
• 1 TBSP baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt

Drop in 6 TBSP (3/4 stick) cold butter; cut into pieces. Cut in the butter with two knives or pastry blender until largest pieces are the size of peas. Do not allow to melt or form a paste. Stir in 1/2 C dried currants/raisins/cherries.

Whisk together, then add all at once:

• 1 egg
• 1/2 C heavy cream
• 1 tsp orange zest (optional)

Mix just until dry ingredients are moistened. Gather into a ball & knead gently inside the bottom & sides of the bowl 5-10 times, turning and pressing and loose pieces into the dough. Transfer to lightly floured surface & part into round, approximately 8" diameter by 3/4" thick.

Cut into 8-12 wedges & place on baking sheet. Brush tops with 2-3 tsp cream or milk. If desired, sprinkle tops with cinnamon & sugar. Bake until tops are golden brown, 12-15 minutes.

adharas' Butternut Squash Soup

I'm frankly jealous of adharas' local paper.

• 1 butternut squash (about 3 pounds) (you will need 4 cups diced)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 teaspoons ground thyme
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
• ¼ cup packed brown sugar
• 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1½ cups diced onion
• ½ cup diced celery
• 1 cup diced carrots
• ¼ cup flour
• 3 quarts chicken stock
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Set halved or quartered squash on a cookie sheet. In bowl, combine seasonings and brown sugar. Sprinkle mixture over squash. Bake in preheated oven until tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool slightly, then remove pulp from peel and discard peel. Cut or scoop into measuring cup to measure 4 cups.

Meanwhile, in large pot, heat oil. Add onion, celery and carrots and sauté until tender.

Add flour to vegetable mixture and cook over medium heat, stirring, 2 to 3 minutes. Add cooked squash. Add stock and simmer over low heat, uncovered, 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Transfer mixture to blender or food processor (in batches if needed), and puree until smooth.

Soup also can be pureed with an immersion blender. Add cream, if using, and mix well. Makes about 10 main-dish servings.

adharas' Pumpkin & Butternut Squash Soup

Another gem from adharas' local newspaper.

• 2 pounds pie pumpkin, halved and strings and seeds discarded
• 2 pounds butternut squash, halved and strings and seeds discarded
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 large carrots, chopped
• 4 ribs celery, chopped
• 2 large yellow onions, chopped
• 1 medium bulb fennel, chopped
• 12 cups chicken broth, vegetable broth or water
• 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• ½ cup pure maple syrup
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In shallow baking pan, arrange pieces of pumpkin and squash, cut sides up. Bake 45 minutes or until soft. Scoop out pulp. You should have 6 to 8 cups. Transfer to food processor or blender, in batches if necessary, and puree. Set aside.

In large heavy kettle, heat butter over medium heat until foam subsides. Add vegetables and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, 10 to 12 minutes.

Add broth, reserved squash, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, garlic and black pepper and simmer, covered, 40 minutes

Stir in maple syrup and cream and simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Cool soup slightly and puree in small batches until smooth. Transfer to large soup pot and reheat if necessary. Makes about 10 to 12 main-dish servings.

adharas' Tunisian Tomato Soup with Chickpeas and Lentils

adharas found this in her local newspaper & it sounds wonderful.

• 1 cup uncooked chickpeas, soaked overnight (or 1 to 2, 15-ounce cans chickpeas)
• Water
• 1 cup uncooked lentils, rinsed and picked over
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cups minced onion
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
• 1½ teaspoons cumin seeds
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 or 3 bay leaves
• 6 cups chopped tomatoes, peeling and seeding optional
• Black pepper and cayenne to taste
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (or to taste)
• Yogurt (optional)
• Minced fresh parsley (optional)
• A few currants (optional)

Place the soaked, uncooked chickpeas in large pot and cover with water by 3 inches. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, partially cover and cook 1 hour. (If you're using canned chickpeas, rinse and drain them, and set them aside.)

Add lentils and cinnamon stick, partially cover again, and cook another 30 minutes, or until chickpeas and lentils are perfectly tender, but not mushy. (If you're using canned chickpeas, just cook the lentils with the cinnamon stick in 7 cups water until tender, about 30 minutes.) Remove and discard cinnamon stick, and drain legumes, saving water.

Meanwhile, heat oil in soup pot or Dutch oven. Add onion, garlic, salt, turmeric, cumin seeds, ground cumin and bay leaves, and sauté over medium heat 15 to 20 minutes, or until onions are very soft.

Add 6 cups of the reserved cooking water from lentils (supplement with fresh water if there's not enough) and the tomatoes, and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer, partially cover and cook another 15 minutes or so. (The timing does not need to be exact.) Fish out and discard the bay leaves.

Stir in chickpeas and lentils, and cook about 5 minutes longer (but not too much longer, because you don't want legumes to become mushy). Season to taste with black pepper, cayenne and lemon juice.

