Moo's Imperial Avocado Crab Crepes

Start with your favorite plain crepe recipe, then try Moo's palate pleasing filling and curry sauce.




Filling
4 ripe avocados
2 cups crab meat
1 T scallions, minced
1 T coriander, minced

Curry sauce
1 T lime juice
1 T brandy
1 T Dijon mustard
1 tsp. curry powder
1 egg white. slightly beaten

Garnish with avocado, mandarin sections, lime slices

Prepare filling by mashing avocados until smooth. Add crab meat, scallions, and coriander. Mix thoroughly. Prepare curry sauce by mixing together lime juice, brandy, mustard, curry and egg white. Mix all ingredients until creamy smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Fill crepes and pour curry sauce over the top. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and cook for 12 minutes. Garnish with avocado slices, mandarin orange sections and lime slices.

Moo's Piquant Lemon Potatoes

Get everyone to love vegetables. This recipe is guaranteed to do it. Palate pleasing vegetables every time.

2 pounds red potatoes
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 T lemon juice
1 1/2 T fresh basil, finely chopped
Grated rind of 1 lemon

Peel potatoes and slice thickly. Parboil potatoes in lightly salted water for 5-10 minutes. Potatoes should still be slightly uncooked and firm. Drain. While potatoes are cooking, combine butter, sugar, lemon juice and basil. Heat slowly, stirring until butter is melted and resulting in a a bubbly syrup. Add drained potatoes to syrup and cook over low heat for 10-15 minutes, until potatoes are richly glazed. Spoon syrup over potatoes often during the cooking period. Serve with a sprinkle of lemon rind. This recipe works equally well with green beans, peas, asparagus, beets or broccoli.

Moo's Curried Shrimp in Coconut Rolls

This one's fun. Great for picnics.

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 T curry powder
1 tsp. fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 tsp. fresh mint, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
20 large shrimp, shelled and deveined
4 hot dog rolls
1/2 stick butter
1/4 cup unsweetened, finely chopped coconut

Combine olive oil, lemon juice, curry, ginger, mint and garlic in bowl and toss with shrimp. Marinate for 8 hours, turning several times for good coverage. Drain and put on skewers. Separate the rolls into two halves. Cream butter and add coconut. Mix well and spread on the face of the bun. Grill shrimp. Do not overcook. Toast rolls and arrange cooked shrimp on top.

Moo's Beer Puffs w/Coconut Chicken Filling

Here's a versatile appetizer. You can come up with all kinds of fillings. I've included Moo's coconut chicken filling. The filling alone is a real palate pleaser.

Puffs Batter
1 cup beer
Pinch of salt
1/2 stick butter (1/4 cup), cut into small pieces
1 cup flour, sifted
4 eggs
1/8 tsp. nutmeg

Glaze
1 egg yolk
1 T milk

Filling
Chopped chicken
Angel Flake coconut
Coconut cream
Mushrooms or nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a large cookie sheet. Put beer in saucepan with salt and add butter pieces. Bring to boil (you want to watch heat carefully so that butter melts at same time beer starts to boil). Add flour all at once. Add nutmeg. Remove from heat and add eggs (one at a time and stirring in between). Stir until dough forms into a ball (about 2 minutes). Drop dough from a teaspoon onto the prepared cookie sheet. Combine glaze ingredients and brush on each puff before popping into the oven. Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Let puffs cool on racks. Fill with desired filling or freeze in plastic bags until ready to fill and serve.

Moo's Marinated Mushroom Salad

1 1/4 lbs small mushrooms
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup parsley, chopped

Marinade
6 T olive oil
2 T lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp. whole black pepper, crushed
1/2 tsp. whole coriander seed
1/2 tsp. whole mustard seed
1/2 tsp. salt

Wash mushrooms and remove stems. Add mushrooms to a sauce pan of boiling salted water (enough water to cover mushrooms). Simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Drain and let mushrooms cool. Set aside. Mix together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, pepper, coriander seed, mustard seed, and salt. Add mushrooms, onion and parsley. Blend thoroughly. Cover and chill, stirring occasionally. Set aside for at least 2 hours (best overnight). Serve in the marinade.

Spicy Prosciutto Wrapped Avocado

This is a little something special Moo cooked up. It's hot. It's delicious. And it's fast and easy to make. It's a palate pleaser.

