Smooth and sweet, pudding's a treat

Mmmmm, pudding. Creamy, sweet, and smooth. Soothing, simple, and easy to digest. No wonder pudding is often a child's first dessert, or a sweet offering when we're ill. Often it's the first thing a child learns to cook.

Puddings are soft desserts usually boiled, baked, or steamed. They are often made with milk, a thickener, egg, tapioca or cornstarch, and flavorings like vanilla, chocolate, and butterscotch. Rice, corn, and coconut are a few of the ingredients added to enhance the simple and make it sublime.

Dessert pudding can come from a box, or a plastic container in the refrigerator section of the market. However, like most things, when deconstructed to its ingredient list of sugar, cornstarch, and flavorings, it really is quite easy to make from scratch and is just a matter of using correct proportions. Homemade also can be more healthy.

Like many dishes that use heat and a thickener, this pot has to be watched. Thirty seconds and 5 degrees can make the difference between a creamy concoction or something resembling cement. Pudding thickens as it cools, so be careful not to overcook.

Rice pudding, which can send one swooning back to childhood, is little more than rice, milk, and sometimes eggs. Do you like yours with or without raisins? Soft or really firm? Most cultures have their own dessert pudding, with the same tug of nostalgia. Raj Verma, 27, comes from the Punjab region in northern India. He serves kheer, the aromatic Indian rice pudding, at his restaurant, Bollywood, on Massachusetts Avenue in East Lexington. It is the most popular dessert on the menu and Verma gives everyone a taste even if they don't order it. Basmati rice, whole milk, cardamom, and a dash of rose water makes this pudding delightfully different.

''We had a few cows on our land and we would get the milk fresh, warm, and thicker than what you have here,'' Verma recalled. ''Kheer was served very cold to give us some relief from the heat of the day as well as the heat of the food. When we had scratchy throats or colds, my mom served this to us.''

Mention tapioca (from the root of the cassava plant) and some people will search for Fido, ready to slip him a bowl of those translucent ''fish eyes'' under the table. Tapioca can be the base for desserts, a thickener for pies. Like tofu, it absorbs the flavors it is mixed with. Also like tofu, you have to be a fan of the slippery consistency. Elsa Tian emigrated from Indonesia 36 years ago and remembers tapioca puddings made with coconut milk.

''We had the tapioca pudding at tea time served at room temperature,'' she said. ''They used to soak the tapioca pearls overnight to soften before cooking.'' Tian still makes the dessert, but finds the quick-cooking tapioca in the box perfectly acceptable.

Stores that carry Asian foods often carry the tapioca pearls in bags. About half the recipes researched recently called for soaking the pearls overnight. The soaked tapioca is then cooked in water until translucent and takes much less time to get to this stage.

Pudding as a snack adds some calcium to your diet. Served in a footed cup, it is an easy but elegant finish to a dinner party, or a cooling end to a spicy meal. It's made all the more special with a garnish of whipped cream, chocolate shavings, or a sprinkling of pistachios. Serve with a crispy wafer-like cookie and dessert is done.

Old-fashioned chocolate pudding

These recipes use whole milk as it gives a richer flavor. You can substitute low fat milk

2 cups whole milk or 1 cup milk and 1 cup half and half
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Mix cornstarch, sugar, cocoa and salt together in a bowl.
2. Pour milk into a pot over medium heat. Add cocoa mixture and stir constantly until bubbles appear around the edge.
3. Lower heat to a simmer and stir pudding until thick. Add vanilla.
4. Pour into four dishes. Chill and serve with whipped cream and chocolate shavings or jimmies.

For butterscotch pudding, omit chocolate and substitute brown sugar for white sugar. Add 2 tablespoons butter and the vanilla after pot has been removed from heat.

For vanilla: Omit chocolate and add vanilla after pot has been removed from heat.

Kheer: Indian rice pudding

1 cup basmati rice
2 cups water
8 cups milk (whole milk gives creamiest results)
1/2 cup heavy cream
2-3 green cardamom pods, seeds only
3/4 cup sugar
chopped pistachios for garnish
a few drops rose water (optional)

1. Cook rice in water until done.
2. Heat milk until it boils. Turn to medium heat.
3. Break open green cardamom pods and remove the seeds.
4. Add cooked rice, cream, sugar, and cardamom seeds to hot milk.
5. Continue cooking and stirring until the mixture thickens to the consistency of thick soup, about 5-8 minutes.
6. Serve in individual bowls. Garnish with chopped, unsalted, green pistachios. A drop or two of rosewater is traditional and adds fragrance and flavor.

