RECIPE SWAP: VACATION OFFERS CHANCE TO BROWSE THROUGH RECIPE FILES

It's back to reality for me. We have just returned home from vacation and it has been very hard to get back into the swing of things. We spent a very relaxing week at a beautiful beach house on the peninsula that runs between Gulf Shores and Fort Morgan, Ala. The home belongs to friends of the McClanahan family, Ralph and Cheryl Gilges. Even the name of the property, Sandcastle, screams comfort. The kids loved the water, but Lexie did not like the sand.

While lounging around I enjoyed thumbing through Cheryl's recipe file. I copied down several recipes and have already made some of them. I thought in Recipe Swap this week I would share just a couple of them with you. I don't often get to share any recipes from my files, but today I will.

Crunchy Rolls

1 1/4 cups Rice Krispies cereal, coarsely crushed

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 (6 ounce) can Hungry Jack biscuits

3 tablespoons milk

Combine cereal, cheese and salt. Cut biscuits into fourths and shape into balls. Dip balls in milk; dredge in cereal mixture and place 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, or use non-stick baking sheet without greasing. Bake at 400 degrees for 6 to 8 minutes or until browned. Makes 20 tiny rolls.

Onion Crusted Chicken

4 chicken breast halves, skinned and boned

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1 can fried onion rings, crushed

Flatten chicken between waxed paper, salt and pepper. Combine butter, Worcestershire sauce, and mustard; stir well. Dredge chicken in butter mixture, then in onion rings. Put in baking dish, drizzle with remaining butter. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Blueberry Cheesecake Dessert

2 baked pie shells

4 to 5 bananas, sliced, layered in bottom of pie shells

Beat together:

1 (8 ounce) cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

Fold in:

1 (10 ounce) whipped topping

Spread in two pies on top of bananas. Top with blueberry pie filling. Refrigerate until ready to slice and serve.

Note: 1 can of filling is enough to cover about three pies.

Yellow Squasherole

1 pound yellow squash

2 tablespoons diced onions

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 egg, beaten

1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons margarine

Combine squash and onions. Cook and drain. Pour into baking dish. Mix together mayonnaise, egg, sugar, cheese and margarine. Pour into squash in baking dish. Top with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes.

Peaches and Cream

3/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 small box instant vanilla pudding

3 tablespoons soft margarine

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

Combine in small bowl and beat 2 minutes. Spread in greased pie pan to make a crust. Arrange peach slices from 1 large can of peaches, drained, reserving 3 tablespoons of juice.

Top with a mixture of:

1 (8 ounce) cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup sugar

3 tablespoons peach juice

Beat 2 minutes. Pour over peaches. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

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I have so many good pieces of mail to sift through. You will have so much fun trying all of these new recipes. You, the readers, have done a wonderful job sending in your favorite recipes and I am so happy that you take time to share them.

Tanya Davis has responded to a recent request for blackberry recipes. She shares some pie recipes and each sounds wonderful.

Creamy Blackberry Pie

3 cups fresh blackberries

1 unbaked 9-inch pastry shell

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup commercial sour cream

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup butter or margarine

Place 3 cups of blackberries in pastry shell. Set aside. Combine 1 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, and salt. Add eggs and sour cream, stirring until blended. spoon over berries. Combine 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup flour: cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle evenly over sour cream mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes.

Nana's Custard Berry Pie

Mix 3 eggs, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 cup milk, vanilla, 2 tablespoons flour or cornstarch. Pour mixture over 1 to 2 cups of blackberries in an uncooked pie shell. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, turn heat down and bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes. Knife should come out clean when placed in center of pie. Could also use rhubarb.

Blackberry-Apple Pie

Pastry for double crust 9-inch pie

3 cups fresh blackberries

1 cup peeled and thinly sliced apples

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

Roll half of pastry to 1/8-inch thickness, and fit into a 9-inch pieplate.

Combine blackberries and apple slices; place in pastry shell. Combine sugar, tapioca, and cinnamon; stir well. Sprinkle sugar mixture over blackberries; dot with butter.

Roll out remaining pastry to 1/8-inch thickness, and place over filling. Trim pastry; seal and flute edges. Cut slits in top for steam to escape. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until golden brown. Cool before serving.

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Judith Reed of Jackson wants you to be able to make a couple of her favorite recipes. With this being peach season, her peach crisp is perfect for the abundant crop.

