I don't usually write out formal recipes, so please let me know if anything is unclear. ******************************************************************************************** My egg roll filling differs every time, but I did pay attention to how much of what I used when I made the ones above. I usually add left over shredded pork or chicken and omit the mushrooms. Here goes: BAKED EGG ROLLS Pre-made (store bought) egg roll wrappers 2/3 of a large head of cabbage - shredded 2 carrots - shredded 2 large cans of sliced mushrooms, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 one inch piece of fresh ginger, minced (it could have used more) 1 teaspoon cooking oil 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce 1/4 teaspoon toasted sesame oil Hot pepper flakes to taste Shred cabbage and carrots in food processor. Saute ginger and garlic in cooking oil. Add cabbage, carrots, hot pepper flakes and mushrooms and cook until tender. Add soy and sesame oil. Set aside to cool with pan tilted, or cool in a colander so that any liquid can drain off. Brush one side of egg roll wrapper with oil of choice (peanut, corn, canola, light olive). Flip wrapper over with the un-oiled side up. Fill and roll. Place seem side down on cookie sheet. Bake in a 450 degree oven until golden and crispy. Turn them a few times so that all sides touch the pan at some point. This made 17 egg rolls. They do come out crispy but the wrapper is flaky, kind of like philo but not so fragile. ********************************************************* The recipe for the ribs was from Saveur, but I changed it a bit. I didn't like the sound of their cooking method and I don't think it would have worked right. I didn't change the marinade ingredients (except for omitting scallions) and we really enjoyed the flavor. I'll put the link for the original below. CANTONESE SPARERIBS These Cantonese ribs marry honey's sweetness and the mellow bite of ginger with complex spices and succulent pork. The Chinese use a sand pot to slow-cook ribs; look for one in your local Asian specialty store. 3 lbs. baby back pork ribs 2 tbsp. corn oil 1 1⁄2 tbsp. ginger, peeled and mashed into a paste 2 cloves garlic, mashed into a paste 3 tbsp. Chinese rice wine 2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar 1 tsp. five-spice powder 3 tbsp. honey 4 tbsp. dark soy sauce 1 tsp. cornstarch Saute ginger and garlic in oil until fragrant. Combine the rest of the ingredients - excluding the corn starch - and add the garlic and ginger to this as well. Marinate ribs in this mixture for 2 hours, turning ribs after one hour. Preheat oven to 350. Remove ribs from marinade and place in a baking dish with sides. Bake uncovered until fork tender, turning a few times. The ribs will exude a lot of liquid. While ribs are cooking, boil the marinade vigorously for 20 minutes and reduce a little. Add cornstarch and cook down to a thick syrup consistency. Taste at this point. If it is too sweet add a little more cider vinegar (I did). When ribs are done, move them to a different pan or pour off any liquid that is in the baking dish. Spoon sauce over the ribs and pop back into the oven for about 10 minutes or until the sauce is sticky and shiny.

I got here late also, but I did see that David mentioned my garlic butter. Here's the recipe I use: Ingredients 1/2 head of Garlic, about 8-12 cloves 2-3 tbsp chopped fresh oregano 1-2 tbsp chopped fresh thyme (all stems removed) 1/4 - 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil 1/2 pound unsalted butter, room temperature 1 1-1/2 tbsp freshly ground black pepper 1/8 tsp ground cayenne (red pepper) 1 - 1-1/2 tsp salt 1/3 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil Directions Peel the cloves of garlic, remove stems, and chop coarsely, into about 4-6 pieces per clove. Put into a small food processor with the oregano, thyme, and basil. Process until the garlic has been finely chopped and then add one stick (1/2 cup or 1/4 lb.) butter and blend until smooth. Add peppers and salt and the remaining butter and blend. Lastly add olive oil, to make the butter easier to spread and for flavor. If you want the butter to be softer add more olive oil. *Note: The proportions of the herbs can be varied to taste. You may want to omit the basil in one batch and the thyme and oregano in another. Never substitute dried herbsit is better to leave them out if you do not have fresh. If you use salted butter, omit the salt. Store in a jar in the refrigerator. Mark the expiration date of the butter on the jar. ************ I also noticed in my file, under garlic, that I had written a recipe for Garlic Shrimp with Lime and Cilantro Ingredients 1-1/2 pounds of shrimp, deveined 2 cups water 2 dried red peppers, seed removed 2 tsp crab or lobster soup base (vegetable can be substituted) 5 tbsp unsalted butter 2-3 tbsp olive oil 4 tbsp flour 1/2 cup finely diced onions 1/2 cup finely diced celery 2 tablespoons minced garlic 3 tbsp fresh lime juice 3 tablespoons minced cilantro dash of hot sauce or cayenne, to taste Directions: Peel shrimp and place shells in a small saucepan with 2 cups water, the dried red peppers, and soup base. Set the shrimp aside. Bring the water to a boil and simmer covered while you chop the vegetables. Dice the onions and celery, mince the garlic and cilantro. Check the stock you are making, and when it has simmered enough, remove from heat and strain. Melt butter in saucepan with olive oil over medium heat. When melted, stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly about 3 minutes until the flour is golden brown. Add onions, celery and garlic. Continue to stir 3 to 5 minutes more, or until onions are translucent. Add 1 cup of strained stock. When well blended, add the shrimp and turn off the heat. Continue to stir until the shrimp has cooked approximately 5 minutes. Add lime juice and cilantro just before serving. Adjust seasonings and add hot sauce or cayenne, if desired. If mixture is too thick, add more stock. Serve over rice. I think this recipe is loosely based on Crawfish Étouffée. I saved several recipes from this thread - thanks!! Lars

Stacie, I don't know how you are keeping your sanity through all these trying times. You have my deepest sympathy...I know about kidney and gallbladder stones, but I was only dealing with 2 children at the time. Best wishes for all this to be behind you in a flash and you wake up in a bed of roses by Monday! Big hugs to all of the family.

I have to go to work...will try to work on this from there...or when I get home. Nancy