Adapted from Raj Verma's Bollywood Cafe recipe


Indonesian mango strawberry tapioca pearl dessert

1/3 cup pureed mango
1/3 cup pureed strawberry
3 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
1/3 cup sugar
21/2 cups water (or 1 cup milk and 11/2 cups coconut milk)

1. Place tapioca, water, and sugar in a pot and let stand for 5 minutes.
2. Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a full boil. Remove from heat.
3. Divide into two mixing bowls. Let cool for 10 minutes.
4. Add the strawberry puree to one bowl and the mango puree to the other. Mix well.
5. Put a layer of mango tapioca in each of four bowls. Top with a layer of strawberry tapioca.
6. Serve with a dollop of coconut cream (the coconut cream is the thick layer on top of the coconut milk when you open the can).

Adapted from Martin Yan's Asia, Rainbow Tapioca

Tembleque: Puerto Rican coconut pudding

1 cup milk
1 cup half and half
2 cups sweetened coconut shreds
1-11/2 cups coconut milk
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

1. Heat milk and half and half until bubbles just begin to form. Remove from heat.
2. Add coconut and let sit for 15 minutes.
3. Place milk and coconut mixture in blender or food processor and pulse for 30 seconds.
4. Place a strainer over a bowl and pour mixture into the strainer. Press on remaining coconut to release as much liquid as possible.
5. Measure strained liquid into a pot; add coconut milk and heat on medium.
6. Dissolve the cornstarch in one-third cup milk and whisk into hot mixture.
7. Add salt and stir until mixture thickens. Lower heat and stir an additional five minutes. Turn off heat and add cinnamon if desired.
8. Divide among four bowls and garnish with toasted coconut (made by placing three tablespoons shredded coconut in a dry frying pan and heating just until coconut turns brown.)

Adapted from ''How to Cook Everything''
by Mark Bittman

There'll always be room for gelatin

Admit it. You miss those old Jello-O salads. Remember the desserts? Mini-marshmallows, Cool Whip, nuts, and pineapple suspended in luminescent layers of primary colors like prehistoric species in amber. Open the fridge and the multi-layered form comes to life when the reverberation of the door sends it quivering. Cherry-flavored Jell-0 with banana slices. Tuna aspics on the buffet tables of the '50s. Molded gelatin salads of every conceivable variation at potlucks.

Making gelatin used to be a complicated and lengthy process. In the 1850s, Peter Cooper, benefactor of The Cooper Union, New York's famous art, engineering, and architecture school, patented the first gelatin dessert. In 1897, the Jell-O brand was introduced by Pearl Wait as a fruit-flavored version, sporting strawberry, orange, lemon, and raspberry flavors. Charles Knox developed granulated unflavored gelatin around 1900.

Gelled desserts and aspics rapidly became popular among housewives when electric refrigerators swept into American households. Using gelatin was considered economical and healthy. It performed culinary gymnastics as a food extender and by morphing from salad to dessert in a single bound. It was the perfect segue from labor-intensive layer cakes to quick and easy desserts.

In the 1950s, Jell-O added new flavors; grape, black cherry, and black raspberry, and fruity gelatin went from being a food stretcher to an elegant addition to a party or church supper. Holiday dinners featured at least one Jell-O salad with alternating pastel and translucent layers. Every cookbook from a church or synagogue or school has pages devoted to dishes with names like Merry Cherry Salad and Rainbow Delight.

Roger Petersen, political science professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, recalls his parents reminiscing about Jell-O after the death of his grandmother. Petersen grew up in rural Iowa, where most farms used electricity only for lighting homes. ''Richer farmsteads could afford refrigeration as well, and would serve Jell-O as a treat,'' he recalls. ''Being able to serve Jell-O was a status symbol. The only way to have a gelatin dessert before that was to leave it out on the porch during the winter.'' A personal favorite from his mother's church cookbook is Seafoam Salad, made with lime Jell-O, canned pears, cream cheese, and Dream Whip.

As is true of sausage, one may not want to know how gelatin is made. A call to the Jell-O consumer service line run by Kraft Foods confirmed that. The representative said Jell-O brand gelatin was made not from the hooves and horns of animals but from their hides. Then he said something about collagen, acid, and percentages, which is when the ''need to know'' factor shut down and ignorance seemed a better option. Peterson said Sioux City, Iowa, one of America's meatpacking centers, also had one of the largest gelatin factories.

If you are a vegetarian, neither Knox gelatin nor packaged gelatin desserts should be on your list. There is a product called Agar made solely from seaweed, which has the properties necessary to congeal, is unflavored, and does not smell fishy. Hain makes a SuperFruits Dessert Mix that is vegetarian, Kosher, made with natural flavors and natural color, and tastes good. Bread and Circus carries both.

Any liquid, such as juice, or semi-solid can be made to set. One packet, or 1 tablespoon, of gelatin solidifies two cups of liquid or semi-solids. If you plan to add pieces of fruit or nuts, cut the liquid by one quarter. Sour cream and cream cheese are popular additions and take the place of some liquid. If you are looking to lower fat content, substitute yogurt cheese. You won't be able to tell the difference.

When using a mold, it's important to moisten with water or a nonstick spray before adding the gelatin mixture. A quick dip in a bowl of warm water and a prayer might help before flipping it onto a platter. Moisten the plate before unmolding, as you might miss the center and then could slide the gelatin into perfect position.

