Mix oil, eggs, sugar and vanilla.  Add flour and baking powder mixture, chopped nuts and chips.  Form into narrow loaves on greased cookie sheet.  Use warm water to help keep hands from being too sticky as you mould the loaves.

At 350 degree oven, bake one half hour.  Take out of oven and let cool.  Slice the loaves laying the slices on the baking pan.  Re-bake individual slices for 10-15 minutes, turning once.

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4 quarts of black tea
4 cups sugar
1 quart and one cup lemon juice

1 quart dark rum (Jamaican)
4 quarts California Brandy (any non-gourmet brandy)
½ pint peach (or apricot) brandy

Equal parts Club soda

Make the black tea/lemon juice mixture, stirring in sugar when hot.  Add the alcohol.   Set aside or bottle for later use.

In a punch bowl place blocks of ice and garnishes of lemon and orange peels.  Pour in equal parts of the tea-brandy-rum mixture with club soda.

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This hardly should be in a real cookbook, but they are so good, guests are impressed, and a harried hostess can use a break.

Cut the croissant triangles in half making two smaller triangles.  Insert a smoked oyster or mussel as you fold up croissant.  Bake as instructed on package until golden brown.  Serve immediately.

(Breakfast adaptation: Pain au chocolate, insert Nutella in middle)

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Bread rounds or crackers

Grate cheese and place in large bowl.  Grate onion over bowl to capture all the onion juice and grated onion.  Add mustard, Worcestershire sauce and paper to taste.  Be generous with the Worcestershire sauce. Stir in mayonnaise until smooth.  Spread on crackers or bread rounds.  Keeps well refrigerated.

Place under broiler until bubbling.  Guests become quickly addicted.

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1 egg
¼ pound butter (cold)
1 tsp lemon juice
Pinch of salt

Separate egg, setting white aside for another day.  Use a good quality thick small pan over boiling water.  Cut your cold ¼ pound of butter into 4 smaller pieces.  Stir the egg yolk in with the lemon juice and tiny pinch of salt, while stirring the cold first quarter of the ¼ pound of butter.  (temperature is key in this recipe, and room temp butter will sabotage your sauce).  As soon as melted, stir in the second ¼, and so on till all are smooth and the sauce is thickened.  Never stop stirring.  If you must turn away from your sauce, take it off the heat.  If the sauce separates, it can be rescued by whisking in a small ice cube.

The perfect thing on broccoli, asparagus and of course, on Eggs Benedict (with variations of ham, smoked salmon or spinach, poached egg on English muffin).

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½ cup flour
1 tsp salt
½ tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp tarragon (crush leaves between fingers to release freshness)
2 pounds of organic, free range chicken, cut in pieces
½ cup olive oil
½ cup butter
1 cup B.C. white wine
2 cups canned tomatoes
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
Sliced mushrooms

Mix in a plastic bag the flour, salt, pepper, and tarragon.  Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture. Melt butter and olive oil in a large cast iron pan over low heat (those non-stick pans release carcinogens. Stick to the classics: stainless steel, Crueset ceramic or cast iron.  Cast iron is perfect for this recipe).  Add chicken and brown on all sides. Place directly in a pyrex or ceramic lasagne dish.   After all chicken is cooked, add remaining flour to the oil and butter mixture, stir with a wire whisk to make a gorgeous sauce.  While whisking vigorously, add the cup of white wine.  Inhale deeply.  When sauce is thick and smooth, pour over the chicken.  Top with drained tomatoes, garlic, or mushrooms.  Dot with butter.  Cover with two layers of foil.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Garnish with parsley.

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1 medium eggplant
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 organic free range eggs
1 cup milk
2 tbs butter
2 tbs flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper

2 quart casserole or (best choice) a soufflé dish.

Peel and slice eggplant and place in boiling water until tender.  Grease and flour pan.

In a good quality, small, thick sided pan (excellent heat distribution helps for a good roux), melt butter and flour and blend. Slowly stir in milk and stir vigorously till blended.  Bring to a boil, stirring until smooth and thick.  Remove from heat.

Add 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Cool for 5 minutes

Drain eggplant and mash.  Separate your eggs and blend the yolks to the cheese mixture and eggplant.  Beat three egg whites stiff and fold into eggplant mixture.  Pour into greased and floured pan and bake for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees F until golden brown.

If you have not made a soufflé before, do not fear.  The key is to gently fold in the egg whites.  Do not pound them into submission.  Leaving some evident frothy eggs whites not fully stirred in, is fine.  In fact, it is essential.  Stir in all the ingredients well, but you more or less layer the egg whites into the cheese-eggplant mixture. Do not over stir.

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