2001

RUTH TOUT'S FROZEN CRANBERRY SALAD

Ruth Tout, wife of former Howe High School principal Frank Tout, has fixed this dish for many years at the holiday time called Thanksgiving and Christmas. It has always been a favorite thing to eat for their daughter, Sarah, and whenever there was some in their freezer, Sarah would always have it whenever possible. She was even known to have it for breakfast! Well, Sarah knows a good thing, believe you M.E.!!! I have found myself craving one of these delicacies at various times of the day. Since I don't like the typical breakfast foods for breakfast time, I have even followed Sarahs example and have eaten one first thing in the day. Yum! Yum! This is such an easy recipe to make and I am glad it does not call for the fresh cranberries so one can have it any time of the year. A friend of Ruths added chopped pecans to this but she prefers it without and I have to agree. I actually like the use of pecans in recipes but they really are not necessary for this one. Ruths idea of serving it is really neat and will be placed after the recipe itself.

MARY ANN'S PUMPKIN DESSERT

I have been accumulating several really good pumpkin recipes lately and there was not enough time nor enough columns to put them in around Thanksgiving time. I don't know why it is that we seem to get "hungry" for pumpkin only in the fall. It is a wonderful flavor and I feel should be enjoyed during the whole year. Spread it out a bit and then we wont get tired of it, perhaps. Mary Ann Wasson is a most delightful lady who attends the same church we do and this Shelbyville gal shared this delicious recipe with M.E. so that we could all try this unusually delicious and most easy- to- make dessert.

PAULINE'S TOMATO ASPIC

At a pitch-in luncheon at our church, Pauline Applas brought this wonderfully delicious aspic salad. Of course, I had to have the recipe and she kindly sent it to M.E. We have a group of folks over age 55. The name of it is C.C.C. I thought and thought and thought what those initials could stand for before I was told what C.C.C. really meant. I figured Christian would be one of the words . You can imagine my surprise when I found out that it meant, "Cookin, Coffee, and Conversation"! Our favorite thing to do for the C.C.C.'s is to travel somewhere and eat. Presbyterians in Shelbyville are the eatingest bunch. We love good food. A couple years ago, the church put out a cookbook. Our ministers's wife, Margaret Anne Huffman, was the person really behind that endeavor. Our congregation lost her to cancer recently and it just seems like a bright light has gone out of the world. Being full of energy all the time, it does not seem possible that she should be gone. Margaret Anne was a power behind our church having a nice library. Her gloriously lovely voice is missed from the choir (just to watch her sing was pure pleasure). She had many books and articles published as well. You may be one of the lucky ones to own one of her works. And, she gave many hours of help and strength to cancer patients through the oncology department of the hospital in Shelbyville. Yes, indeed, a bright light is missing in this world.

JUDY'S SPINACH BAKE

Do you have great trouble getting our loved ones (or yourself, for that matter!) to eat Popeyes favorite veggie? Well, after eating this dish, you will not have that problem any more. This is a most delicious dish served at my herb club one month by Judy Nichols. We all look forward to seeing what Judy brings to our monthly y pitch-ins because it is always good. This dish was a big hit and she graciously shared it with us all. It is so simple that one cannot have an excuse for not trying it out. Judy has her antique shop in her big, old red barn on her property in Elizabethtown, Indiana. The shop has the clever name of Nichols and Dimes. She specializes in country stuff and it is always fun to go shopping there to see all the unusual items she has for sale. Try this dish out soon. You will be glad you did and so will your tummy!

BARBARA'S PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE

Here is yet another wonderfully delicious pumpkin recipe. Barbara King, of Beech Grove, served us this wonderful dessert last fall. She did not use the glaze over it as it called for nuts and another guest, Linda Lentz, cannot abide nuts of any variety. Isnt Barbara a gracious and thoughtful hostess? Anyway, I shared this recipe with my friend, Debbie Monts, who made it using the syrup and brought some to us and this already delicious dessert is made even more deliciouser! (I just made up that word for it seems to fit here really well.) I am not an aficionado of cheesecakes but I found this one to be wonderfully smooth and ungrainy, if you know what I mean. My husband fell head over heels in love with it. Try it. It is well worth it and you dont have to wait until this fall to do so, either. You have my permission to make it right away!!!!

JANE EDWARDS' EL CID CHILI

I love chili and have several recipes for this filling dish. We have it throughout the year but it seems one really hankers for this lively dish especially when the weather is cold. Jane Edwards, of Edinburgh, Indiana, brought this dish to an herb meeting recently and it received rave reviews from all the gals. We are so very happy that Jane has changed her inactive membership to active. It is always special to attend meetings when she is in attendance. Jane and her husband, Dennis, have an antique business and do an occasional show but are now primarily doing business on the Internet. They are such a fun couple...so full of life and so very interesting to be with. Try this recipe and see if you dont end up adding it to your permanent collection of chili recipes.

SARA EPLER'S MAPLE CREAM PIE

This is the time of the year when those brave-hearted folks tap their sweet maple trees for the clear sap those huge plants render. These folks like it when it gets to freezing or a bit below at night and then gets above freezing during the day, for the trees' sap runs best under these conditions. I have a nephew, Dan Garner, who lives outside Bloomington, Indiana, who tapped trees for a few years. His method was most ingenious. Instead of buckets hanging from trees all over the woods, he ran plastic tubing downhill (and in that neck of the woods, this is easy to do) to an above ground, plastic swimming pool. Yes, that is what I said....an above-ground swimming pool! I was most disappointed the first time I tasted sap right from a maple tree. There is no sweetness whatsoever to it. That is why these folks have to boil and boil and boil and end up with not much maple syrup for the gallons and gallons of sap they start out with in the first place. I am most grateful that there are people willing to work so hard, for there are very few things to equal the taste of INDIANA maple syrup. That stuff from New England is all right if you cannot get the GOOD stuff from Hoosier Land. (Am I prejudiced? You're darned right I am!) You can buy your year's supply at a booth located near the Pioneer Building at the Indiana State Fair. Get at least a quart of this wonderfully delicious stuff! I love it when it snows enough (all right! go ahead and blame M.E. for the snow we have had!) so I can take some of this Hoosier ambrosia and boil it down a bit and then drizzle it out on some pristine snow. I end up with the most delicious taffy! Yum! Yum! Sara Epler, of the Columbus Herb Society, came up with another way to use Indiana maple syrup. She brought this delicious and pretty pie at a meeting last fall and it was an instant hit with everyone wanting the recipe, of course. This delightful and kind lady shared her recipe with M.E. so I could , in turn, share it with you readers. If you have no maple syrup (the Indiana variety, of course!) right now, file this away until you can get some.

QUAKER PLUM PUDDING

I have this thing about old recipes. I like trying out ones that were used back in Colonial times. My husbands favorite cake is the Williamsburg Orange Cake that he gets a special hankering for at Christmas time. Mush is another stand-by, whether eaten hot in a bowl with sugar and syrup or set up, sliced and fried for breakfast the next morning. One can go one step further with the Mush recipe and cook the Mush in pork broth and stir in very small pieces of cooked pork to make a most delicious dish called Scrapple, which is fried. With the addition of the meat, it makes for a very filling and stick-to-the-ribs dish. Well, here is a good recipe. It is a great cold weather dessert and has been served since about 1790. We have the Quakers, or Friends, who settled in eastern Pennsylvania to thank for this recipe that has been adapted a tad for todays cooks.

NANCY'S FLOATING ISLANDS

I love it when we are invited to someones house to dinner. It is always a great pleasure to not have to cook and even better, get to try someone else's cooking. Such was the case just before the end of last year when we were invited to the lovely home of the lovely Nancy Niemann. Nancy plays the organ and is musical director of the church we attend, First Presbyterian in Shelbyville, Indiana. It is such a pleasure to hear her play and it is always amazing what wonderful sounds she helps our small choir put forth. We attended another church one time that had a huge choir and their sound was not NEARLY as sweet and enjoyable! Anyway, this particular dinner made Nancy very nervous, so she said. She thinks I am such a gourmet cook (now, THAT'S a funny one!) but what she does not realize is that I simply have these delicious recipies that I get from various wonderful people who are so kind to share them. Nancy served us and Doc and Norma Bertsch from Cambridge City, Indiana, (my home town...in fact, my younger sister, Anne, had Jim Bertsch as a student in third grade there!) a truly gourmet meal from fabulous appetizers to a cranberry baked pork tenderloin (recipe coming up in a future article) to potatoes, green beans (so good even my hubbie liked them!) and ending with what I consider the best of all.......TWO (yes, count 'em!) TWO DESSERTS! I thought I had been transported back to friends' homes in Merrie Olde where we were served two desserts almost everywhere we went in England. One dessert was a chocolate fondue with pieces of wonderful fruit to dip in. Fondue is making a big come back and Nancy was really with it there. But, the dessert that really blew our minds was this fabulous Floating Islands. This recipe has been attributed to the Shakers and is in their cookbook but their directions for making it is such a bother that I had only made it a couple times and the last time was so long ago, it was when we were still living in east Indianapolis! Nancys version is wonderfully simple----trust me! This is a very light- tasting dessert and I have already served it three times to guests with rave reviews. It is so very satisfying to a cook to get compliments on a dish served. I like the fact that one does one part the day before, thus dividing the labor in making the dish. You know, I am always interested the history of a recipe. Even though the Shakers are known for this one, I feel that as common as all the ingredients are, I bet this has been made for literally hundreds of years. Think about it. Doesn't that make sense? Do make this one. You will enjoy the making AND the serving AND the eating of it!!!

