RECIPE SWAP: 'RECIPE SWAP' CELEBRATES ITS FIRST BIRTHDAY WITH MORE GREAT LOCAL RECIPES

Happy birthday, Recipe Swap! Yes, can you believe an entire year has come and gone? Recipe Swap is one year old. I hope it is the beginning of a long, happy life.

You, the readers, have been so good to support this column of trading recipes and ideas. The content and success of Recipe Swap is to your credit. Congratulations!

I have to say that I have met many wonderful cooks and made new friends because of this experience. I treasure each and every one.

I must also say that it is good to be back. I have been away from Recipe Swap a couple of weeks; it is good to be going through recipe mail again. While my mother has been recovering from her heart attack, I had to take a different direction, but all is well. Let's get to some recipes.

Gary Rust was looking for a recipe for lacy oatmeal cookies a few weeks ago, and we have a response from Jodi Thompson of Jackson. She uses the recipe she found in the Bell's Best Cookbook, and I'm sure it is very similar to what Gary is looking for.

Lacy Oatmeal Cookies

2 cups old fashioned rolled oats

2 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 sticks melted butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 eggs, beaten

3 teaspoons vanilla

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Put oats, flour, sugar and salt into large bowl. Mix well. Pour hot butter into mixture and stir until sugar melts. Add eggs and vanilla; stir well. Stir in nuts. Cover cookie sheet with foil; drop 1/2 level teaspoon of mixture on ungreased foil about 2 inches apart. Cook until brown. When cookies are done, they will peel off foil. Makes about 6 dozen. Store in tight container.

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Recently we had a request for chocolate gravy. Ruth Simmons shares a recipe and a little story of her first tasting of chocolate gravy. Her son brought this recipe from Arkansas from an aunt. In Arkansas they eat it hot or cold. Ruth first thought it sounded awful, but she tried it and loves it. She hopes you will do the same.

Chocolate Gravy

1 stick butter (8 tablespoons)

1/4 cup Hershey's cocoa

1 1/2 cups sugar

4 tablespoons flour

3 to 4 cups milk

Melt butter in skillet. Add cocoa and sugar together, then stir into butter until mixed well. Add flour, then gradually add milk. Cook over medium heat until desired thickness. Serves 8 to 10 people.

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Dorothy LaForest of Tamms, Ill., shares her favorite gravy recipe with us. It is an original recipe of Dorothy Minyard and is found in the Happy Helpers Cookbook from Tamms, Ill.

Chocolate Gravy

1/3 cup cocoa

1/2 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon

1/4 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups milk

1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla

1 tablespoon margarine

In a 10-inch skillet, mix dry ingredients and stir in 1/2 cup milk. Mix well and add rest of milk, stirring over low heat until thick. Add margarine and vanilla. Serves 4.

Dorothy also shares a recipe for pepper jelly she makes for the holidays. She adds red or green food coloring to make it extra pretty. Dorothy serves her jelly with meat, or on toast or hot bread.

Pepper Jelly

6 red or green bell peppers

3/4 cup cider vinegar

3 1/2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons hot sauce or 2 hot peppers, optional

1 box powdered pectin or Knox gelatin

Cut peppers to remove seeds, process in food processor or food chopper on medium chop. Drain well; mix together peppers, vinegar and pectin and bring to a boil stirring. Stir in sugar and boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat, cool slightly to prevent peppers from floating. Pour into small jars, leaving 1/2-inch head space. Seal. Makes 2 1/2 pints.

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Lois Cook of Cape Girardeau shares a very different recipe with us for macaroni salad. It is good and goes well with most any meal.

Macaroni Salad

Mix:

1 (14 ounce) can Eagle brand milk

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup white vinegar

2 cups mayonnaise

Add:

1 chopped bell pepper

1 chopped large onion

2 shredded carrots

Combine well and then add:

16 ounces cooked macaroni

salt and pepper to taste

Stir to combine all ingredients well. Serve chilled.

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Joan Weeks of Cape Girardeau has made up over 100 soup recipes, and she shares one with us she really enjoys. She has had it at different restaurants and was unable to ever get the recipe. Her recipe tastes much like those she tried commercially. The meat dumplings are made from scratch by using an electric mixer to combine the ingredients.

Wedding Soup

6 cups chicken broth

5 ounces frozen chopped spinach

2 tablespoons tiny pasta, such as acini da pepe

Meat dumplings

1/2 pound lean ground beef

2 tablespoons chicken broth

1 egg

2 teaspoons flour

salt and pepper

Bring chicken broth to simmer. Add spinach and pasta. Return to simmer. Mix ingredients for meat dumplings in a mixing bowl. Beat well. Add by teaspoon to soup, or roll into walnut size balls. Simmer 15 to 20 minutes.

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We have a few requests to wrap up this week. Lois Cook of Cape Girardeau enjoys making candies that are dipped, have cherry and coconut centers and are rolled and dipped in coatings. She has done these with no recipe but would like some recipes to expand on. Any candies would be greatly appreciated, but especially dipped candies.

Madeline Godwin of Cape Girardeau remembers her sister making her own maple syrup, and she would like to give it a try. Not the maple syrup starting from the tree, but a simple syrup made on the stove using water, sugar and maple flavoring.

We have another request from Cape Girardeau for poppyseed cake. This would be a very moist cake and a nice addition to the holiday.

In addition to holiday shopping, entertaining and cooking. Be sure to make time to send in your favorite recipes to Recipe Swap. I look forward to another exciting year ahead with you. Have a great week and happy cooking.