Brownies

Like cornbread, there's no need to bother with any pre-packaged brownie mixes: it's cheaper, better-tasting and just as easy to make your own from scratch. Also, you can substitute 3 tablespoons of powdered cocoa plus 1 tablespoon of butter for each square of the unsweetened baking chocolate.

2 squares unsweetened baking chocolate
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 chopped nuts (optional)

Melt chocolate and butter. Mix flour with baking powder and salt.
Beat eggs well, and gradually beat in sugar; blend in chocolate and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture, add nuts.
Pour into greased 8x8 baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.
Cool, cut into approximately 20 brownies.

Mushrooms Florentine

I really ought to be ashamed to admit it, but I found this recipe in a cheesy romance novel. I don't remember much about the book, but I do like these mushrooms!

24-30 large mushrooms
10 ounces frozen spinach
2 cloves finely-minced garlic
1 small chopped onion
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup Italian gread crumbs
6 ounces softened cream cheese
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 and 1/2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Clean mushrooms and set on paper towels to dry. Remove stems, chop, and set aside to use later.
Cook spinach without salt and drain thoroughly; mix the spinach in a food processor or beat with an electric mixer until smooth.
Saute garlic in butter about one minute. Remove from heat. Dip mushroom caps in the butter/garlic mixture, coating well, and place in a 9x13 baking dish.
Stir the chopped mushroom stems and onion into the remaining butter/garlic mixture and saute until tender.
Combine spinach, cream cheese, bread crumbs and seasonings in a bowl; add sauted mushroom mixture and mix well. Spoon into the mushroom caps and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese.
Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

Breadsticks

These breadsticks are good, but if you make them half-size and leave off the extra salt that's sprinkled on top, they can also be nice for a teething baby to chew on.

You can replace the Kosher salt on top with any other coarse salt of your choice, or use toasted sesame seeds.

1 package dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup salad oil or olive oil
2 cups flour
1 egg white
1 tablespoon water
Kosher salt

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Mix in sugar, 1 tablespoon salt, the oil and 1 cup of the flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough additional flour to make the dough easy to handle.
Turn dough onto a lightly-floured surface and knead until smooth, about five minutes.
Cut dough into 32 equal parts, and roll each part into a thin rope about 8-10 inches long. Place one inch apart on greased baking sheets. Brush lightly with additional oil. Cover and let rise in a warm place.
Beat egg white and water slightly, brush over sticks. Sprinkle with Kosher salt.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.

Cheese Fondue

Someone asked me not long ago if I knew of a recipe for fondue --- who knew, apparently it's making a comeback in some circles. Anyway, this is from my parents' box of recipes: an actual 1970s-era cheese fondue recipe, just for you, H!

1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 cup swiss cheese
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
12 ounces beer or wine
Garlic to taste
Dash of Tabasco sauce

Melt together all ingredients in a fondue pot.

Switchel (An old-fashioned summer drink)

Years ago, farmers didn't have the easy access to oranges and lemons that we have now: a lucky child might get a single orange once a year as a Christmas treat, and serving lemonade was very much of a special event. So what DID they drink in hot summer weather, other than water, milk or alcohol? Tea was expensive, and it was hard enough to afford coffee. One answer is 'switchel', which is surprisingly refreshing. You can vary the ingredients to suit yourself; I prefer it without the oatmeal, and with additional sugar or honey instead of the molasses.

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 sugar or honey
1/2 cup oatmeal (optional)
1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
Water

Mix together ingredients, add enough water to make it total 2 quarts. Serve chilled.

Candied Orange Peel

I like to use navel oranges for this; they're larger and their peels are thicker, which make them easier to work with. It really can be a pain in the butt to do, but you'll want to get every bit of the white inner rind off the outer orange peel that you can.

I've tried this recipe substituting lemons and tangerines; the lemons were successful, but the tangerines, while tasty, really weren't: their skins are pretty thin and hard to work with because they ripped so easily. But if all you want is small chunks of tangerine peel as opposed to sticks, give it a try!

4 large oranges
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
water

Remove peel from oranges in lenghtwise sections (I find it's easier if you cut the oranges into quarters first). Cover peel with water, bring to a boil, and cook slowly until soft. Drain. Remove white inner rind, scraping it off with the edge of a spoon. Cut the peel into thin strips with scissors.
Put 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup water, 2 tablespoons corn syrup and the peel into a saucepan, and cook slowly until the peel is clear (approx. 230 degrees). Drain in a coarse sieve. Cool on a plate, making sure to lay each piece as straight as you can.
Roll in granulated sugar or dip in melted chocolate. Dry on wax paper.

Fresh Horseradish

My father loved horseradish, and for a few years he even grew his own. Be warned: you definately want to do this outdoors or somewhere well-ventilated; compared to the commercial stuff, fresh horseradish is very powerful stuff!

1 large horseradish root
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Clean horseradish root well and scrape off the skin. Grate it outdoors or near an open window, or use a food processor. Measure one cup of grated horseradish and add lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.
Store in a tightly-covered jar in the refridgerator. Best when used within four weeks.