NANCY AND MARY'S ORANGE-CRANBERRY GLAZED PORK TENDERLOIN

Last week I promised you the terrific recipe that Nancy Niemann served us last December. I always try and keep my promises. In fact, I have had a ball recently in trying to locate a recipe an Image reader had lost and wanted back again. I did not have it but I was thrilled to find out that Mrs. Groseth thought she had obtained the recipe from one of my columns. So, an S.O.S. was sent out, via e-mail, to the various friends I have who like to cook and collect recipes. The prize winner was another Image reader, Rita McBride, who came up with the candy recipe that she had clipped from a previous Heloise recipe column!!!!! Isn't that a hoot? Anyway I have had fun with e-mails to Rita and phone calls to Mrs. G. Great fun! Now, I will have to try this recipe one of these days. Back to today's recipe. This is truly an easy main dish to make. Every once in awhile, Krogers will have their Silver Platter whole pork tenderloins on sale and I try to get one. I cut it into thirds or fourths, double wrap and freeze. I tried this recipe on one of those. I got rave reviews from our guests, Bruce and Ruth Beck and Ellen O'Drain --- Howe High School connections. What in the world would we do without whole cranberry sauce? There are so many ways to use it besides straight out of the can. Anyway, I copied down Nancy's recipe in a little notebook I carry with M.E. at all times for such occasions. I had not got around to recopying it onto a recipe card when in the mail, Mary Abbott Williams of North Carolina, sent me some cranberry recipes she had tried and liked. She had beautifully written this one out on a cute recipe card so I did not have to recopy it onto one of my own cards. She also sent another recipe that I will share with you next week, so hang in there. More good recipes are yet to come your way. Do try this, if not for company then as a very special treat for you and your family.

MARY'S CRANBERRY FREEZE

Last week you were promised another recipe from Mary Abbott Williams, that delightful gal originally from Hagerstown, Indiana, and now from North Carolina. Well, she and her charming hubby, Jan, reside in North Carolina for most of the year. Since Jan has a taxing business in Richmond, (the pun is well intended here,) they have bought a little house in Richmond for the two of them to stay while he has to be there for the tax season. Jan drives up about once a month the rest of the year, so the house enables him to have a better place to stay than a motel room. Mary is of the Abbott family in Hagerstown where many good candies are made. They are especially famous for their wonderfully delicious caramels. Anyway, Mary is so very talented in many areas. Her special interest is in quilting. Each year we receive a very special Christmas card from them; special because she makes her own. It is fun to see what she will come up with each year. We are never disappointed. Jan's main passion is golfing. That is why they moved south so that he could be near a good golf course. He has even played at THE place for golfing, St. Andrews in Scotland, where the whole business of chasing a little ball all over grasslands began many years ago. Mary sent me this recipe with the one I shared with you last week. This one is very similar to the one I shared with you in January from Ruth Tout. It is similar but really different, too, if you can imagine such a thing. These little gems of good taste are wonderful. I like both recipes and would not want to have to decide on which one I liked best. You will probably find yourself having the same problem. I like the fact that one can have these all bagged up in the freezer to pull out any ol' time. Better than a candy bar (unless it is a Hershey bar!) I do think that the nuts in this concoction adds something and will put them in next time I make this.

JANE THOMAS' CARAMEL CRACKERS

It just drives me nuts to be given a recipe and then not be able to find the necessary ingredients to make it. Such was the case with M.E. a little over a year ago when dear friend from Hagerstown, Indiana, Jane Thomas, sent M.E. this one. I looked and looked and looked for the Ritz Bits and could not find any that did not have cheese or some other odd flavor in them. I gave up and threw the recipe away from my wall. (You should see the recipes that are designed for future columns down here in my little computer room in the basement. I have them scotch taped all over one wall. Organized, I am not, I am sorry to have to admit!) Anyway, you can imagine my delight when, just before Christmas, there was an ad, ( and a money off coupon, too, no less,) for Ritz Bits and included was the "new" (NEW????) ones without any flavor, just plain! To say I was between a rock and a hard place, is to put it mildly. There I was, able to get the needed ingredient and no recipe! So, Jane kindly re-sent M.E., via e-mail, the needed directions. As Jane says, when finished, one can store this edible delight in a container but she guarantees that it will not stay around very long! In fact, her exact words are, "Store any left (HA!) in an air tight container."

LUCY HENRYS Brrrr-BECUED CHICKEN a LORANGE

Last December, my husband, John, was asked to do his James Whitcomb Riley presentation for the Christmas program for the Columbus Antique Club. Each year at Christmas time they have a dinner catered by a group from the Burnsville, Indiana, Christian Church. Before the dinner and program, I got to talking with Lucy Henry, a most interesting lady. Lucy is a graduate of Shortridge High School in Indianapolis and Indiana University. She taught math at Howe High School in the forties then came to join her husband, Al, in Seoul, Korea, teaching everything (even Latin!) to the army dependents in the government school. Her husband, Al, was stationed in the General Hospital there doing Ophthalmology as part of the occupation forces following the liberation of Korea from the Japanese and helping the Koreans set up a government. Lucy and Al have five children. She loves to travel, play bridge, enjoys her church and cooking. She especially likes to fool around with new recipes and owns about 400 cookbooks. Like so many of us, she has had the awful job of adjusting from cooking for several to fixing for only two. At this dinner, Lucy mentioned to me a really good recipe that she and Al greatly enjoy and promised to e-mail it to me. She was good at her word for it arrived through cyberspace pronto. I tried this right away. Using the orange marmalade really makes this chicken dish a truly yummy one. Do try it soon.

LARRY McBRIDE'S FAVORITE CAKE

I have told you about my e-mail correspondence with Rita McBride, an Image reader. It was she who came up with the winning candy recipe for yet another Image reader. Well, Rita's having "written" to me via e-mail has been one of the most fun things to happen to M.E. in quite a while. We have been exchanging recipes and information. She writes beautifully. Rita and her school teacher husband, Larry, like to go to the movies as he is a big movie buff. For exercise, they like to hike and have discovered that wonderful new Indiana Fort Harrison State Park. Gardening is Rita's first love and she starts plants growing indoors before they are ready to be put in the ground outside. Taking care of three dogs and nine cats sure does keep her busy as well. Rita was a former Pet-Find volunteer and did some wonderful work in finding homes for stray animals. It always seemed that the volunteers ended up with several of these animals! This recipe is Larry's favorite cake. It was such a simple recipe and when I got it from Rita, it was just the right time to make it for February and Valentine's Day and Georgie's cutting down the old cherry tree, so I made it two times. The first time, I followed Rita's directions. My husband thought it needed more cherries (and THIS from a guy who does not care for cherries much!) and so the second time I added a half can more of the pie filling, using the remainder as a sauce over a couple pieces of cake. This was MOST delicious. It is very reminiscent of Black Forest Cake. As we all know, one does not HAVE to wait for a particular holiday to make a good recipe and so DO try this very easy cake for your family. You will be receiving raves, believe-you-M.E. and it is all due to lovely Rita!!!!

JACQUE CHAMBERS' WHITE CHILI

In January, the Columbus Herb Society met at the wonderful home of the hummingbirds. Well, that is the way I think of this home of Jacque Chambers' which is located on a lake west of Columbus, Indiana. Of course, in the dead of winter, we saw no hummers but the last time we met there was during the busy hummingbird feeding time and we were outdoors and it was so VERY hard for me to concentrate on the proceedings of the meeting because of these wonderful little birdies coming and going to the three feeders Jacque had hanging there. Hummingbirds are so much fun to watch. This time at Jacque's, we were served this wonderful soup by our hostess. Of course, there was a great demand for the recipe which this terrific lady kindly e-mailed to us all. I like the taste of this soup and it is fun to know that chili does NOT have to be RED in color!!!!! Try this version. It is right tasty. Freezes well, too.

CECILY'S CAESAR CHICKEN

I am sure that some of you guys and gals out there in Image land have found out the hard way as I did on how hard it is to find a barber/beauty shop open on a Monday. The place where I usually go to get my hair cut, which is not very often, (I am always in a desperate state when I go to Fred) was not open and I was wanting my hair fixed up for a special event. My memory escapes M.E. now on what that special event was but I sure do have etched firmly in my memory bank how many phone calls I made before I found a place that wasn't miles and miles away from where I live and who would take me. Avanti, in Wannamaker, is where I ended up and Cecily Hall was the lovely lady there, working all by herself. Not only did I get a great hair trim and a most attractive hair set (even my husband noticed it right away!) I even got a delicious and very easy recipe to boot! Now, how's THAT for real service? As Cecily said, this dish is very, very good and tastes like the cook has slaved over the stove for hours on end. You can whip it up in no time for it can be put together and cooked, ready to serve in half an hour's time. Your guests and/or family will never know, unless your conscience works on you and you tell them the truth. I wish I could keep my big mouth shut on cases like this and just let people think I have worked terribly hard on a delicious dish but no! I have to tell all and confess how easy it is to make. Thanks to lovely Cecily you can make this one soon. Your guests and/or family will be glad you did. I bet her seven-year-old son, Cody, likes this dish!