Serve hot, topped with some yogurt and a sprinkling of parsley, if desired, and pass a small bowl of currants. Makes 6 servings (maybe a little more).

sylph's Bloody Mary

I'm dying to try this. Right now. Waaaah! sylph says that she plans to experiment with this more, so there may be updates or alternate recipes. And, of course, should anyone else experiment, let me know!

• 6 oz tomato juice
• 3 oz vodka
• 1 tsp horseradish
• 1 tsp fresh lime juice
• 1 tsp Tabasco sauce
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 pinch pepper
• 1 pinch celery salt

Goldrush Girl's Camembert Tart

Goldrush Girl sent me this recipe ages ago. I'm finally catching up on all my backlogged recipes. Anyhoo, she sent me an approximate recipe, so keep that in mind as you try this. Also, she reports that you can yummily subsitute fontina or tallegio or any other cheese you fancy!

• Puff pastry sheets (available ready-rolled from your grocer's freezer!)
• 6 small onions, chopped
• 1 TBSP butter
• Good-sized triangle of Camembert
• Fresh thyme, chopped finely

Preheat oven to 430 degrees Farenheit (220 Celsius). Place puff pastry on a floured baking tray and prick it with a fork, also scoring it around the edges so you'll get a crust.

Cook onions in butter over low heat for approximately 30 mins or until golden yellow (not brown) and sticky.

Spread onions on to the pastry, dot with bits of camembert however much you want. Sprinkle with thyme and bake for approximately 20 minutes.

Serves four and is delicious cold as well.

jophan's Pickled Peaches

• 4 lb. Peaches
• 3 lb. brown sugar
• 1 c. white vinegar
• 1 T. cinnamon
• 1 T. whole cloves
• 1 tsp. ginger
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

Boil brown sugar and vinegar. Scald peaches, remove skins and cook in syrup. Tie spices into cheesecloth and add to fruit. Cook until peaches are tender. Pour into stone jars.

Daily for a week, drain the syrup into a saucepan, re-heat to boiling and pour it over the fruit again.

Used as a relish with roast meats.

jophan's Suburban (Cocktail) Meatballs

More recipes from jophan... All hail the generous jophan!

• 3 lb. ground beef
• 1 small onion, minced very fine
• Dried basil, Worcestershire sauce, salt & pepper
• 12 oz. bottle Heinz chili sauce
• 15 oz. can jellied cranberry sauce (no whole berries)

(I usually make the meatballs a few days ahead and freeze them. Or you can buy commercial meatballs, just make sure they are not Italian style. The seasoning doesn’t work.) Blend ground beef with minced onion, basil, salt, pepper & Worcestershire to taste. Form into 1 inch meatballs. In a hot frying pan, brown 12 – 15 at a time on all sides (about 5 minutes), transfer meatballs to an oven-safe dish and put into a warm oven (275 – 325 degrees). Add each batch to the oven until all meatballs are brown. Remove from oven 10 minutes after the last batch is added.

Add the cranberry sauce to a saucepan over medium-low heat. Break it up. Add the chili sauce and stir until the cranberry sauce is dissolved. Put the meatballs in a casserole dish and cover with the sauce. Bake at 275-325 for 30 minutes if meatballs are fresh or 1 hour if they are frozen. Serve in a chafing dish.

(Sauce also is good on roast pork.)

jophan's Grasshopper Soufflé

I still need to get my mom's Grasshopper Pie recipe... But jophan is way ahead of me & obviously a kind, generous soul who doesn't procrastinate. This sounds delicious.

• 1 c. sugar
• 2 c. water
• 2 envelopes unflavored gelatin powder
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 4 eggs, separated
• 1/4 c. crème de menthe
• 1 c. heavy cream

Combine 3/4 c. sugar and gelatin in saucepan. Gradually add water and stir over low heat until dissolved. Remove from heat. Temper eggs yolks with mixture and return to saucepan. Cook 2-3 minutes on low.

Add hot mixture to cream cheese, stir in crème de menthe. Mix well. Chill until slightly thickened.

Whip cream. Beat egg whites to soft peaks, gradually add remaining 1/4 c. sugar and beat to stiff peaks. Fold both whipped cream and meringue into cream cheese mixture.

Pour into large soufflé dish and chill until firm.

(The recipe says 8 servings, but I think you’d probably get twice that.)

Martian's Green Bean & Tomato Salad

Martian sent us a recipe! And it sounds lovely. She writes: The original recipe called for twice as much oil and vinegar, but it was too much for my taste. But others may prefer it that way.

• 1 pkg strawberry tomatoes (cherry would be good, too)
• some green beans
• a large handfull of chopped herbs: mint, parsley, basil
• garlic clove, chopped
• 2 T olive oil
• 1/2 T balsamic vinegar
• salt & pepper

Cut tomatoes in half and place in large bowl. Cook the green beans in boiling water to your preferred doneness, drail well and add to tomatoes. In a separate bowl, mix remaining ingredients. Pour over beans and tomatoes...let sit a little bit so the beans absorb the dressing flavors. It is yummy warm or cold.