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Saute' onions and mushrooms in butter for 5 minutes. Blend in flour, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Gradually add cream, stirring to boiling point. Taste for seasoning. In buttered casserole, spread half the spinach; cover with half of the mushroom sauce, then repeat. Sprinkle with the grated cheese. Set in pan of hot water. Bake 40 minutes.

Serves 6 - 8.

RASPBERRY CUSTARD SQUARES

~Submitted by Larry, Ontario, Canada

Crust:
2 cups crushed vanilla wafer crumbs
½ cup toasted chopped almonds or walnuts
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted

Custard Layer:
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups milk
3 egg yolks
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ envelopes unflavored gelatin
1/3 cup cold water

Raspberry Layer:
2 packages (each 11 ounces - 300 g)
frozen unsweetened raspberries,
thawed (3 cups)
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup whipping cream

Crust: In bowl, combine crumbs, almonds and sugar; mix in butter. Pat into 8-inch square glass baking dish. Bake in 350° F. oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until fragrant and lightly browned. Let cool on rack.

Custard Layer: Meanwhile, in heavy saucepan, stir sugar with cornstarch; whisk in milk and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, for 5 to 10 minutes or until slightly thickened and smooth. In bowl, whisk egg yolks; stir in half of the hot milk mixture. Return egg yolk mixture to pan; cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla.

Stir gelatin into cold water; let stand for 1 minute, then stir half of the mixture into custard. Cover and set remaining gelatin mixture aside for raspberry layer. Lay plastic wrap directly on surface of custard; let cool. Pour over crust and refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.

Raspberry Layer: Press raspberries through food mill or fine sieve to mash, remove seeds and make about 1 cup. Transfer to small saucepan; add sugar and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat; stir in lemon juice and reserved gelatin mixture until gelatin is dissolved. Chill until consistency of raw egg whites.

Whip cream; fold into raspberry mixture. Spread over custard; cover and refrigerate until set, about 4 hours. (Dessert can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days.) Cut into squares to serve with forks.

Makes 8 servings.

STUFFED CYMLING OR PATTYPAN SQUASH

~Submitted by Treva, NC

3 medium cymling (or pattypan) squash
1/2 cup thick white sauce (made according to a conventional recipe)
1 Tbsp. grated onion
2 Tbsp. minced green pepper
3 hard cooked eggs, chopped, or
6 slices cooked bacon, diced*
1 cup grated cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup buttered crumbs (see note)

* I sometimes use both.

1. Boil the squash, whole and without cutting it, in water to cover for about 10 minutes, or until nearly tender. Drain. Scoop out centers, leaving a shell about 3/4 inch thick.

2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

3. Mash squash pulp. Add the white sauce, onion, eggs or bacon (or both) and 1/2 cup of the cheese. Add salt and pepper.

4. Fill the cymling shells with the mixture. Sprinkle with the crumbs and the remaining cheese.

5. Arrange in a shallow, ovenproof, serving dish containing about 1/2 inch water. Bake 25 to 30 minutes. If necessary to brown surface slide briefly under the broiler.

6. To serve cut each squash in half.

6 servings

NOTE: To make buttered crumbs, combine 1/2 cup crumbs with 2 Tbsp. melted butter.

SUGAR COOKIES

~Submitted by Mary B, MI

2/3 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
4 teaspoons milk
2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Mix all ingredients together. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before rolling and cutting out. Sprinkle sugar on before baking, or you can frost them after cooling and then sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for 6 to 8 minutes.

Note: I like soft sugar cookies so I roll them thick and underbake them, storing them in an airtight container.

MARINATED SHRIMP
Serves 4 to 6

~Submitted by Pat, Hahnville, LA

2 lbs raw shrimp (26 to 30)
1/2 cup olive oil
Juice of l lemon
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2 bay leaves
2 white onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
4 green onions, minced
1 tablespoon minced parsley
1/2 cup pimentos, chopped
1/2 cup whole, small, stuffed olives

Place the raw shrimp in a pot of boiling water. When the water returns to a boil, cook for 3 or 4 minutes until the shrimp are pink. Drain and plunge the shrimp into ice-cold water for 10 minutes. Remove the heads and peel. Set aside.

Combine the next 10 ingredients (beginning with the olive oil) in a saucepan; bring to a boil, reduce to simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the onions are transparent. Remove from heat, add the mushrooms and green onions and mix well.

Combine the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. Add the shrimp. Pour the mixture from the sauce pan over the shrimp mixture and toss lightly to mix. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours. Serve over salad greens.

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For Two...

BROWN SUGAR PORK CHOPS
Serves 2

2 pork chops
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons margarine
1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2 Place the chops in a 9x13 inch baking pan. Place 1
tablespoon of brown sugar on top of every chop. Place 1
tablespoon of margarine on top of the brown sugar. Sprinkle chops
with soy sauce.
3 Cover pan with foil and bake in preheated oven for 45
minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes,
until browned.