MY CALICO BEANS

If ever there was a child who really, really, really needed a baby sibling, it is our grandson Nathaniel! He goes ga-ga whenever he sees a baby. He loves little children. And......the other day our daughter informed us that she observed Nate reading his favorite alphabet book his Grandma Krautheim had sent him to their Dirt Devil vacuum cleaner and he had his little arm around the apparatus! So, I guess it really is a good thing that Mattie is expecting our second grandchild. She has had the recommended ultrasound and they know that it will be another boy. This was no surprise to the mommy since it seems Krautheim men beget nothing but boys. That is all right with M.E. although I was kinda hoping (knowing the odds would be against me, however) for a granddaughter. I literally salivate whenever I look at children's clothes and see all the things out there for little girls. Oh, well. So, I look on the bright side and think of all the money I will be saving, for knowing M.E., I realize that I would go bonkers in buying clothes for a little granddaughter! In the ultrasound they found that little Isaac Stephen was perfect in every way. Well......I could have told them THAT without ANY kind of test! We are so excited over little Ike, who is due to present himself to the world sometime towards the end of June. He is being called Ike because big brother can say that but has trouble with verbalizing Isaac. And, a good friend and former student, Scott Conder, sent M.E. his "I Like Ike" campaign button for M.E. wear when we head to Connecticut in June! Wasn't that nice of him to share? I took another bean dish to the February meeting of the Columbus Herb Society and it was a big hit. My husband thinks that my regular baked beans are passe now. He loves the sweetness of this dish. I think it is pretty as well. I was given a similar recipe years ago from good friend and gourmet cook, Ellen Sauer of Minnesota, and I had to change the types of beans used as I did not have on hand what her recipe called for. I think I have come up with a really good combination. Try it and see what you think.

RITA McBRIDE'S CRANBERRY COFFEECAKE

I was beginning to panic. My last bottle of Mexican vanilla was getting at a very dangerously low level and my source of friends who spent the winters in Texas close to the border had dried up. Then, good friends Carlos Alarvez and Tim Bookout of Atlanta, Georgia, brought M.E. several bottles. I have been able to share some with friends. The most recent sharing was with Image reader, Rita McBride. We met at the west end of the Meijer's parking lot one cold, windy noon where I gave her four cans of apricot pie filling (I had ordered a case directly from the Comstock people---they bought out the Thank You brand) and a bottle of vanilla. We agreed that if a stranger would have taken notice of what we were doing, they might swear that a drug deal was going on what with my giving her a sack and she giving M.E. an envelope with money in it! Anyway, Rita had shared with M.E. a recipe for a coffeecake using a yellow cake mix and I had made it. My husband did not care for it due to the "whang" one gets from the taste from the cake mix. We do not get this odd taste from a chocolate cake mix and I have not tried a white cake mix to see if it gives forth this "whang" or not. Everyone else who tasted the cake thought it wonderful and asked for the recipe. In the meantime, Rita got ANOTHER recipe that she tried and gave to M.E. I tried it and found it absolutely wonderful. No "whang." I am going to share both recipes with you and you can try whichever one you want. However, I am compelled to state that the one made from scratch is NOT any more trouble than using a mix and think of all those preservatives you are not putting into your body. Also, I cut this recipe in half using an 8 x 8 pan and it worked just fine.

MY VERY OWN MEATLOAF

I do realize that I am really going to be treading on very, very thin ice here by giving you readers a meatloaf recipe. HOWEVER...... this particular one is a combination that I have made up, as James Whitcomb Riley would have put it, "Mine ownself!" I used ingredients from three or four meatloaf recipes to come up with this one and the piece de resistance is the addition of the relatively new Lipton Beefy Onion Secret Recipe. I had used the onion variety in the past but the beefy one really does make a whole lot of difference. The addition of brown sugar doesn't hurt either! I have hated meatloaf for all of my life and since it is a favorite of my husband's (he can eat almost anyone's meatloaf) I wanted to be able to come up with one that I could enjoy as well. I have served this to good friends Butch and Barbara King. Butch, like myself, is not a lover of meatloaf but he really likes mine and even asked his lovely wife to get this recipe from me, so I decided to share it with you all. I am also going to include the wonderful green bean dish I always serve along with the meatloaf for Butch had requested that one, too. I also do a potato dish, of course, either mashed, twice baked or roasted rosemary/garlic but the bean dish is always a must. If you have a favorite meatloaf recipe, congratulations. But, try this one and see if you like it, too. I would love to hear from you what you think of it. I so rarely come up with an original recipe so I feel compelled to share this one with you all. By the way, Butch insists I tell you about the first time I served this meal to them. There we were, the four of us seated around our diningroom table. I had made two meatloaves and had one on the platter. I had made a doouble batch of the green beans and a large dish of rosemary/garlic roasted potatoes plus a pineapple angelfood cake in a 9 by 13 pan. We four ended up eating both meatloaves, all the green beans, all the cake and all put two tablespoonsfull of the potatoes! I had been looking forward to left overs the next day but it was not to be. I was thrilled that the food was so well liked for that is the best compliment to a cook there is.

SWEET 'N SOUR GREEN BEANS

 

LIANG PAN MEIN NOODLE SALAD

Our son-in-law, Stephen, had to come back to Purdue University to defend his thesis for his Masters Degree. Many universities do not demand a defense for an M.A. but Purdue has high standards and demands this be done. So, between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, the kids flew back home and Mattie and the little ones stayed with us while Stephen was busy up on campus. It was wonderful having my little helper in my kitchen once again. Every time I went out there, Nate would unfold the step stool and be right there helping out. He helps his mommy in her kitchen cutting up veggies. We were amazed at how much Isaac had grown since we last saw them last November. He was not crawling yet but got everywhere he wanted to go by bouncing on his bottom! He had us all well trained. He has a voice that can be heard in the next county and uses it when he wants something. Mattie told us abut the time when Nate ran away from her while they were leaving the doctor's office where she picks up stuff to transcribe. There is a small parking lot there and Nate was not in big danger BUT if he would do it there, he might in other parking lots so he got called upon the red carpet BIG TIME. He was told that he could get a really BIG "Boo Boo" in a parking lot where there might be moving cars. He cried lots. So, when they went to "M" for lunch, (the golden arch place) he got out of the car and said, "Big "Boo Boo" in a parking lot!" and did not leave his mommy's side. Oh, there is SO much for little 'uns to learn, isn't there? Try this favorite dish of Mattie's and her family. You will really like it. It is a tad bit of trouble but not as bad as it reads and you will be glad you made it. Trust M.E.

JO ANN OLDHAM'S CONGRESSIONAL CASSEROLE

It is not every day one gets to entertain and feed a United States Congressman in one's own home, but such was the case last March 17th when Charles and Jo Anne Oldham of Pendleton, Indiana, served this particular dish to our Indiana Congressman, Mike Pence. Jo Ann has more energy than ten people. Even when she broke a leg last winter, she just kept on going like that famous pink bunny. Jo Ann is very adept with a needle or a sewing machine. There is nothing she cannot make from various materials. She has a fall show called A COUNTRY BOUTIQUE in her home the first weekend in November where she and four others display for sale the various works of art they have been working on all year. Jo Ann is known for her vests, place mats, and wall hangings, with Christmas or snowmen themes. You tell her what you would like and she can make it. She and Charles, who has farmed the family farm and now does trucking of grain, raised three boys and one girl. They enjoy their four grandchildren and are lucky enough to have two great-grandchildren with another one to arrive sometime this month! Being a real for shure-nuff city girl, (worked as a soda jerk during high school,) Jo Ann knew NOTHING about the day- to- day work on a farm. She was a very fast learner. Over their 53 years of marriage, she has raised big gardens, canned during the summer, sewed anything loose and was always willing to try out new recipes. Farmers' issues, of course, are near and dear to the Oldham's hearts and after a meeting of farmers with Rep. Mike Pence, Jo Ann served this delicious casserole dish to him. This fun lady kindly shares her recipe with us IMAGE readers.