Prosciutto, sliced just thick enough to stay together when you wrap around avocado
Ripe avocado, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces

Hot Sauce
4 T butter
2 T water
4 T ketchup
2 T vinegar
2 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/3 tsp. salt
Dash of Tabasco sauce

Prepare prosciutto by cutting slices in half. If you want more prosciutto per bite, use a whole slice. Peel avocado, remove seed and cut into bite-size pieces. Wrap prosciutto slice around avocado. Hold in place with toothpick. Prepare hot sauce in a double boiler with water simmering: combine butter, water, ketchup, vinegar, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, salt, Tabasco sauce. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Drizzle a little over the hors d'oeuvres--not too much you don't want it to be messy when picked up. Serve additional hot sauce in a bowl on the side for dipping. This thing has zing!

Moo's Thai Green Chicken Curry

Here's a simple Thai curry you'll love.

1 stock butter
8 T flour
1/4 cup green curry paste
3 1/2 cup milk
1 cup chicken broth
2 T soy sauce (low sodium)
2 tsp. coconut extract
1/2 bunch coriander, chopped
8 kefir lime leaves
Chopped chicken
Fresh mint, chopped
Fresh basil, chopped

Boil chicken. While chicken is cooling, you can create the curry: In large sauce pan, melt butter add flour to create roux. Slowly add green curry paste, milk, broth and bring to boil. Add soy sauce, coconut extract, lime leave and continue to cook for about 5 minutes. Stir regularly. Pick chicken off cooled carcass. Shred chicken to bite-size pieces and add to curry. Bring to boil and cook for about 3 minutes more. Garnish with fresh mint and basil. You can serve with additional condiments such as shredded coconut, chopped nuts, chutney, and lime pickle.

Moo's Tapioca Asparagus Soup

This is a simple recipe and very good. You'll get raves as a palate pleaser when you serve this. I mention using a Hot and Spicy seasoning (your choice) because it's up to you how much zip you want to give the soup and the flavor enhancement you're looking for. There are many spicy seasoning mixes on the market so experiment with different flavors. Enjoy!

1 1/2 T butter (vegans can use a non-dairy butter substitute like Earth Balance)
1 T flour
1 cup asparagus water (the water your fresh asparagus is cooked in or the juice in a can of asparagus spears)
1 quart chicken broth (you could use a vegetable broth for vegan version)
1/2 cup quick cooking tapioca
salt and pepper to taste (watch salt if you use canned asparagus)
Hot and Spicy seasoning (your choice)
asparagus spears for garnish

In a large sauce pan melt butter. Add flour to make roux. Cook over medium heat for about 3 minutes. Add asparagus water slowly. Simmer about 5 minutes. Then add broth. Add tapioca and cook, stirring for about 5 minutes or until the tapioca is cooked and soft. Add salt, pepper and hot/spicy seasoning. Prior to serving put a couple spears of cooked asparagus in the soup bowl and ladle soup over the spears.

Moo's Pina Colada Cake

1 pkg. yellow cake mix**
1 pkg. Instant vanilla pudding and pie mix
1 1/3 cup water
4 eggs
1/4 cup oil
2 cups angel flake coconut
1/4 cup white rum
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1-1 1/2 jars pineapple preserves

Frosting
1 cup butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2 egg yolks
1/3 cup rum

Mix cake mix, pudding, water, eggs oil and coconut. Beat batter, pour into two layer pans and bake according to directions on the cake box.

**Note if the cake mix has pudding mix already in it, just make the cake as directed on the package. Just add the coconut.

When the cake is cool, slice the two layers to make 4 layers. Put the first layer on the cake plate and give it a liberal sprinkling of the pineapple juice/rum mix. Then spread a layer of pineapple preserves. Add another cake layer and repeat process. Do the same with the third layer and top with the fourth.

Make frosting by creaming (beating) butter until light and smooth. Slowly beat in a can of condensed milk and 2 egg yolks. Add rum slowly so that it doesn't curdle. Beat constantly. When thick enough to spread, frost the cake.

Champagne Sour Cream Mousse

2 T. gelatin
1/3 cup cold water
2 cups sour cream
1/2 cup dry champagne
2 T mustard
1/4 cup minced chives
1/4 cup chopped pimento

Sprinkle gelatin over cold water to soften. Set aside. Heat sour cream in top of double boiler over simmering water until steamy hot. Stir constantly. Do not boil. Stir in soft gelatin until dissolved. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Add champagne, mustard, chives, and pimento. Blend well. Pour into prepared mold. Chill for several hours.

