This easy recipe is a dessert or a salad, and always popular as it is fairly healthy, depending on the type of ingredients you use. It makes a great presentation. GRAPE SALAD Red, black, and green grapes, no seeds (or just one or two types is fine), stems removed, washed and thoroughly dried. Place in large clear trifle bowl, layering by color or mixing, or in individual wine or champagne or dessert glasses, clear. Mix together: --1 package of cream cheese (regular or low or no fat) --1 small carton of sour cream (again, regular, low or no fat) --Powdered sugar (I guess at it starting with 1/3 cup and sweetening to taste--you can also use SPLENDA) --1 tsp good vanilla Mix with mixer, then pour over the grapes. If individual glasses, of course only pour a tablespoon or so over each glass. Refrigerate. --Just before serving, sprinkle brown sugar and chopped pecans over the creamy mixture. This has never failed to get great reviews from adults and children alike!

I made a cookie recipe book for my neice a year or two ago. These are all tried and true recipes. Where possible I tried to give the sources of the recipes too. Chocolate Walnut Biscotti Cookie type: bar This is a favorite Italian cookie. They are perfect for dunking in coffee. This recipe came from Five Brothers A Year of Tuscan Cooking book, 1997. The recipe makes 3 dozen cookies. Ingredients 2 cups chopped walnuts 3 oz semisweet chocolate 1/3 cup unsalted butter 2 cups flour 2 teas baking powder 3 eggs 1 cup sugar 2 teas finely grated orange zest Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place walnuts on a cookie sheet; toast about 10 minutes or until golden brown. Melt chocolate and butter together, stir until smooth. Let mixture cool. In a bowl, sift flour and baking powder. In a large bowl, beat eggs lightly. Gradually add sugar, beat until light and fluffy. Add orange zest. Stir in cooled chocolate mixture. Stir in flour mixture until well blended. Add nuts. Stir to mix well. Divide dough in half. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 1 hour. On a greased cookie sheet, form into two flattened logs, each about 14 inches x 2 ½ inches. Place 4 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Bake 30 minutes or until logs are firm when pressed in the center, Remove from oven. On a cutting board, cut logs crosswise on the diagonal into ½ inch slices. Return to oven, arranging biscotti cut side down on cookie sheets. Bake 10 minutes or until crisp. (Recipe for) Christmas Cookies His recipe was taken from Gooseberry Patch Old Fashioned Country Cookies. It was submitted by Charlotte Worlitz. Light oven, get bowl, spoons and ingredients; grease pan; crack nuts; remove 10 blocks, seven toy autos and one wad of chewing gum from the kitchen table. Measure 2 cups flour; remove Johnnys hands from flour, wash flour off him, measure 1 more cup of flour to replace flour on floor. Put flour, baking powder and salt in sifter. Answer doorbell. Return to kitchen. Remove Johnnys hands from bowl. Wash Johnny. Answer phone; return. Remove ¼ inch salt from greased pans. Grease more pans. Look for Johnny. Answer phone. Return to kitchen and find Johnny. Remove his hands from bowl. Wash shortening, etc. off him. Take up greased pans and find nut shells in it. Head for Johnny who flees, knocking bowl off table. Wash kitchen floor. Wash table. Wash kitchens walls. Wash dishes. Wash Johnny. Call bakery. Chrusciki (Angel Wings) Cookie type: formed Chrusciki is the Ukrainian word for these cookies. I think every ethnicity has some variation of these fried cookies. These were the one cookie my mother would let my father make. Ingredients 2 eggs 7 egg yolks 1/3 cup heavy cream 1 jigger whiskey (rum can also be used) 1 teas vanilla 3 tbsp sugar 4 cups flour ¼ teas baking powder oil for frying confectioners sugar Directions Beat yolks and whole eggs in a bowl until thick. Add sugar, cream liquor and vanilla. Beat well. Add all dry ingredients except confectioners sugar. Mix until well blended. Knead dough unit it stiffens. Roll dough out thin. Cut into 1 x 4 inch strips. Cut a gash through the center of the strip and twist one end through. Fry in deep oil (375 degrees) until light brown. Dust with confectioners sugar. Hints, tips, tricks and how to cheat Hapanowicz Meat Market in New York Mills, NY sells a very good rendition of these cookies that you can pass off as home made. Confetti Caramel Bars Cookie type: bar These were a favorite of Julias! The recipe came from Betty Crocker Cookies Brownies & Bars, 1995. The recipe states it makes 3 dozen bars. Ingredients 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened 1 ½ teas vanilla 1 egg 2 cups flour ½ cup light corn syrup 2 tbsp butter or margarine ½ package (1 cup) butterscotch chips 1 ½ to 2 cups assorted candies and nuts (such as colored chocolate chips, candy corn, candy-coated candies, mini M&Ms, etc.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix brown sugar, 1 cup butter, the vanilla and egg in a large bowl. Stir in flour. Spread evenly in the bottom of an ungreased rectangular pan, 13x9x2 inches. Bake 20 to 22 minutes. Cool 20 minutes. Heat corn syrup, 2 tablespoons butter and butterscotch chips in a heavy 1 quart saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly, until chips are melted; remove from heat. Cool 10 minutes. Spread butterscotch mixture over the baked layer. Sprinkle with candy and nuts; gently press into butterscotch mixture. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours until butterscotch mixture is firm. Cut into 2x1 ½ inch bars. Hints, tips, tricks and how to cheat I dont recommend microwaving the butterscotch chips. They dont melt thoroughly.

Meringue shells have been popular for generations, though not called pavlova. My grandmother and mother used to make them frequently, we just asked for merigue shells and several would appear! She would top them with fresh or frozen fruit. My British SIL would make a large meringue; that's where I first heard the term Pavlova. She would make it in the summer, taking advantage of the blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries they had in plentiful supply. I make tiny meringues when the girls next door need cookies to take to school....they have classmates who require gluten free treats. The recipe I posted in Casey's original post for a large meringue with pomegranate and honey is a huge treat. For something so simple and easy, they are so special.

Thanks again, all. Yes, if my neighbors baked it would make sense to borrow a cup or so of flour from them, but they're all past that. They're the kind of people who put in cook's kitchens and order out or buy frozen. Really, the only one who bakes at all is a vegan yoga teacher who believes in the evilness of all gluten. :) But I did find a 2 lb bag of Gold Medal, so I'm good. Ricky, those scones sound great and I may tat up a batch for them to munch on on Christmas Eve. Lpink, the peach-raspberry pie sounds wonderful. I'm not opposed to store-bought stuff when it's as good as or better than, but I've always hated frozen pie crust almost as much as I hate frosting-in-a-can. Sherry, thanks for the recipes. That red velvet cake does sound good. I've gotten kind of turned off by the ones that are just radioactively-colored chocolate cake, which is not how I remember red velvet from when I was young. Your pecan pie is exactly how my mom used to make it. FWIW, most stores around here sell styrofoam coolers for not too much $$ - usually near the beer & ice... Yeah, I thought of that, but you pay a big premium when you live at the beach. I'll have to make time to go somewhere inland tomorrow. Gardengal, I think I'll make the pear/cranberry tart and freeze it before I take it over, then bake it Christmas morning while they're still fooling around with assembling the wellington. I can't see any reason why it wouldn't freeze, can you? This forum always comes through!