ANCIENT ROMAN HAM AND FIGS

Mary DeWitz was a delightful teacher of English and the Humanities at Howe when it was a high school. She had fun with her students. Then, health required that she leave the teaching profession. But, did she just loaf around and take it easy? No! She has fun filling her calendar with attending plays, with luncheon dates, bridge parties and entertaining in her own lovely home. Having to walk with a cane did not prevent her taking a two-week trip to Italy in February along with a fellow retired teacher of English. Upon her return, Mary called to inform M.E. that she had procured a cookbook in Florence, her favorite of all the cities visited. I informed her quickly that I did not read Italian. She answered with, "Oh, but it is a book on what the Roman Emperors ate!" and I had to admit to her that I did not "do" Latin, either! It was then that she admitted the book was printed in English! Now, I knew that the Romans' list of cooking ingredients was quite limited but it really hit home as I perused this wonderful book titled, Dining As A Roman Emperor: How to Cook Ancient Roman Recipes Today, just how VERY, VERY limited they were. No sweet potatoes! No white potatoes! No corn! No vanilla! No chocolate! No tomatoes! It REALLY boggles the mind to think of Italy without tomato sauce! But.....they were BIG on anchovies, which my husband thinks is terribly chic of them. He is an advocate of this fish! You should see the look on our waitress' face when he orders anchovies on his pizza! One even remarked once, "But....them's FEESH!" Well, no wonder the Roman Empire fell! With the diet they had, it was bound not to last! Good friend, Ellen Sauer, did research once on ancient recipes. It was she who told me that the Romans' enthusiasm for vegetables in particular was so great that some even took their family names from them. For instance, Fabius comes from faba for beans. Cicero came from cicer arietinum for peas. The Roman style of cooking ran to heavy spicing and meats were combined with sweet syrups or with honey and vinegar. An especially favorite dish was this method of fixing ham. It is very similar to how we do hams today. See what a delicious difference using figs does to this meat.

BETTY SCHNAITER'S CRESCENT CRISTO SANDWICH LOAF

As I have written several times before, the First Presbyterian Church in Shelbyville, Indiana, has many excellent cooks as members. A couple of years ago, a cookbook was put out by the women of the church containing recipes from many years ago through to the present day. For several years, it has been the custom, for those interested, to go Christmas caroling a couple Sundays before that auspicious holiday and then ending up at the minister's house for soup and sweets and further fellowship. I wondered if our minister, Gary Huffman, would continue to do this since his wife, Margaret Anne, had passed away just before Thanksgiving, but he keep up the ritual with help from friends. One such friend, and church member, was Betty Schnaiter who brought this wonderfully easy to make and very easy to eat "sandwich". Betty and her husband, Kip, who has an insurance agency in Shelbyville, have lived in Shelbyville for thirty some years so they feel like "natives". The two of them enjoy playing golf and in the food area, Betty especially enjoys baking. This particular recipe is certain proof of that fact. She began to help putting together the Ayers Style Shows when her daughter was a buyer for that respected department store. Betty's twin sister, who lives in Martinsville, gave this wonderful recipe to her. See if you don't agree with M.E. that it is indeed a winner.

ITALIAN TUSCANY SOUP

I am absolutely addicted to that wonderful creamy sausage soup that they serve at the Olive Garden. Never in my wildest imaginings did I dream that I would be able to fix something much like it in my own kitchen. Last early spring, Kermit and Jane Thomas of Hagerstown, Indiana, went with us to an antique show in Cincinnati, Ohio. On our way home, we wanted to eat at a favorite Thai restaurant close to the university there but found it closed until the evening so we motored on our merry way until we came to an Olive Garden. I ordered this soup, of course, (along with their wonderful crisp salad and breadsticks) and it was then that Jane told me that she thought a relative of hers had figured out how to make this soup and promised to get the recipe and e-mail it to me. Jane was true to her word. Jane's cousin, Pete Jones, married a Martha!!!! This Martha, also, liked this soup and wanted it often so figured out this recipe. She and Pete have two sons and one granddaughter and two grandsons. She is retired form being a secretary to the president of Kemper Cabinets. It is obvious this gal is a good cook. Try this recipe and see if you don't think she has come up with an excellent imitation of the original.

SAUSAGE BREAD

We stayed in a nice motel somewhere in Kentucky on our way back home from North and South Carolina last spring. While partaking of the fantastic free breakfast buffet the next morning, we got to talking with the lovely lady who was in charge of the food area. I promised to send her my sausage bread recipe. This got M.E., to thinking (which, my husband says, can be a VERY dangerous thing!) that I ought to share it with you Image readers as this would be a good thing to fix for New Years Eve. It has been fifteen years ago since I have shared this with you! This particular recipe was given to me by Alice Hutchinson, my sister-in-law who lives in Columbus, Ohio. I used it years ago when we did a few sit down teas along with a tour of the antiques in our house. It was too much work to do after our daughter left for Purdue University, however. This recipe is very similar to one we were served at high tea when in England visiting friends who lived on a farm in East Anglia.

HOLLY'S GEORGIA FRUIT SALAD

One day last fall, I think it was, I got a phone call from a most charming sounding young woman from the state of Georgia. She was making an inquiry of the purchase of the two cookbooks the Columbus Herb Society has put out. I am the contact person for ordering them by mail. During the conversation, this Holly Holland and I talked recipes, of course, and she mentioned one that she makes often and has found to be a success when she takes the dish to church pitch-ins. Holly's son, Barry Jr., is her almost-four-year-old pride and joy. He likes just everything his mama makes and she loves to try new things for him to eat. Holly likes to read and do needlework. She does the tape ministry for her church and has gone on mission trips each summer for her church. This recipe that Holly kindly shares with us, is a concoction that one can eat and not feel guilty about doing so. It is also one that you can make for thirty or cut down for one or two. How versatile can one get? And, it is a sure fire winner to serve in hot weather. Just let go, fix, and enjoy!

DOROTHY JONES' CREAMY SPINACH BAKE

Several months ago we were among the lucky ones to be invited to the very lovely patio home of Joe and Dorothy Jones,( former Irvington residents who now reside on the northwest side of Marion County), to a sit down dinner. Also present were Dr. John Barker and his wife, Marsha, who is the person one sees when the office is open--- his most efficient and patient Girl Friday cum secretary/ bookkeeper/ maker of appointments. Another friend of long standing who was also present was Shirley Horton, who is the nurse at the Marion county Children's Guardian Home in Irvington. Well, we were served some delicious appetizers in the livingroom and I knew enough to not over indulge as the dinner to follow would be spoiled if I did not watch myself. Am I ever glad I did so, for the meal was wonderful as is always the case at Dorothy's dining table. The following recipe is a good example of what I mean. My husband DOES NOT care for spinach but he had thirds (count em!) thirds of this casserole dish. Marsha Barker made it shortly afterward and cut the recipe in half. This is most easy to do as you can see. If you serve several other things with it as Dorothy did, it will make for more servings than the recipe calls for but if it is the only side dish, you will be fine. It is rich, I must admit, but SOOOOOOOOO good.....real comfort food that makes your eyes light up and your tummy say "Howdy!" to quote the song about Apple Pan Dowdy. Do try this one soon. The left overs (if there are any) reheat nicely and deliciously.

NEW MOMMY'S FRESH SPINACH SAUTE

On May 31, we got the call. Our daughter, Mattie, had been for her prenatal check-up and was told she was having all the symptoms of a soon-to-be birth. In fact, they told her they really did not expect her to keep the next week's appointment. This happened when she had Nate, so we scurried around and tied up all the loose ends so we could head east. Thanks to dear friend Barbara King and good neighbors Bill and Rosalie Nichols, we were able to leave yard, cats, papers and home. It was wonderful seeing our kids again on June 4th, especially lively three-year-old and fun-to-be-with Nathaniel. Yes, we got to Middletown, Connecticut, in good time and then we waited.......and waited......and waited! Isaac was informed by all of us that he could make his grand appearance any time but that little guy held on to his due date of June 28th. In fact, once he made up his mind to quit being so cramped, he did not fool around. Issac Stephen Krautheim, all 21 inches, 7 pounds 12 ounces of him arrived at 7:47 p.m.-----SEVENTEEN MINUTES after the parenal units' arrival at the hospital! Mattie said she didn't even have time to think if she wanted help with the pain! The next morning, upon seeing his little brother at the hospital, all Nate could say over and over again was, "Oh, isn't he cute?" Enough said. Big brother has said it all! It was indeed wonderful for us to have over three weeks to bond with Nate. My husband says, and I concur, that this has been the best visit of all. Hospitals now put new born's pictures on the internet. This is REALLY cool. Issac has shown great cleverness by showing three fingers by his little face to let us know that HE knows his big brother is three years old! Is this a soppy Grammy talking or what? Mattie likes this way to fix fresh spinach. She directed my fixing it so I could share it with you readers. It is so delicious.....and FAST!!!!! Even my husband will eat spinach cooked this way.