Moo's Maui Papaya Salad

On one of the family's trips to Hawaii, Moo had a room with a small kitchen. And she had access to all the wonderful fruit and seafood. This recipe was the result. A Hawaiian palate pleaser.

1 head lettuce, torn to bite-size pieces
1 bunch watercress, stems removed
1 pound cooked shrimp, lobster, crabmeat (any one or all)
1 papaya, peeled, halved, seeds removed
1 can hearts of palm

Dressing
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup pineapple juice
2 T white vinegar
2 T ketchup
salt and pepper to taste

Select a very fresh, flavorful lettuce, mound seafood in center. Slice papaya and arrange in a pinwheel around the seafood. slice palm heart and arrange around seafood. Decorate center with a few watercress leaves.

Moo's Lemon Curd Cake

Moo made her cakes from scratch...except when she made a dessert where the cake was secondary to the other flavors. In this case, she started with a Betty Crocker or Hines white cake mix. You can always make your cake from scratch...I'm sure it will be a real palate pleaser.

Filling
2 cups sugar
1/4 pound butter
4 eggs
4 lemons
4 tsp. lemon rind, grated

Frosting
2 egg whites
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1/3 cup water
1 tsp. vanilla

Cook cake in two layer pans. When cool, slice each layer in half for a total of four thin layers. Prepare the lemon curd filling: Melt butter in top of double boiler. Beat eggs thoroughly and add sugar plus lemon juice and rind. Heat over hot water just below the boiling point until it thickens. Prepare the frosting: Put ingredients (except vanilla) in the top of double boiler over boiling water and beat with rotary beaters until mixture stands in stiff peaks. Scrape bottom and sides occasionally. Fold in vanilla. Put lemon on each layer except the top one. Then frost.

Moo's Oyako Donburi

After years of Chinese cooking lessons, Moo started experimenting with Japanese. She had a lot of fun and shared several of her dishes with me. Here's a palate pleaser of a side dish.

8 large scallions, slivered
A knob of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced thin
6 peapods, strings removed, sliced
1 T olive oil
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 T mirin
4 T soy sauce
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 pkgs udon noodles
4 eggs

Mix chicken broth, mirin, soy sauce, sugar, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside. Prepare scallions, ginger, and peapods. Stir fry in olive oil. Add sauce to vegetables. Mix thoroughly. Cut noodles into bite-size pieces an add to the vegetable mixture. Stir fry for a couple of minutes. In a separate bowl lightly beat eggs. Add to the mixture and turn until scrambled. Serve with a meat, seafood or chicken dish.

Gladys Steers' Coffee Cake

Gladys Steers gave this coffee cake to Moo years ago. It's one of three we enjoyed during the holidays. Try to find a cake mix without pudding in the mix. If that's all you can find, omit the separate package of pudding mix. Niki has added lemon juice and almond extract for palate pleasing enhancement.

1 pkg lemon cake mix
1 pkg. Instant lemon pudding
1 1/3 cup water
Juice of one lemon
1/2 tsp. almond extract
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
2/3 cup canola oil
1/4 cup sugar (Niki uses a little less sugar)
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine cake mix and dry pudding mix, add eggs and beat well. Add sour cream and oil. In a separate bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon. Pour half the batter into well-oiled bundt pan. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mix in the middle. Then cover with the rest of the batter. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Bundt pan trick: If you are using one of the new bundt pans with an intricate design, you'll need a little help getting cake to release easily. Put batter in a warm bundt pan. When you turn on oven to preheat, pop the bundt pan in the cold oven. Leave it there about 5 minutes. Remove from oven, apply nonstick spray (baker's formula). Add batter and bake.

Moo's Steamed Asian Dumpling Filling

This is an excellent all-around filling for dumplings. You can use it to make pot stickers, Siu Mai or 4-color dumplings. Your dumplings will be real palate pleasers.

