RECIPE SWAP: RICE CRISPY TREAT LEADS TO VISIT WITH TOOTH FAIRY

A week ago Friday, on the last day of kindergarten for our son Ross, he was treated to a big fresh Rice Krispies treat.

In the parking lot of the Southeast Missourian while turning in the Recipe Swap column, the van door flew open and out jumped Ross with his treat in his hand and his first lost baby tooth stuck in the treat. He was so excited to have lost his first tooth, and then to have it stuck in the treat made the event so funny.

When the gentleman came to the door at the Missourian, there I stood with the typed column in one hand, a baby tooth in the other, and a jumping and hopping 6-year-old around my legs.

To add to the excitement, only about 15 minutes later, he lost the other loose tooth in the West Side Camera store. The gentleman in the store was so nice to give us a little envelope to put them in to save for the tooth fairy. Here again, as Max Lucado would say, it was an eternal moment I shall never forget.

I can't miss an opportunity to share a Rice Krispies recipe with you that is very good. Our Ross loves chocolate and Rice Krispies treats, so this is a great recipe combining the two wonderful flavors.

Double Chocolate Crumble Bars

1/2 cup margarine

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup chopped pecans

2 tablespoons cocoa

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

2 cups tiny marshmallows

1 (6 ounce) package chocolate chips

1 cup peanut butter

2 cups Rice Krispies cereal

Cream margarine and sugar; beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Mix with chopped pecans. Stir into egg mixture. Spread into bottom of greased 9-x-13-inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until bars test done. Sprinkle with marshmallows evenly and bake 3 minutes more. Cool. In small saucepan, combine chocolate chips and peanut butter. Cook and stir over low heat until chocolate is melted. Stir in cereal. Spread mixture over cooled bars. Chill and cut into bars. Makes about 30 small bars.

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When we had a request for German Potato Salad, I knew it would be a popular request. We have several for you to look over and choose from, or after reading all of them, try making up your own.

Ruth Lipps of Cape Girardeau shares the recipe her friend Wilma Ogles made for a church dinner. She says it was delicious.

Hot German Potato Salad

10 medium potatoes, boiled in their skins

8 slices bacon, diced

2 medium onions, diced

1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons dry mustard

2 eggs, beaten

3/4 cup vinegar (or a little less)

Salt and pepper to taste

4 eggs, hardcooked, sliced

2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

Peel and cube potatoes. Put in ovenware dish. Fry bacon. Remove from pan and reserve. Fry onions in bacon fat until tender but not browned. Mix sugar and mustard. Add to onions in pan. Add the beaten eggs and vinegar to onion mixture and cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Pour over potatoes. Add slat and pepper to taste. Add reserved bacon and egg slices. Mix lightly. Heat in 300-degree oven about 30 minutes or until ready to serve. Sprinkle parsley on top.

Ruth's daughter Judi makes a quicker version of the German favorite but is still quite good.

Judi's Quick German Potato Salad

2 cans sliced potatoes

1/2 pound turkey sausage, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons dried minced onion

3 to 4 tablespoons Italian dressing

Heat potatoes; add onions and sausage. Heat thoroughly. Drain broth from mixture. Add dressing; toss and serve. Serves 6 to 8.

Jewell Dawalt of Patton, Mo., makes a recipe from her husband's aunt who has German heritage. She commented that every time she makes it people always want the recipe. Her recipe has olives in it, which she thinks gives it a very distinct flavor and adds color, too.

German Potato Salad

8 medium potatoes

1 cup Miracle Whip

1/2 pound Velveeta cheese, cubed

1/2 pound bacon, diced and fried

1/2 cup sliced green Spanish olives

1 onion, diced

Par boil the potatoes with the jackets on; then cube them into bite-sized pieces. Add the Miracle Whip, Velveeta cheese and diced onions. Sprinkle the olives and bacon on top and bake 1 hour at 350 degrees.

Judith Reed of Jackson also has a German Potato salad recipe that is a family favorite. She says it is really delicious.

German Potato Salad

6 cups potatoes, boiled and cubed

1/2 stalk celery, cut up

1 tablespoon flour

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup onion, cut up or use green onions

1/4 pound bacon, cooked and crumbled

3/4 cup vinegar

1/2 cup water

salt, pimentos and green pepper, optional

Boil and dice the potatoes. Fry bacon, drain; add flour, vinegar, water and sugar to bacon grease. Add celery, onions, pimentos and peppers to heat through. Pour over potatoes. Can also add boiled sliced eggs, if desired.