HOME MADE VANILLA

At the end of last month, I shared a recipe with you Warren Image readers from Paulette Kruer of Starlight, Indiana. It seems I am ending another month with a recipe from this vivacious gal. Paulette is quite a character. She has her very own method of trying to lower the mole population that is working hard at decimating her yard by shooting them. Yes.....she uses a pistol and shoots those little buggers when she seems movement below ground. This took a bit of getting used to by her neighbors but they finally realized that those early morning shots were Paulette murdering nothing else but underground nuisances. Now I ask you, does this sound like a gal who would have two grown sons and two grandchildren for whom, like the good grandmother she is, she would lay down her life? Back in May I had written about my running out of my Mexican vanilla and that enticed Paulette to write M.E. how she makes her own vanilla that she maintains is the very best there is and I sure am not one to doubt this most knowledgeable lady. I'm not going to tell you this is an instant fix to a lack of a good vanilla problem nor am I going to tell you it is easy, but it sure does sound like a whole lotta fun. I will admit I have not done this yet since I still have a goodly supply of the south of the border variety to use up but I just cannot wait to share this recipe with you. If you do try this, I would like for you to let M.E. know what you think of the recipe by e-mailing at mjervin@worldnet.att.net or by phone at 835-4348. I would greatly appreciate your taking the time to do so.

ROASTED GARLIC AND ONION JAM PIZZA

The first place the three of us, (my sister, Anne, [whose time share condo we stay in] and her fellow retired teacher friend, Frances Gordon and I) hit when we arrive in Cookville, Tennessee, to spend that wild week in October of playing cards and eating, etc., is Simonton's Cheese House. There are certain items we have gone back for over the five years we have been going down there. One very important item for M.E. is the Stonewall Kitchen Roasted Garlic and Onion Jam. It is DIVINE and this time, the lovely lady in this neat shop gave M.E. this recipe to make a MOST delicious appetizer. The only places I know of where you can get this condiment locally is The Butlers Pantry in Zionsville, Cooks and Company in Columbus, Indiana, andThe Wild Oats at 1300 E. 86th Street. Or you can write to Stonewall Kitchen, Stonewall Lane, York, Maine, 03909, or E-mail them at: guestservices@stonewallkitchen.com. This "jam" is just an item that is so delicious and special that it is worth any effort you might have to go through tn order to have it in your own personal pantry. This stuff would make shoe leather taste good!

BARBARA'S CHOCOLATE FUDGE

Last October, about four in the morning, I awoke with a start and a VERY scary feeling. I was cold and REALLY wet!!!!!!! We had bought a water bed several years ago and I must admit that it did alleviate my back pain but the various tubes were wearing out. A decision had to be made and made quickly; to replace with another water bed or go with the conventional type of mattress? I opted for the latter. Once you awaken sopping wet, you do not want THAT experience ever again. I am not sorry. You should have seen the two of us trying to get rid of those heavy tubes of water. The simplest solution was just to raise the bedroom window, remove the screen, and shove those dudes out onto the grass. I bet if anyone were watching, they would wonder what in the world was going on at the Ervin household! We drained the things and then placed them in the garage. I was fearful the conditioned water would kill the grass but it was not to be, thank goodness. Butch King, a good friend and former student of my husband's at Howe High School, came to John's rescue by fixing the metal plates that held the side rails on the cherry antique bed so that we could move them out a tad more in order to be able to have the new mattress placed on the slats. Butch's wife, Barbara, came with him when he brought the metal plates back. She brought with her the most delicious fudge I have ever put in my mouth. I have tried various recipes of the marshmallow creme type but did not care for any of them and John did not like this type at all, so why bother to make it? Barbara's fudge was absolutely wonderful. OF COURSE, I asked for the recipe! Barbara says that what she likes about this fudge recipe is that the candy comes out the same every time she makes a batch. I like the fact that it has a wonderful velvety texture and the taste is heavenly. I think the secret is in the use of both sweet and semi-sweet chocolate chips. That Mexican vanilla can't hurt, either! Winter is the time for making fudge for M.E. and so I make it every once in awhile in cold weather. I have a feeling, however, that this recipe will be made the year round in this new year of 2002! See if you don't agree.

OPEN HOUSE SPICED TEA

Thanks to fellow member, Betty Johnson, of the Columbus Herb Society, I became "acquainted," via e-mail, with a Freida Snyder somewhere in Tennessee. Betty told me about THE CLOTH and I ordered some and ended up sending Freida my recipes and so on and so forth. Frieda is a Hoosier, growing up in Lexington, Indiana, in Scott County. She met her husband, Orville, in Columbus where she worked at Cummins Engine. Her husband was in WW2 and went on to further schooling, thanks to that wonderful GI Bill. They had three girls. It was then that she started in with a different doctor where Freida found HE had little boys in HIS black bag! After two boys, she decided to stop. This vivacious lady has worn many hats: cake decorator, Mary Kay Consultant, selling Emmons jewelry. She lived in Columbus and then Tennessee and then they came back to Columbus where her husband later passed away. She then moved back to Tennessee to be near her children and grand children. A daughter came home from a flea market with a fiber cloth that was wonderful in cleaning about the house. Freida liked it so much and wanted more so went into the business of selling THE CLOTH. Her computer engineer son told her to let him make a web page for her so she could get her business on the Internet. She thought that a good joke. " Who would see it in a little town in Tennessee?" she told him. He told her she would be surprised which she was, and then some! So, at age 74, she learned how to use the computer and three years later, has customers in 25 states and Canada because she sells an excellent product at a very good price. You can contact her at her web site of www.buythecloth.com. THE CLOTH will clean everything by wetting it with only water. No chemicals. She says it will clean everything in your house, car, baby, makeup off, tools, motorcycles, golf clubs, carts, golf balls, pick up cat and/or dog hair, bowling balls but she is most sorry.....it will not clean fish! The following recipe was sent to me by Freida. It is a combination of a couple good recipes made even into a better one! Try it one cold winter night. It is easy to cut in half if you do not want this much.

ANNA'S CHOCOLATE FLAN

Our kids have a pair of very lovely and special friends in the guise of Flavio and Anna Martins. Both hail from Brazil. Flavio's father's job has caused him to travel over the world so Flavio got his elementary education in Great Britain and ended up at the University of Michigan for his final schooling. Both our son-in-law and Flavio work for Pratt and Whitney in East Hartford, Connecticut. Both are into the designing of jet engines. Anna had her own pediatric dental practice in Brazil before marrying Flavio which she had to give up but is taking schooling in this country. Our grandson LOVES it when they go to the Martins' or they come to the Krautheim's. We think he has fallen madly in love with Anna and don't blame him one bit. When Flavio became a U.S. citizen, Mattie made a cake for him to look like the U.S. flag. Stephen even got into the act by putting on the stars while Mattie had to be on the phone. The guys in Flavio's area decorated his desk that Monday morning with flags but the piece de resistance was Mattie's cake. Flavio cried over the kindness of his fellow workers. Anna has made this chocolate flan several times and it is a favorite of our daughter's. She got the recipe and shared with with M.E. so I could pass it on to you Image readers. It sorta blew my mind to think of flan having a CHOCOLATE flavor. It is quite yummy and different.

NO BAKE CRANBERRY ORANGE COOKIES

The kids visited with us on their annual visit, arriving the day after Turkey Day. I figured that three and one-half year old Nathaniel would have forgotten how he "helped" Grammy last year in her kitchen, (he is the ONLY one who has ever been allowed with M.E. in my narrow Pullman style kitchen,) but he grabbed the light weight folding step stool I had brought in from the garage and every time I was in that room, there was Nate. He would stop whatever else he was doing. He helped stir, cut up stuff, wash dishes, etc. What a delight. While he washes dishes he REALLY washes dishes, grunting all the time he is swishing that dishrag around and around. It was wonderful having baby Isaac here, too. He got held A LOT and his mommy reported that when they got back home and back to reality, he was a very unhappy child, thinking that he should be held all the time as had happened at his Grandma Krautheim's and his Grammy Ervin's! He is so cuddle some and fun to hold. No wonder he was never put down by himself. Nate is a terrific big brother to Ike. He will go to the baby and comfort him and bring some of his toys; trucks, road graters, diggers.....all the stuff Builder Bob uses.....and play with Ike. Ike adores his Nate and looks and looks at him with adoring eyes. One time he may not have, however. Ike was inspecting their black remote control for the TV. Of course, it was then that Nate wanted the object and was informed that Ike had it first. Always thinking, Nate went over to their black portable phone, which is about the same size, and brought it over to Ike saying, "Here, Ike. THIS is what you want," and took the remote!!!!! One of these days, however, Ike will REALLY know what he wants and then THAT ought to develop into something highly interesting.....not to the parental units probably, but will to Grammy! I like things tart. I HATE it when a waitress will tell me that their lemon pie is REALLY lemony, when I inquire about that, and then upon trying to eat the thing, have found out that they drug a VERY small piece of lemon through a big batch of filling, or so it seems. Well, this cookie is on the tart side but the powdered sugar helps some with that. My husband and Nate do not like anything tart in taste. These cookies should set for a few days before eating as they seem to mellow. They do not taste very good the day you make them as the only taste you get is that of the vanilla wafers. I find that I need to roll them in powdered sugar again in a couple days.