1 lb. ground pork
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 T sugar
1 T soy sauce, I prefer low sodium
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. teriyaki sauce
1/2 tsp. sherry
1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped and packed tight
8 water chestnuts
4 fresh shitake mushrooms
1 scallion, minced
1 T fresh ginger, minced
1/4 cup cornstarch

Dumpling skins

To the pork, add broth, sugar, soy sauce, salt, teriyaki sauce, sherry and sesame oil. In food processor, fine chop all vegetables. Fold vegetables into pork mixture. Finally add cornstarch. Fill dumpling skins and either freeze until you need them or steam and serve.

By the way, here's a simple but good dipping sauce: 3 T low-sodium soy sauce, 1 tsp. rice vinegar, and 1 tsp. sesame oil

Moo's Cold Poached Salmon w/ Cucumber Salad

Nothing says summer party favorite like cold salmon. Moo had several recipes, and this is a favorite...a real palate pleaser.

4 salmon steaks, about 3/4" thick

Stock for Poaching
1 cup water
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 small onion, sliced
1 small carrot, sliced
2-3 parsley sprigs
1 small bay leaf
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. peppercorns

Green Sauce
2 egg yolks
1 T prepared mustard
1 T lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
3/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup parsley, minced
1/3 cup watercress, minced
1/3 cup spinach, minced
1 tsp. sage, crumbled

Cucumber Salad
2 T olive oil
1 T lemon juice
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 medium cucumbers, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded and sliced thin
1 T fresh dill weed
Mix oil, lemon juice, vinegar, salt and pepper. Add cucumber slices and dill weed. Toss.

Prepare Green Sauce: With a small whisk, beat egg yolks, mustard, lemon juice, salt and pepper until well blended. Slowly beat in oil, drop by drop at first and then in a thin stream until mixture forms mayonnaise. Fold in parsley, watercress, spinach and sage. Refrigerate overnight.

Poach Salmon: In skillet, bring stock ingredients to a boil. Add salmon steaks, cover and simmer until fish flakes easily (about 10 minutes). Do not overcook. Cool salmon in stock at room temperature. Carefully transfer steaks to serving platter with slotted spatula. Spoon on some green sauce (serve remainder on the side). Garnish and serve with cucumber salad.

Kendra's Venison Bourguignon

Wow, I love this dish. It started as a beef recipe but venison is much healthier. And I happen to be a fan of game. This recipe serves four.

2 pounds venison, cut into bite-size cubes
5 medium onions, peeled and sliced
3 T olive oil
1 1/2 T flour
Big pinch marjoram
Big pinch dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
1 bottle red wine, burgundy or zinfandel works well
1 large can or box of condensed beef broth, I use organic and you could easily substitute with vegetable or mushroom broth
3/4 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced

Peel and slice onions, set aside for a moment. Cube venison and set aside. Heat a large, heavy skillet and add 2 T olive oil. Saute onions until browned. Remove them from skillet and set them aside. Now add 1 T olive oil to your still hot skillet then add the venison. Once they are brown on all sides sprinkle with flour and seasonings. Stir together well then add 1/2 cup broth and 1 cup of red wine. Stir and let simmer. You want the mixture to be just barely bubbling. Now this process is going to take about three (3) hours. And as the liquid begins to cook away you keep adding more in the same proportions (1/2 cup broth to 1 cup of wine). You want the liquid to almost cover the meat at all times, so check regularly. And give a little stir every time you add more liquid. When the bottle of wine is used up, you've added enough liquid. DON'T COVER DURING THIS PROCESS. You want the liquid to evaporate and leave the flavors behind.

At the end of about three hours you reintroduce the browned onions and the mushrooms. Stir well and simmer very low for about 45 minutes more. The dish will look very dark and thick at the end. You can set aside now, even refrigerate overnight. In fact I think it's better made ahead. When serving, first warm it up. If you think it's too thick you can always add a little broth and wine to thin. It should be bubbling when you are ready to serve. Prepare noodles or rice. Mound onto dinner plate and cover with the venison.

Cracked Crab with Curry and Ginger Sauce

King Crab legs or Dungeness Crab, pick meat from shells
2 T olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 slices fresh ginger
2 scallions, finely chopped
1/4 green pepper, finely chopped
2 heaping tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
3 T sherry
2/3 cup chicken broth
1 T cornstarch
2 T water

Place wok over high heat, add oil. When oil is very hot, add garlic, ginger, scallion, green pepper. Stir fry for 30 seconds. Add crab meat and stir fry for 1 minute. Combine curry powder, salt, sugar and sherry. Pour the curry mixture over crab. Stir fry for 30 seconds more. Add chicken broth. Cook 5 minutes or less. Combine cornstarch and water in small dish. Stir into stir fry dish to help thicken slightly. Stir until smooth and thickened. Serve immediately.