Peach Crisp

1 (1 pound 13-ounce) can of cling peach slices or use fresh peaches, adding sugar as needed

cinnamon, to taste

1 cup sifted unbleached flour

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 egg

1/3 cup melted butter or margarine

Drain peaches thoroughly, turn into 8-inch round baking dish. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Sift together flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Add egg and mix with fork until crumbly. Spread over peaches, drizzle butter evenly on top. Bake 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until evenly browned. Serve warm or cold with ice cream or whipped cream.

Picnic Beans

2 large cans pork and beans

1 onion, diced

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef

ketchup

season salt

pepper

dry mustard or regular prepared mustard

syrup of any kind

In your skillet brown the ground beef and onion together. Drain well. Mix with the rest of the ingredients. Taste to season with ingredients as desired. Bake 325 or 350 degrees 1 1/2 hours with a lid on, stirring as needed.

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Tory Charlier has become a good regular with Recipe Swap. Today she has a recipe from the Ronald McDonald House in St. Louis. A volunteer at the house gave the recipe to Tory to share with you.

Ronald McDonald House Slaw

1 (1-pound) package shredded slaw mix

1 red pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1/2 to 1-cup water chestnuts, drained and chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

Dressing Recipe (following)

In a large bowl, combine cabbage, red peppers, onion, water chestnuts, and salt. Mix well.

Dressing:

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup oil

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

In a small bowl, combine sugar, oil, and vinegar. When ready to serve, pour dressing over cabbage and mix well. Garnish with chow mein noodles.

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Too hot to cook? We have a few skillet supper recipes to share with you. Each sounds easy to prepare and you don't have to heat up the stove to fix.

Chili Burgers

sent in by Joy Frey of Kelso

1 pound ground beef

1 can (16 ounce) kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 can (10 3/4 ounce) condensed tomato soup, undiluted

1 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped green pepper

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon ground mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

12 hamburger buns

In a large skillet over medium heat brown beef, drain. Add beans, soup, celery, green peppers, onion, ketchup, brown sugar, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 30 to 40 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Serve hot on buns.

Skillet Beef and Rice

sent in by Paula Niswonger of Jackson

1 pound ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium green pepper, chopped

1 can (14 1/2 ounce) stewed tomatoes, undrained

1 (16 ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup uncooked long grain rice

1 cup water

2/3 cup picante sauce or salsa

shredded Cheddar cheese, optional

sour cream, optional

In a large skillet, brown beef, onion, and green pepper. add remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes or until rice is tender. Remove from heat. Garnish with shredded cheese and sour cream if desired.

Southwest Zucchini Skillet

sent in by Connie Miller of Scott City

1 pound ground beef

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped onion

4 1/2 cups chopped zucchini

1 can (16 ounce) tomatoes, drained and cut-up

1 cup salsa

1 can (16 ounce) corn

1 can (16 ounce) chili beans

1 cup (8 ounce) sour cream

1 1/2 cups (6 ounce) shredded Cheddar cheese

In a large skillet, brown beef with salt and onion; drain. Add zucchini, tomatoes, and salsa. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes or until zucchini is crisp-tender. Add the corn and beans; cook until heated through. Remove from heat. Gradually stir in sour cream; sprinkle with cheese. Cover and let stand until cheese melts.

Wow! Those really sound great, don't they? We have a few requests to close Recipe Swap today.

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Margaret Gott of Scott City is requesting recipes for Vinegar Dumplings, Vinegar Pie, Sour Grape Pie or cobbler. Margaret, there were several Vinegar Dumpling recipes in last week's issue of Recipe Swap. If you need a copy, just let me know. All of other requests are for our readers.

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Mary Kerr of Tamms, Ill., is looking for a good recipe for Strawberry Butter. She ate it several years ago at a restaurant in Metropolis, Ill. I have my own simple way of making it, but I want to see what you, the readers, come up with.

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Jean Dudley of Whitewater recalls the old Hampton Bakery operated by Bill and Ella Dee Hampton. She said they made the very best cinnamon rolls with fruit on top, like apricot, pineapple and cherry. She really would like to make these memorable favorites. Anyone have a lead idea? And thank you, Jean, for your sweet note.

That is it for this week. I will try to get the Gulf of Mexico sand out of my head and eyes and get back to work. Thanks to all of you for the wonderful mail. Keep up the great work. Have a wonderful week and I will see you next week.