ELLEN'S BEEF AND GUINESS STEW

Yummy, yummy, yummy! Here is something yummy for your tummy! This is a wonderful stick-to-the-ribs kind of dish. Ellen Sauer from waaaaaaay up north in Minnesota (she and husband, Phil, are about a quarter inch from the Canadian border, or so it seems when looking at the map) sent this recipe via that wonderful e-mail system that is so fast. Upon the receiving of this, the Sauers have had only a little over ten inches of snow. They were hoping for much more so that when the really cold temperatures arrive, their pipes would be better protected. I could not believe that we only had a little over five inches for all of last year! We have not done much better so far this year, either. No wonder our water levels get low. It is indeed a strange weather cycle we are now in. I hear and read the pros and cons that it is the emissions we are spewing out into the atmosphere and cannot help but think it has to have some effect on the weather. Anyway, warm your body with this dish. You will be glad you did. Be sure to also make and serve the pancakes to go with the stew.

MATTIE'S BROCCOLI TUNA SALAD

We had only the one child, so I was very curious to see what Nathaniel's reactions would be to our second grandchild, Issac. I figured that the kid who considered a broken down upright vacuum as his friend, would cotton on to a baby brother, and I was right. Nate can't seem to get enough of the baby and is MOST protective. One day, they treated Nate to lunch at "M" (his name for that place with the golden arches) and he proceeded to introduce his brother to everyone within a five mile range with, "THIS IS MY BABY ISAAC!" He was overjoyed when a long walk was taken by the whole family with him in his seat in his big red wagon and Issac riding along with him in the baby carrier. There has been a few digressions as well. what with Nate's trying out a pacifier again, wanting to be covered with a baby blanket, lying down IN the "train" I had sent when Nate was a baby, a round cloth thing in the shape of a train to put the baby in on the floor. But, all these actions were temporary and certainly understandable. Isaac does NOT like being given a bath and diaper change, thank you very much, so at five days of age when Mattie was tending to these ablutions after Nate had gone to bed and was asleep, Ike cried so much it brought big brother in to see what was wrong! Mattie heard his bedroom door open and so told him to go back to bed. "See Issac!" she was told and so after looking at his baby brother to make sure he REALLY was all right, and giving him a kiss, Nate went readily back to bed. Grammy thinks Nate likes Ike! Mattie uses bags of broccoli coleslaw in many ways. It is good in a stir fry but we felt that the most delicious way was in this tuna salad she made for us. John requested it again. It is one of those concoctions that one can add and delete the ingredients to to suit one's own taste buds. See what you think.

ELLEN SAUER'S RED RASPBERRY CAKE

I just want you all to know that I don't always have success with what I make. I am sure this is no surprise to all of you but I must admit that I have met with a failure here. The recipe came from a really good source and so I know that the fact that the cake did not turn out to be very good is all due to my doing something wrong. I will have to say in its defense that it was a lovely LOOKING cake. Ellen Sauer sent M.E. this recipe that she had served with great success to a group of her friends up in Ely, Minnesota. Ellen has never sent M.E. a bad recipe, so I was eager to try this one out as red raspberries are a favorite fruit of mine. I waited to make it to take to the October Columbus Herb Society meeting. I know....I should have done something with orange and black. Oh well. Leave it to M.E. I wanted to try it out where I would have several eating on it as the two of us sure do not need a whole cake. The gals tried it and NOT ONE made any remark that it was special-tasting. So there you are. I sent some over to our next door neighbors, for Bill loves red rasberries too and they thought it was all right but not fantastic. I think it was the cake mix I used. I used a store brand instead of a name brand. I even put both almond flavoring and vanilla in the cake batter but that did not help. Since I am not really keen on mixes anyway, I am using that as the excuse why the cake was not as successful as I thought it would or should be. Also, I could not find the Birdseye brand of frozen raspberries so that may have been a part of the problem. I don't know. Anyway, since the cake was a huge success for Ellen you may want to try it. Don't go by my result. I am going to try it again and will use a better mix. I will also try and find the Birdseye red raspberries. I also wonder if real whippng cream would have tasted better? This is what I get for not following instructions faithfully. Don't you do the same!

NORMA CARSON'S ZUCCHINI RELISH

"What in this whole, wide world am I going to do with all these zucchini my two little plants have been producing?" you might well ask. After all, there is only so much one can do with the frying, the sauteing, the adding to muffin and cake batter and so forth. When I was given a jar of this relish that was brought to M.E. by Norma Carson of the Elizabethtown and Grammer, Indiana, area as a bread and butter gift, I must admit I was both intrigued but also doubtful at the same time. I am always willing and ready to try something new in the culinary line. It is only that I soon get tired of zucchini and my husband does not take to relishes other than the sweet pickle variety. You can well imagine my absolute delight when I took the first bite and that delight heightened when John turned thumbs up on his appraisal of this concoction. This is easy. This is delicious. This helps get rid of some of those over producing zucchini. What more can you ask? (By the way, I must admit here that I have never had luck with zucchini over-producing. But every one else I know who grows them always has them running outa their ears. I have always barely had enough and this summer, what with being away for so long in Connecticut, I only had four Rutger tomato plants flourishing in the middle of what is usually a very busy garden with various items. Oh well.) Anyway, do feel free to try this recipe. It will taste even better on a cold January day in 2002. As Norma stated in her recipe sent to me, "This makes good eating and a proud relish to have on hand." This says it all.

MARGARET'S TOMATO BACON SQUARES

When John and I decided twenty years ago to build a new old house, (a new house built to look old,) we ended up finding a lot out in northwestern Shelby County. The big bonus for doing so was becoming acquainted with the realtor, Margaret Show. She was so helpful and easy to work with. Margaret recommended the super builder of houses, Larry Miller of M & M Contractors who was also wonderfully easy to work with. We have been very happy with our location as it is close to an interstate and we have been most pleased with the excellent school system available here. It is Margaret's son and daughter-in-law who own the very popular good eatery called THE GLASS GAZEBO located on South 135 in the Greenwood area. A few years ago, I invited Margaret to a meeting of the Columbus Herb Society and she liked the group and became a member. Now, I get to see her about every month. At the May meeting, she brought this delicious bread and shared the recipe so we can all make it, too. This bread is especially delicious with soup and/or salad. See what you think.

MATTIE'S C.I.A. RICE SALAD

I like diversification. Don't get me wrong. I want people who settle in this country to learn English so they can communicate. I am NOT for a two language country like the mess they have in Canada and Belgium, for instance. BUT I also want people to continue to keep their native language alive for their kids' sake. So, I love it when we go east and I find there to be differences in the use of our language. Someone mentioned recently to M.E. that we face a country that will be taken over by Wal Mart and Kroger. How boring!!!! It does seem that the entrepreneur finds it hard to keep a business going. Anyway, this last time in Connecticut, I had a lot of fun with a term I use that they absolutely do not and I even got big guffaws from young people who waited on me. Such was the case in a new Italian bakery that was full of wonderful breads and pastries the likes of which we cannot find here. The nearest to it is Hart Bakery. Anyway, I asked the young lady to put an item that looked like a pastry but was not (it was aborio rice cooked in a tomato base with ground meat and hard boiled egg and peas inside the cone shape and then deep fried) into a separate sack. The word sack really got to her. They "bag" everything. I use bag, too, but the word sack has always been with me. I wonder if it is only an Indiana thing? Anyway, we had a big laugh so I used it again, on purpose, in the check out line of the Stop and Shop (which, incidentally, I have been told is owned by Kroger!!!!!) receiving the same results.......big belly laughs from the check out girl and the young bagger as well. More fun. By the way....they do not have grocery carts in Connecticut. There were signs in the parking lot stating, "Please place carriages here." I looked for baby carriages!!! I was amused to hear a mother tell her young child to, "Push the carriage for mummy!" They have something like the Hostess Ding Dongs but are called Ring Dings. I sorta like the latter name. Also, one day while at the Stop and Shop, the following announcement was made: "This is to remind you of the Connecticut law that no beer is to be sold after 8:00. It is now 7:30. You must have beer off the premises by 8:00!" Well, how can one buy some beer at eight and still get it off the premises by eight? I could visualize someone really, really, running fast out of the store. And I thought INDIANA was in the Bible belt!!!!! Now, don't get me wrong. I am NOT knocking this law!!!! Connecticut is beautiful to drive through. The Connecticut River is the most beautiful I have ever seen. If I were a Rockefeller, I would buy a house on that river in a heartbeat and I never thought I would ever want to live by a river! The towns tend to be ugly unless you find one that has been around awhile and they have kept the old buildings. Middletown where our kids live, for instance, will be celebrating its 350th birthday. That boggles the mind. HOWEVER, I am still to find houses and buildings from that time. I guess the Industrial Revolution made people want something new and they simply tore down the old buildings to make way for ugly new ones. Progress is a wonderful thing, isn't it? This recipe I got from Mattie who got it from a cookbook from the C.I.A. (Culinary Institute of America) and I took it to the July herb club meeting. The dish was met with rave reviews. My husband does not like it cause he does not like dill (something is the matter with him, huh?) so I gave what little was left to our hostess and Debbie Monts who took hers home and enjoyed it for supper that evening. It sure is easy enough to make. Do use the basmati rice or at least a non-sticky type of rice for this.