Moo's Coconut Shrimp

You're going to love these shrimp. They are a palate pleaser you have got to make. Like a lot of health-conscious people, I don't eat much fried food these days. That's not to say the taste isn't a real palate pleaser. And there is the rare occasion and the right food can tempt. Moo used to make this one a lot...back in days when we all ate more fried food. You might come up with a way to take this taste and prepare it without the frying. In any case, I don't deep fry any more, I saute in the skillet with a little olive oil.

24 jumbo shrimp, clean and flattened
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 bag flaked coconut, slightly toasted
2 eggs
4 T coconut cream

Marinade
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1-1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground ginger

Dipping Sauce
To taste combine orange marmalade, hot Chinese mustard and Curaco.

Clean and flatten shrimp then marinate overnight. Line cookie sheet with wax paper and combine flour, salt and dry mustard on the wax paper. Spread toasted coconut on another cookie sheet. In a bowl, combine eggs and coconut cream. Heat a deep fryer, skillet or wok with olive oil. Dredge shrimp in flour. Then egg mixture. Then coconut. Deep fry (375 to 400 degrees) to a golden color. Serve with dipping sauce. Note: if you do 30 shrimp or more, double the flour and marinade mixtures.

Moo's Colcannon

Okay Bruce, this one is for you! I know you love it. If you don't know what colcannon is...it's an Irish favorite with mashed potatoes and cabbage. It certainly qualifies as vegetarian, but you can make it vegan by using soy milk and a non-dairy butter like Earth Balance or Smart Balance.

1-1/2 cups water
3/4 pounds cabbage, cored and shredded
1/2 tsp salt
1-1/2 pound boiling potatoes, scrubbed
1-1/4 cups milk, scalded
1 T onion, minced
cayenne pepper, salt and pepper to taste
In a saucepan, combine water, cabbage and salt. Bring the water to a boil over moderately high heat and cook the cabbage, stirring until the liquid is evaporated. Remove from heat and cover pan loosely.

In a large saucepan, combine potatoes with enough cold water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender. Drain and shake dry over high heat for a few seconds. Cool. Peel the potatoes and puree while warm. Beat in scaled milk, cabbage, onion, salt and peppers to taste. Heat over low heat, adding more milk, if necessary, to achieve the desired consistency. Heat until hot. Mound into a warm serving dish. Make a depression in center and add 1/2 stick softened butter. Let begin to melt and serve hot.

Moo's Bread Pudding with Whiskey Sauce

Oh boy, HICCUP, this is a HICCUP real palate pleaser.

1-1/2 cups raisins
2/3 cup rye whiskey
1-1/4 loaves day-old French bread (about 8 cups of 1/2" cubes)
6 cups milk
5 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
6 T butter, melted and cooled
2 t. vanilla
1 T salt

Sauce
1 stick butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup whiskey

Soak raisins in 2/3 cup whiskey. Cut French bread into 1/2" cubes. Combine cubes with milk at room temperature, stirring occasionally for about 2 hours. Shortly before that time is up, beat eggs, sugar, melted (and cooled) butter, vanilla, and salt then ad to bread mixture. Combine well. Pour into a well-buttered souffle dish. Cover and chill overnight. Next day bring to room temperature, stir a bit. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake for 1-1/2 hours, until edge is puffed and golden brown (center will not rise as much).

Sauce
Cream the stick of butter with sugar. Beat in the eggs in one at a time. Transfer to a double boiler over simmering water. Add the cup of whiskey. Cook, stirring until slightly thick.

Serve hot.

Moo's Gingered Melon Balls

Let the quality and ripeness of the melon in your supermarket dictate what melon you choose. They're all good. Enjoy a palate pleaser.

6 cups melon balls
3 T honey
1/2 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped
Garnish with mint leaves and a little more chopped crystallized ginger.


Combine the melon balls with honey and crystallized ginger. Spoon fruit into a large glass compote or serving dish. Cover and chill until you're ready to serve. Garnish with fresh mint leaves and a little chopped crystallized ginger.

