RECIPES:

Macaroni and Cheese (Mac and Cheese)       Serves 4 to 6          3 cups (3/4 Lb.) grated white sharp Cheddar cheese ~ 1 cup (1/4 Lb.) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, or substitute with Grana Padano or pecorino cheese ~ 1 Lb. ziti, penne or short macaroni ~ 3-3/4 cups whole milk ~ 8 tablespoons butter, plus extra for the baking dish ~ 6 tablespoons flour ~ 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper ~ Small pinch of freshly grated nutmeg ~ Kosher salt ~ Freshly ground white pepper ~ 1/2 cup heavy cream ~ 1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees............ In a mixing bowl, combine the two cheeses and reserve. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat and cook the pasta until al dente, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and place in a mixing bowl. In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the milk to a simmer. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter; when it starts to bubble, whisk in the flour. Cook, stirring, for 5 to 6 minutes and then remove from the heat (this is the roux). Whisk in the hot milk all at once. Add the cayenne, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Return the mixture to high heat and cook, stirring, until it comes to a boil and thickens, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low. Add 2 cups of the combined cheeses to the milk mixture and cook, stirring, until the cheeses have melted completely. Pour the sauce over the pasta in the bowl and mix lightly. Lightly butter a 3-1/2-quart deep baking dish and sprinkle 1/2 cup of the combined cheeses over the bottom. Cover with one third of the pasta and one third of the remaining cheese. Repeat the layers twice, ending with a layer of cheese. Pour the cream over all, and sprinkle with the bread crumbs. Place on the middle shelf of the oven and bake until the macaroni is bubbling and the crumbs are golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Herb Buttermilk Fried Chicken               1/2 cup all-purpose flour ~ 1 Tb chopped fresh parsley ~ 1 Tb fresh thyme leaves ~ 1 ts salt ~ 1/2 ts garlic powder ~ 1/4 ts pepper ~ 4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves ~ 1/3 cup buttermilk ~ 1/3 cup Butter.

Combine all coating ingredients in 9-inch pie pan. Dip chicken in buttermilk, then in coating mixture. Melt butter in 12-inch skillet until sizzling; add chicken. Cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until chicken is golden brown and fork tender.

Salisbury Steak      6 servings.               Salisbury steak is a form of hamburgers, traditionally flavoured with minced onion. They derive their name from a Dr. JH Salisbury who worked as a physician in England during the 19th century and recommended them to a lot of his patients. This Salisbury steak recipe does not only include onion; the ground meat is flavoured using garlic and fresh parsley too.

1/2 cup of onion ~ 2 cloves of garlic ~ 5 or 6 Tb of butter ~ 2 Tb of fresh parsley ~ 1 1/2 Lb of ground beef ~ 2 eggs ~ 4 oz of bread crumbs ~ 1 Lb of mushrooms ~ 3 Tb of flour ~ 1 1/2 cup of beef broth ~ Mince onion and garlic.

Heat up 1 ½ tablespoon of butter in a skillet. Sauté onion and garlic in the skillet until the onion becomes translucent. Set aside to cool down. Chop the parsley. Mix the ground beef with chopped parsley, eggs and bread crumbs. Mix in the sautéed onion mixture. Form six patties. Heat 1 tablespoon of butter in the skillet and sauté the patties until they look golden brown. They should still be pink inside. Remove from skillet and place in a casserole dish. Slice the mushrooms. Quickly sauté the mushrooms in the skillet, add more butter if necessary. The mushrooms will typically be ready after 4 minutes. Remove the mushrooms from the skillet. Melt 2 tablespoon of butter in the skillet and stir in the flour. Cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the beef broth. Add the mushrooms to the skillet. Pour everything from the skillet over the patties in the casserole dish. Place in the oven and bake at 350° F for ½ hour.

ONION GRAVY        1 medium onion, thinly sliced ~ 1 Tb vegetable oil ~ 1 Tb unsalted butter ~ 1 1/2 Tb all-purpose flour ~ 1 1/4 cups water ~ 1 cup canned beef broth ~ 1 Tb Worcestershire sauce ~ 1/4 ts black pepper.

Cook onion in oil and butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until onion is softened and browned, about 15 minutes. Add flour and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in water, broth, Worcestershire sauce, and pepper and simmer, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until gravy is slightly thickened, 8 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and additional Worcestershire sauce if desired.

Chocolate Pudding        Makes 4 to 6 servings               If you've only ever tasted chocolate pudding made from a mix, you're in for a big surprise.

3 cups (750 mL) milk (low fat or skim are fine) ~ 1/2 cup (125 mL) sugar ~ 1/4 cup (50 mL) unsweetened cocoa powder ~ 1/4 cup (50 mL) cornstarch ~ pinch salt ~ 2 Tb (30 mL) butter ~ 1 ts (5 mL) vanilla.

In a blender or food processor, combine the milk, sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch and salt. Blend just until smooth. Transfer to a medium saucepan and place over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the pudding thickens and comes to a very gentle simmer. Continue to cook for one minute, stirring constantly to prevent lumps, and remove from heat. Stir in the butter and vanilla until combined. Pour pudding into serving bowls and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate and serve cold. *Note: Bittersweet chocolate has sugar, vanilla and lecithin added to the pure chocolate liquor and cocoa butter. Although semisweet usually has more sugar, the two are pretty much interchangeable in recipes.