RUTH TOUT'S APRICOT CHICKEN

Frank and Ruth Tout decided to take a tour of China since it was to be conducted by a learned gentleman from Ball State University and the group would be interesting people as traveling companions. Well, I cannot go into the problems of connecting flights, both coming and going (the Chinese have MUCH to learn about this) but I was greatly amused with what Ruth wrote me about the food. The Touts knew that the food would not be Americanized and did not want that. Why eat McDonalds in a foreign land? But, they DID get mighty tired of the rice they had with EVERY meal. And, it was the very sticky variety as well as that is easier to eat with chop sticks. As Ruth put it, "It was just like glue!" One travel companion said she was tired of their meals spinning around in front of them, a reference to the lazy Susan in the center of the table which held the many dishes (about 10 to 12) that were served with each meal. I think that is a terribly clever way of serving. Reminds me of the table in the doctor's house at Conner Prairie. After about ten days, however, even Frank, who is a great lover of Chinese cuisine, began to groan. Towards the end of their trip, there were two dishes that REALLY got to the tourists. One was a dish of eels that looked just like worms, of course. A few brave ones tried this delicacy. But the dish that made one man demand that the dish be removed right away, if not sooner, was a dish of cooked chicken feet.......the whole foot was steamed, probably in broth. Well, this was NOT something new to my husband nor to me. Our mothers cooked chicken feet. One sucked the goodies from them. I guess city folk have not had this unique experience. I am not saying that I ate them......but during the Depression, one used and ate everything. The Chinese hosts also served pigs' legs. They consisted mostly of fat, but the people who tried them said that there was a little meat in the center. This dish made me think of my mother's pickled pigs' feet which were absolutely delicious. I did eat those. Anyway, after getting home and grateful to be doing her own cooking, Ruth decided to try a recipe I had put in this column back in April. She was fine with the use of chicken and orange marmalade and all, but when she got to the part of serving the dish with rice.......well, you can well imagine what her decision on THAT was! We were lucky enough to be included to a wonderful meal at the Tout's in April and Ruth served this very delicious chicken. She kindly shares it with M.E. so I can pass it on to you IMAGE readers. Everyone there really raved over the chicken being fixed in this manner. And.....sorry Ruth.......it is GREAT served with rice!!!!!!!

BETTY'S RASPBERRY CREAM CHEESE TART

We avoid the Pennsylvania Turnpike and take I-80 across that lovely but terribly looooooong state when traveling to see our kids in Connecticut. The medians are full of wild flowers. How clever of them. These are stretches of greenery that do not have to be mowed and there is a colorful display most of the growing season as well. This highway allows us to avoid a very congested area west of New York City and we try to have a meal at Cosimo's located a short distance away from exit 6 off of I-84. (We take I-84 on the other side of Harrisburg, PA, in order to avoid The Big Apple.) They serve lunch and dinner seven days a week and the food is fabulous. If you are ever in the area, take the first Newburgh, New York exit, (just over the line,) where there is a Super 8 motel or if you get lost, just ask anyone. We did once. The restaurant is well known. There is ONE most depressing thing we see, however, and this is true of the turnpike as well. Deer. Adults and fawns. Many deer. Dead. I realize that the natural predator is not around anymore and so we have an abundance of them and good old MAN has to hel out with his auto. This is why we are safely in a motel before nightfall. Imagine the damage to the car and the damage to the nervous system if one hits a deer. I cannot stand hitting ANY kind of critter but a deer....... This recipe is so good and resembles the wonderful pastries to be had in the Middletown area. Mattie is SO lucky to have three (count em!) three good Italian bakeries from which to purchase items. It is one that would be good to make for this holiday season. Betty Schnaiter of the First Presbyterian Church in Shelbyville, Indiana, shares this winner of a recipe.

RITA'S LEMON BARS

Want a nice one day trip to an area that has a LOT going for it? Well, then, you want to go to Mitchell, Indiana. It is known for being the hometown of astronaut Gus Grissom. A terrific park, Spring Mill State Park, is just three miles east of town and has a restored pioneer village with a working grist mill and a space memorial for Gus Grissom. The main street is lined with antique shops. If you happen to get hungry from all this looking and buying, the Old Mill Cafe has great pie and a relatively new place, the Cajun Shack, features such everyday items like alligator, shrimp, catfish and crawfish!! But....the piece de resistance is a place called Rabbitville Road. Sculptor Rita Jackson, who used to live here in Shelby County, now resides in the woods near Mitchell. For information on how to get there and when she is there, one can visit her web site: http://www.geocities.com/ritabunny or e-mail her at: ritaj@tima.com. The following cookies are always served at Rita's famous open houses. She has shared this recipe in her new newsletter called the RABBITVILLE REPORTER. These are always appreciated by those who get to imbibe and now you can treat your loved ones with this delicacy.

ANNIE'S TOMATO CATSUP

Do I ever have a story to share with you IMAGE readers! First, let me give you a little background. Wayne Jaquess hailed from Owensville, Indiana, and ended up living in the same place my husband did the one year they both attended Purdue University. John brought Wayne home for a weekend visit one time and introduced him to a neighbor, Annie Dickey, and the rest is history. John was their best man in their wedding party and Wayne was ours. Anyway, over the years, after a stint in the Navy and an education in business at Indiana University, Wayne and Annie settled down and farmed her parents' land as well as their own. They also take care of my husband's family farm that has been in the family for over 100 years. Anyway, I want to share with you all this story I recently got from Annie. For those folks who think farming is an easy job, well......I think this will change your mind. "Last night we were watching TV after supper when someone came to our door and told us we had a cow out in the road. Wayne took off in the pickup to head it off while I was getting my shoes on. I got out in the road just in time to head off a heifer coming down the road. I managed to shoo it into the barn lot and close the gate. Wayne said he would work it back into the pasture with the other cattle. I started back in the house when two more black heifers came out of the shed. I tried to contain them behind the grain bins until Wayne could get back and open another gate. About this time it started to rain. It had become dark and trying to see two black cows is not easy. We almost had them through the gate when they turned and zipped around me and took off down the road. About this time the shower we were having turned into a cloudburst. We called our kids for help and together, decided there was nothing we could do until morning, so changed into dry clothes and since it was 10:00, got ready for bed." "It wasn't long until another son down the road called on his cell phone saying there was a black cow in the road and he would try and drive behind it if someone could turn it in when it got to our house. By this time, Wayne could hardly walk with his sore knees. I ran out into the middle of the road in my nightshirt to head off the cow. Wayne makes it out there in time to get a gate open. We just got it worked into the barn lot and shut the gate only to look up and see that the other black cow had also come home! We played the whole scene over again with the cow returning to a run down the road and back again. At least it had quit raining but there were puddles ankle deep. It was almost midnight before we were able to coax this animal through a gate and into a lot where we could shut it up." And, Annie ended with,"Oh, what a night!" I want to share with you Annie's recipe for catsup. A word of warning, though. When you and your family have tasted this catsup that is supposed to be the original Heinz recipe, you will not be so satisfied with the store bought varieties. It is easy and a great way to use up those extra tomatoes you may be having coming on about now.

Beignets

When there is a nip in the air and it is getting close to Halloween, even I get a hankering for doughnuts or something in that line. My husband craves these little dough bits and the ones at Hart Bakery are fantastic (proof of this are the many customers in there getting their bags and boxes of the things every morning) but they are something I could easily live without. HOWEVER.....the New Orleans Beignets are another cuppa tea. If you have never eaten these things, you are missing something from LIFE. Of course, I have been told that the only really good ones are those bought on a street corner in that Frenchy town where wonderful Dixieland jazz originated. Rita Bray, a fellow herbie in the Columbus Herb Society, shared this recipe with M.E. She says that one can buy a mix for these such as the Cafe DuMonde, and it would probably be much easier to use, but this recipe is super. A friend of Rita's, Joe Cahn, used to own the New Orleans School of Cooking. They met on the Paddlewheeler, the Delta Queen. He has been one of the celebrity judges for a contest during the "Great Steamboat Race" for the past several years. Rita says that this guy really knows his stuff and would not steer (pun intended...get it?) us wrong with this recipe. Do take the time to try this one out.

ADELE'S BOURSIN CHEESE WITH SAGE

Adele Klingburg has moved several times, eleven times in fact, since leaving her hometown near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The first two moves were due to her own job and when she was relocated to Tulsa, Oklahoma, she met her husband. They were married three years later and every move since then has been due to his career. We in the Columbus Herb Society were happy that a move of Adele's husband took them to Noblesville, Indiana. After founding the Central Indiana Herb Society, a unit of the Herb Society of America, she became acquainted with Sue Wilgus, one of our members and was invited to join our group as well. We all hated it when Adele had to move away to Richmond, Texas, which is near Houston. She has certainly been sorely missed from our meetings and several of us have, thanks to e-mail, been able to keep in touch with this terrific gal. As you would suspect, Adele has become active in the South Texas unit of the Herb Society of America. This recipe was something that she created for a tasting that went along with a talk she gave on culinary sage. Sage is the herb for this year of 2001. One can buy the little expensive packages of herbal cheeses in the store or one can do as Adele does and make one's own. This one is a winner. Use more or less sage in it as your taste buds desire. This recipe is a real keeper, as is its originator!