Kendra's Cold Zucchini with Salsa Verde

You have a few options with this recipe. You can serve it as an appetizer or as a salad. With the exception of the herbs, I did not tell you how to chop the vegetables. This should be your preference. Some people like a smooth salsa, others like it chunky. Personally, I think you might want to blend in food processor until smooth if you are serving this as a salad.

8-10 small zucchini, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped coarsely
1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 small onion, chopped
4 anchovy fillets
3 t. capers
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1 tsp. seasoned salt
1 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
Ground pepper to taste

Cook zucchini in boiling salted water for about 4 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water to cool quickly. Drain. Refrigerate. Combine coarsely chopped parsley with olive oil, lemon juice, onion, anchovies, capers, garlic, shallot and salt in food processor. Blend on pulse so you can control the consistency. Transfer to a bowl for serving and stir in finely chopped parsley and basil. Season with pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until cold.

When ready to serve, arrange zucchini on cold platter. For appetizers, slice zucchini into sticks and serve salsa in a bowl for dipping. As a side dish/salad, arrange zucchini halves on cold plate and spoon salsa over the top.

Moo's Lychee Kumaki

Well, this is different sort of appetizer that will have your guests wondering where it's been all these years.

1 can lychee fruit, drain and reserve syrup
1/2 cup peanuts, coarsely chopped
15 bacon slices, cut in half
Soy sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar

Drain lychee fruit thoroughly, reserve the syrup. Fill the cavity of each lychee with some of the chopped peanuts. Wrap a piece of bacon around the fruit, be sure to cover the opening with the peanuts inside. Secure with toothpick. Make a mixture of equal parts lychee syrup and soy sauce (about 1/4 cup of each should do it). Dip prepared lychee in liquid then roll in brown sugar. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place lychees on cookie sheet and into oven for 20 to 30 minutes or until the bacon is crisp. Watch carefully. Serve with plum brandy sauce.

Moo's Pirate Rummy Spoonbread

This stuff is amazing. And that's all I have to say about that. A major palate pleaser.

2 cups whole milk
1 can coconut flakes
3/4 cup cornmeal
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 T butter
1 package frozen corn souffle, defrosted
1 package frozen kernel corn, defrosted and drained
4 eggs, separated
2 T dark Jamaica rum

Heat milk and coconut together. Do NOT boil. Gradually add cornmeal. Stir constantly until thickened. Remove from heat. Add salt, nutmeg, butter. Fold in the defrosted corn souffle and corn. Beat in egg yolks, one at a time. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Fold in rum. Beat egg whites until stiff, then fold into mixture. Turn mixture into a buttered baking pan, set that pan in boiling water in 350 degree oven. Bake for 1 to 1-1/2 hours (you'll have to check regularly as the water slows down the baking process and all ovens are different). Serve immediately with butter.

Niki's One and Only Hot Buttered Rum Recipe

This makes a big batch, which means you'll have plenty for yourself and enough to share with friends. Fill a small decorative jar and give as gifts for the holidays. It keeps well in the refrigerator.

2 pounds brown sugar
1 pound butter
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground allspice

melt the butter in saucepan. Remove from heat and add beaten eggs, sugar and spices. Beat until smooth. Bottle and keep in the refrigerator.

When making a hot buttered rum, put one heaping teaspoon full in a mug, add rum and boiling water.

Moo's Clam Puffs

These are fun and they taste good too.

3 6-1/2 ounce cans chopped clams, drained (save 1/4 cup of liquid)
2 eggs, separated
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/2 tsp salt
Pepper to taste
Olive oil for deep frying

Combine clams, clam liquid and egg yolks in medium bowl. Add flour, baking powder, melted butter, salt and pepper. Mix well. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks. Fold into clam mixture. Chill at least 3 hours (even overnight).

Heat oil in deep fryer or large frying pan to 375 degrees. Drop mixture by teaspoonfuls; don't crowd. Fry until brown and crisp, turning once. Drain on towel, sprinkle lightly with salt. Serve hot.

Moo's Jellied Beef a la Mode

This is a little different. These jellied meats used to be very popular in the 50s and 60s. I think they're worth revisiting. This is a palate pleaser for anyone who likes cold beef. (By the way, the witches are some of Moo's last artwork.)