Judith also shares a recipe for Peppy Potato Salad that is different but sounds tasty.

Peppy Potato Salad

6 medium red potatoes

4 green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 cup finely chopped green bell pepper

1 stalk celery, thinly sliced

1 small carrot, shredded

3 hardcooked eggs, chopped

1/2 cup coleslaw dressing

3 tablespoons sour cream

1 tablespoon lemon juice

paprika

Cover potatoes with salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook 30 minutes or until tender. Drain and cool slightly. Peel and dice. Combine potatoes, green onions, pepper, celery, carrot and eggs in a bowl. Combine coleslaw dressing, sour cream and lemon juice. Stir well. Add dressing to vegetable mixture, tossing gently. Serve in lettuce leaves and sprinkle with paprika if desired.

Next week I will share more of these good salad recipes, but to finish up this week I would like to include a few other types of recipes that were sent in.

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Emma Lee Huffman of Jackson answers a recent request for sugar pie. The original request was for a sugar pie that contained sweetened condensed milk. We have not received a recipe of that type yet, but Emma's recipe will come close.

Sugar Pie

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup flour

2 1/4 cups water

1 baked 9-inch pie shell

In an iron skillet, melt butter; add sugar and flour. Mix well, then add water and vanilla. Cook until thick. Pour in baked pie crust. Serve with whipped cream. For a different flavor of pie, try adding pecans, coconut or cocoa before pouring into crust.

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Jodi Thompson of Jackson often shares recipes she gets off of the Internet. Both of the recipes she shares this week are for a recent request we had for Apricot Butter.

Peach or Apricot Butter

4 (28-ounce) cans peaches, drained

3 cups sugar or 4, to taste

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon cloves

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Drain fruit. Puree using blender or food processor. Pour into the crock pot. Add remaining ingredients. Cover; cook on high 8 to 10 hours. Remove cover during last half of cooking. Stir occasionally. Store in refrigerator.

Apricot Butter

10 cups sliced apricots

1 cup water

sugar

1/3 cup orange juice

1 tablespoon grated orange rind

Add water to apricots and cook until soft. Press through sieve or run through the blender. Measure and to each cup of pulp add 2/3 cup sugar. Add juice and grated orange rind. Cook until thick, about 10 to 15 minutes. Pour into hot sterilized jars to within 1/2-inch of the top. Put on cap, screw band firmly tight and process in boiling water bath 10 minutes.

We still have recipes coming in for Cornbread Salad. Here again the variations possible are just as broad as your imagination.

Judith Reed of Jackson adds a flair of Tex-Mex to her salad of a flavorful variation.

Mexi Cornbread Salad

1 (16 ounce) package Mexican cornbread

1 (1 ounce) package dry Ranch-style dressing mix

1 (8 ounce) carton sour cream

1 cup mayonnaise

1 (16 ounce) cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 medium bell pepper, chopped

2 cans whole kernel corn, drained

3 large tomatoes, chopped

10 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese or Mexican cheese blend

6 green onions, sliced

Prepare cornbread mix according to package directions; cool. Combine the dressing mix, sour cream and mayonnaise in a small bowl. Set aside. Crumble 1/2 cornbread into a large bowl. Top with 1/2 each of the beans and sour cream. Mix chopped bell pepper and remaining five ingredients. Repeat layers. Cover and chill at least two hours. Put in lettuce lined bowl and garnish with tomato wedges.

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Ruth Lipps of Cape Girardeau uses a recipe that she likes to make a couple of days ahead of serving time for the flavors to blend. She adds that it keeps nicely several days in the refrigerator.

Cornbread Salad

2 9-inch pans cornbread, cooked, cooled and crumbled

8 slices bacon, cooked crisp

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 purple onion, chopped

1 cup chopped green onions

2 tomatoes, diced

1 rib celery, diced

1 pint reduced fat mayonnaise

Mix all ingredients together and put in large bowl. Cover and refrigerate.

This was a great week for contributions to Recipe Swap. Good job, readers! Keep up the good work. From the tooth fairy, have a wonderful week and happy cooking.