OUR FLAVORED OLIVE OIL

Tyringham is a very tiny place in western Massachusetts. Actually, except for the Gingerbread House (as the locals call it) there would be no need to travel there. The real name for the house is Santarella and it was built by an Englishmen who first put a thatch roof on it and then when it rotted away in a manner of hours (or so it seemed) he put on a many tonned shingle roof to look like thatch. The man who had the house built designed the Minute Man statue that is in Boston, Massachusetts. We had read about the place in an issue of the Old House Journal and decided to go there last year but it seems that nothing opens up in New England until the end of May and they close the end of October. I wanted to see the gardens out back and the house inside so we made another trek there this year and included a big plus by visiting with good friend (and former Hoosier) Joe Todd who recently retired from New York City to this lovely part of our country. Approaching the village, we first saw a sign saying, "Children." Then, a few hundred feet or so on down the road, we saw another one stating, "Village." I think in Indiana we would have said to watch for children and approaching a village or something like that. It seems that brevity is the soul of wit in western Massachusetts! Anyway, if you are ever in the area, DO take the time and go a little out of your way to see this place before it falls down. There is a group trying to preserve it but it sure looks like a losing battle to M.E. Another thing I really liked back east was a sign in an antique mall (is there any other kind?) stating, "Grandmothers are just antique little girls." You all may have already seen this but it was new to M.E. and I loved it. We like taking I-80 across loooooong Pennsylvania. It beats the turnpike any day. The medians are full of wild flowers, which I think is very clever of them....those areas do not have to be mowed and they are a great pleasure to look at. The only drawback are the many, many killed deer lying along the roadside, from tiny fawns (oh, Bambi!!!!) to adults. That is why we hole up for the night when dusk arrives. We do not want any encounters of THAT kind, thank you very much! Mattie and I like restaurants that serve flavored olive oil with bread to dip in like they do at Carniege's in Greenfield, Indiana. We got to messing around and found that we like to do just enough for one meal or at least to use up the next day. Don't want to mess around getting sick from "bad stuff" growing in the oil! And, it is not much trouble to do at all. I am going to give you our recipe and then also one from Jeannie Harned of Westport, Indiana. Hers you can keep for awhile. I think her flavored oil is the best but not if you are in a hurry to have some and are not willing to wait!!!!

RHONDA'S CHEESECAKE PIES

The gals of the Columbus Herb Society have been MOST fortunate to have some really terrific women join our group these past few months. One of our new members is Rhonda Bolner who ended up in Columbus one year ago in March due to her husband's job with Cummins where he is an engineer. For Rhonda, it was a coming home as her mother, grandparents and great-grandparents were originally from this area! Needless to say, she has been doing a bit of genealogy along with her sewing (you should see the decorative flags this gal makes!) photography, counted cross-stitch as well as cooking. Rhonda is a compulsive organizer. I bet the people where Rhonda used to live, really miss her skill in this area for she has straightened up and organized areas from church closets to the public library basement storage area. She organized a lunch once a month for the staff at the library. They would all decide what meal they wanted. Then, there appeared a sign-up sheet for staff to bring in the needed ingredients on a specific date. Rhonda would then cook the meal. And...I am talking here about MEALS!!!! Like beef and noodles with mashed potatoes, green beans and homemade biscuits. Boy!! I bet she is missed! I wonder if they still do that at the Marion, Indiana, Public Library? This dessert was brought to our club's July meeting. I like it in that it was light tasting and I did not feel so guilty eating it, as if THAT would keep me from doing so. She made it into pies and that was a good way to serve it as we could take a whole slice (thought I was going to say a whole pie there, didn't you?) or a sliver of a piece. Try this one soon.

PAULETTE'S JACK SOUP

Paulette Kruer is just one of those people you find yourself liking right off the bat when first meeting her. She has more energy and knowledge than twenty people. She is a fun person to listen to when she gives her various talks on what to do with your herbs once you have them. Paulette talked at the Marimann Herb Festival on Labor Day weekend in Decatur, Illinois, and again at the Herb Society of America's Central District fall gathering in September in Indianapolis. She is one busy gal. She even gave a talk in Nashville, Tennessee, on floral arranging to THE National Flora Arranging Society. She likes making vinegars and cooking with herbs. She is most interested in herbs from Biblical times. She talked to the Columbus Herb Society last year AT HER LOVELY HOME. What a pleasure it was to motor down to Starlight, Indiana, where she and her husband have lived for most of their married life. Paulette works for an interior design firm which she states is her hobby. Her real work is the many gardens she has and her really interesting summer house where she dries her herbs and flowers. As she put it,"God knew where to plant me!" Here is a soup Paulette makes that is a favorite for her family. It is comprised of ingredients that one usually already has on hand or can substitute one thing for another. This way, you can throw it all together if company stops by unexpectedly and you can serve up something that is delicious and hearty. She has served cornbread with this one. See what you think.

ELLEN'S FRUITED TEA BISCUITS

Good friend Ellen Sauer of way up in northern Minnesota, (on the map, about one fourth inch from the Canadian border, in fact!) is always up to something and into something. She is one of those people everyone should have for a friend for they are always entertaining you from your keeping up with what they are doing. Ellen has been having some gals in to tea.....the meal as well as just the drink. This one particular time I am going to tell you about, Ellen had a co-hostess, a Barb Rom. As Ellen put it, this Barb thought Ellen knew what she was doing and so as to not prove her wrong, Ellen told Barb she had a good recipe for scones and would make them for the Quilters Tea. Well, I am sure you are already ahead of M.E. on this one.....could Ellen find her recipe? Of COURSE NOT! She looked every place she sticks stuff and doesn't want to lose and she never could find it. Time was running out and she had to come up with SOMETHING and she sure DID come up with something! Everything went smoothly and I have a feeling there will be more of these occasions up in Ely, Minnesota. The first Quilters Tea only had eight in attendance. This time, there were 25 ladies chomping at the bit to attend. They have so much fun dressing up, wearing a hat and gloves and sipping tea from a china cup. In this day of being so very casual, it is nice to go fancy for a change. Do try this for a tea, for your family, for friends.......for yourself!!!!! Ellen states that these are so delicious that even her parrots love them and they have VERY good taste!

MYSTERY FUDGE CAKE

We Image readers are in luck. Here is yet another recipe using tomatoes, only this time, it is a way to use up those green tomatoes that you have and don't know what to do with just before the frost gets to them. I had a recipe many years ago calling for chopped green tomatoes and I did not care for it. It was a quick bread and was heavy and did not taste really chocolaty. (Is there such a word? If not, there should be.) Jean Coleman, a MOST gracious and lovely woman who swims at the same time I do at the Ransburg Y.M.C.A., mentioned one morning (you see, there are a few of us there early in the mornings exercising our mouths as well as the rest of our bodies!) that she had made a most delicious, moist, chocolate cake using green tomatoes! She maintained that everyone she gave some to felt the same way about its taste. Jean got this recipe from a wonderful book she had bought at the old Fort Benjamin Harrison PX way back in the seventies. The date on the book is 1976. It was called All About Tomatoes and was the Midwest/Northeast edition by the Ortho Book Series. She loaned this book to M.E. for a couple days and it sure is a great book. In it is ALL the information about tomatoes (varieties, care of, plus 67 recipes using the things) you would ever want to know. The book also stated that I had to have permission to use anything from the book. Well.........what a time I had chasing down the right person from whom to get permission! It was fun, really. I got the phone number of the Chevron Chemical Company out in San Franscisco. The lady there told me that they had nothing to do with these books anymore and gave me a phone number that she SAID was somewhere in Texas but ended up being somewhere in Ohio. (Go figure THAT one out!) The nice young man there gave me an 800 number (thank goodness I had a phone charge for only the first phone call!) and I got a young lady who sent me to yet ANOTHER person. Then, I finally got the name of a Cathy Long who was FINALLY at the end of the line and could, (and MOST graciously I might add,) gave M.E. permission to use the recipe and tell about the book. HOWEVER.....I am sorry to have to relate to you readers that this book is no longer in print. It is not a hardback book but keep your eye peeled where used books are sold and if you ever see this book, snap it up immediately, if not sooner!!! The publishers are the Meredith Corp. and they now do a series of excellent books about herbs, veggies, lawn care, etc. which can be bought anywhere books are sold and surely at gardening centers as well. Anyway, I had a ball getting permission to be able to share this excellent recipe with you all. My husband went bonkers over the cake. I sent four warm pieces next door to Rosalie and Bill Nichols and she later informed me that Bill scarfed down BOTH huge pieces right away along with a glass of milk! In fact, before our cake was gone, John told me that he knew of something I could do one day....make another one of those cakes! It does make a large cake and keeps well but if there are only two of you, I hope you have friends you can share it with. Try this one before all your tomaters are gone!

SARA'S TOMATO POTATO CASSEROLE

"I say, Toh-mah-toe