2 pounds stew beef
1 T olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup water
2 cups white wine
1 T soy sauce
1 whole clove garlic, peeled
2 whole, small onions, peeled
1 carrot, washed and cut in 2" pieces
2 T parsley, chopped
2 T brandy
1 envelope gelatin
Extra parsley for garnish

Cut beef in 1" cubes, removing any fat. Heat olive oil in heavy pot until hot (on high heat). Quickly brown beef on all sides. Season beef with salt and pepper. Add water, wine and soy sauce. Bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low, add garlic, onions and carrot pieces. Cover and simmer until meat is tender, about 1-1/2 to 2 hours.

Strain cooking liquid, reserve and cool. Discard garlic, onions and carrots. Sprinkle meat with parsley and brandy. Refrigerate to remove any fat. Place reserved liquid in pan. Sprinkle gelatin powder over the cold liquid. This will help soften gelatin. make sure you have at least 2 cups of liquid. Heat enough to completely dissolve gelatin. Stir thoroughly. Then remove from heat, cool and then chill until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. Fold chilled meat mixture into the slightly thickened gelatin. Mold. Chill. Serve.

Moo's Zesty Stir-Fry Chicken

Moo sent this recipe to me while I was in college. Said this would be a palate pleaser at my next dinner party. It was...and it still is.

4 whole medium chicken breasts
1/4 cup soy sauce (I prefer low sodium)
2 T. sherry
4 T. orange marmalade
2 tsp. cornstarch
2 tsp. fresh ginger, minced
3/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 small orange
2 cups fresh peapods
1/2 cup olive oil
salt to taste
1/2 - 3/4 cup almonds, sliced
1 bunch scallions, sliced into 1" pieces

Remove skin and bone from chicken breasts. Cut each into medium-size chunks. Create marinade of: soy sauce, sherry, marmalade, cornstarch, ginger, and red pepper; 30 minutes before cooking, marinate chicken bits. Peel orange and separate wedges. Cut each wedge in half and set aside. Clean peapods (remove tips and string). Blanch in boiling water for about 1 minute (until bright green). Drain and rinse in cold water to stop the cooking. Wrap in foil and set aside in refrigerator.

Heat olive oil in wok. Cook almonds until lightly browned. Remove almonds from oil and drain on paper towel. In same oil, cook scallions, stirring until dark brown (to infuse flavor into oil). Remove onions from oil and discard. Now add marinated chicken until chicken has turned white. Add peapods, almonds and orange slices. Salt to taste. Turn a few times and serve.

Moo's Stuffed Peapods

Here's another of Moo's favorite, holiday appetizers. They're easy to make, but to make a large batch will take you some time. Be patient, put on some music or a favorite movie while you work. The results of this palate pleaser are worth the time.

3/4 pound snow peapods
2 8-oz. packages cream cheese, cut in bits for easier blending
1/2 cup chives, chopped
Worcestershire sauce to taste
Salt and white pepper to taste

Blend in batches, cream cheese, Worcestershire sauce, salt and white pepper. This is really a personal taste thing and how spicy you want the peapods. Blend all the mixture until it is smooth. Put it in the refrigerator to chill. Now prepare the peapods by breaking off the ends and removing the strings. Wash then toss into boiling salted water for about 1 minute (until bright green). Drain peapods and run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Pat dry. Slit open each peapod to within 1/4 inch of each end. Once all peapods are prepared, get ready to fill. Apply a decorative tip to your pastry bag, fill bag with cream cheese mixture. Pipe cheese filling into each peapod and arrange on serving plate. Chill, loosely covered, for at least an hour.

3/4 of a pound of peapods should yield about 50 appetizers.

Moo's Avocado-Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes

This is a very simple recipe. Personally, I love the grape tomatoes for their sweetness, but you may prefer the cherry tomatoes. They are bigger and not quite as sweet. Which ever you choose, these are fun and pretty.

Wash a basket or two of cherry or grape tomatoes (depending on the size of your gathering). Slice off the tops and scoop out most of the seeds. Chill, as this makes them easier to work with. Now peel and pit a couple of nice ripe avocados. Add about 2 T lemon juice, 1 t. salt and a dash of cayenne pepper. Chill. When ready to assemble, fill a pastry bag with the avocado mixture and pipe into the tomatoes.