Very Special Bread Pudding with Orange Creme Anglaise      Yield: 8                  Bread Pudding: 16 slices egg bread, challah or home-style bread, (about 1 loaf or 1 pound) ~ 1 1/2 cup cranberries, fresh, or, frozen ~ 1 tb grated orange, rind ~ 6 egg ~ 3 cup milk ~ 1 cup whipping cream ~ 3/4 cup sugar ~ 1 tsp vanilla.

Preheat oven to 375º F (190ºC).........Trim off bread crusts; cut bread in 1-inch (2.5 cm) cubes. Arrange half of bread cubes in lightly greased 12-inch (2.5 L) oval baking dish; scatter two-third each of the cranberries and orange rind over top. Cover mixture with remaining bread cubes, then top with remaining cranberries and orange rind. In large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, cream, all but 1 tablespoon (15 mL) of the sugar and the vanilla; pour over bread mixture. Let stand for 15 minutes. Using baster, drizzle liquid over bread mixture several times. Sprinkle with remaining sugar. (Make-ahead: Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.) Bake in centre of oven for 45 to 60 minutes or until puffed and golden and until knife inserted in centre comes out clean.

Orange Creme Anglaise:     1 cup whipping cream ~ 1 strip orange, rind, (about 1 inch wide) ~ 3 egg, yolks ~ 1/4 cup sugar ~ 1/4 cup orange-flavoured liqueur or 1/4 cup frozen orange juice, concentrate, (optional).

Meanwhile, in small saucepan, heat cream with orange rind over medium heat just until steaming. Remove from heat; discard orange rind. In small bowl, whisk egg yolks with sugar until pale; slowly whisk in cream. Return to saucepan; cook, stirring constantly, for 3 to 5 minutes or until thick enough to coat back of wooden spoon, being careful not to boil. Strain into pitcher. Stir in liqueur. Serve warm over pudding. (Make-ahead: Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days; rewarm over low heat.)

Cheese Fondue        serves 6               1 medium clove Garlic ~ 2 cups dry white wine ~ 1 Lb Swiss cheese, shredded ~ 1 ts cornstarch ~ 3 Tb Kirsch or Brandy ~ pinch ground Nutmeg ~ dash hot pepper sauce ~ French bread or other crusty bread, about 2 loaves, cut into pieces (all pieces should have some crust).

Rub a fondue pot with garlic clove. Pour in wine and place over low heat. When air bubbles begin to rise to the surface, begin adding shredded cheese. Stir constantly until all cheese is melted. Dissolve cornstarch in the kirsch or brandy; add to cheese fondue mixture. Continue to cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, then season with nutmeg and pepper sauce. Place pot over alcohol burner or other low heat source for serving. Serve with fondue forks for guests to use to spear bread and dip into cheese fondue.

Oreo cookie crusted no bake white Chocolate Cheesecake #1              1 8" Oreo Cookie Pie Crust ~ 10 1/2 oz White chocolate ~ 12 oz Cream cheese ~ 2 1/2 oz Butter ~ 2 1/2 oz Sugar ~ 1 ts Vanilla extract.

In a mixer, cream together butter and sugar for approximately 2 minutes. Add cream cheese and vanilla and continue creaming for approximately 10 minutes. While creaming, set up a double boiler and slowly temper chocolate to melt. When completely melted, add into cream cheese mixture and mix until incorporated. Pour the mixture into the pie shell and smooth out top. Place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or until set. Cut into eighths and serve with your favourite fruit sauce.

Rocky Road No-Bake Cheesecake #2            3 squares Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, divided ~ 2 pkg. (8 oz. each) Cream Cheese, softened ~ 1/3 cup sugar ~ 1/4 cup milk ~ 2 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, ~ 3/4 cup Miniature Marshmallows ~ 1/3 cup chopped cocktail Peanuts ~ 24 OREO Cookies.

MICROWAVE 1 of the chocolate squares in small microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 min; stir until chocolate is completely melted. Set aside. BEAT cream cheese, sugar and milk in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add melted chocolate; mix well. Gently stir in whipped topping, marshmallows and peanuts. Coarsely chop remaining 2 chocolate squares; stir into cream cheese mixture. Place one Oreo cookie in the bottom of muffin cup. Spoon cheesecake mixture evenly into the foil- or paper-lined medium muffin pan cups. REFRIGERATE 4 hours or until set.

No Bake Margarita Cheesecake # 3              1 1/2 (1/4-ounce) envelopes unflavoured powdered gelatine ~ 1 cup sugar ~ 3/4 cup water ~ 1 1/2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature ~ 1 cup sour cream ~ 1/4 cup fresh lime juice ~ 1/4 cup premium tequila ~ 1/4 cup Grand Marnier or triple sec ~ 2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest ~ 1/4 teaspoon salt.

In a small saucepan, combine the gelatine and sugar. Add the water, stir, and cook over medium heat until the gelatine dissolves, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sour cream, lime juice, tequila, Grand Marnier, lime zest, and salt, and beat to combine. Add the dissolved gelatine mixture and mix well. Pour into the prepared crust and chill until very firm, 3 to 4 hours.