Today, Valentine's Day, try this adaptation of the classic French cheese dessert coeur a la creme (heart of cream). This version uses unflavored gelatin and is lower in fat and lighter than the original, which calls for heavy cream, sour cream, and cream cheese. It is traditionally made in a special ceramic heart mold and wrapped in cheesecloth to allow the whey to drain. You can use any mold for this one. Served with a strawberry sauce made from frozen berries, this is elegant, healthy, easy, and you won't be eating your heart out over this delicious treat.

Coeur a la Creme

1/3 cup cold water
1 1/2 packets unflavored gelatin
2-3 tablespoons boiling water
8 ounces farmers cheese (try Friends brand in the dairy section)
1 cup light cream cheese
1 cup nonfat yogurt cheese
1/2 cup light cream
1/2 cup sugar
several whole strawberries

1. Place 1/3 cup cold water in a small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin on the water, and let sit five minutes. Add 2-3 tablespoons of boiling water to mixture, and mix until gelatin is completely dissolved.
2. Place farmer's cheese, light cream cheese, yogurt cheese, and light cream in a
mixing bowl. Beat on low for 1 minute.
3. Add sugar and beat again until smooth.
4. Stir in gelatin mixture. Pour into a heart-shaped mold, and chill until set, about 3
hours. Unmold on platter, and decorate with whole strawberries.
5. To Serve: Cut heart into sections and spoon strawberry sauce over the dessert.

NOTE: Making your own yogurt cheese is easy. Inexpensive, reusable strainers are available in kitchen stores, such as the package of two for $3.59 at Kitchen etc. You also can use strong paper coffee filters. Place 11/2 cups yogurt in the strainer set over a container with enough space on the bottom to allow the liquid to drain. Place in fridge for 5 hours, or overnight. The liquid whey will drain and leave a thick yogurt cheese, thus reducing the volume. It is a great base for spreads and dips. Yogurt cheese also is available in most Middle Eastern grocery stores.

Strawberry Sauce

1 10 oz. package frozen strawberries (or raspberries)
1/4-1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons kirsch or maraschino liqueur, optional

Place all sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor, and mix until blended. Chill until ready to serve.

Spicy tomato aspic

Serve with seeded crackers or French bread, cucumbers, fresh basil, and light
mayonnaise on a bed of lettuce. This is a refreshing and low-calorie salad or spread.

1 cup water
2 packets gelatin
3 cups Bloody Mary cocktail mix or V-8
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. In a bowl, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup of cold water.
2. In a small pot, heat tomato juice and the remaining 1/2 cup water.
3. Add the softened gelatin, and stir until completely dissolved.
4. Remove from heat, and stir in the lemon juice.
5. Pour into prepared mold. Chill until set.


Creamy Orangesicles
(Reprinted with permission from the National Dairy Council)
This recipe also makes delightful smoothies. Place two frozen servings in the blender with a half-cup of lowfat milk. Try making it using other fruit-flavored gelatin.

1 package orange gelatin powder
3/4 cup lowfat milk
1 eight-ounce container vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup boiling water

1. Place gelatin mix in a medium-size bowl. Add boiling water. Stir until gelatin mix is
completely dissolved.
2. After mixture cools slightly, add milk and yogurt. Stir until all ingredients are
blended.
3. Spoon into freezer-pop molds or 5-ounce paper cups. If using paper cups, cover
with foil and insert a wooden pop stick. Freeze for several hours until firm.

Lemon and Lime Gelatin Dessert

You can't compare the pure taste of this fruit dessert with the artificially flavored.
Any juice can be made into a gelatin dessert.

1 packet unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup sugar
11/2 cups boiling water
1/4 cup cold water
Juice from 1 lemon and 1 lime

1. In a bowl, sprinkle gelatin on 1/4 cup cold water.
2. Add boiling water, and mix until dissolved.
3. Add lemon and lime juices and sugar. Mix until liquid is clear.
4. Pour into 4 serving cups. Decorate each with a slice of lemon and lime, and a
sliver of skin from each.
5. Chill until set, about 4 hours.

Making sushi can be fun and easy

Making sushi at home may seem fussy and complicated, but it need not be. It needs virtually no cooking, is inherently low in fat and nutritious, and can involve the guests in preparation. A temaki zushi(hand-rolled sushi) party is fun and an authentic way to eat sushi at home. When the Japanese are not eating sushi at restaurants or ordering in gorgeous, costly platters of nigiri-zushi(nuggets of vinegared rice topped with slabs of sashimi-raw fish), they serve temaki zushi to friends and family.

Sushi is not raw fish. It is the sweet and vinegary rice that forms the base for raw or cooked fish, vegetables, and a variety of toppings. A dollop of sushi rice is placed atop a rectangle of yaki nori(roasted seaweed). Then one chooses from a kaleidoscope of foods and places them on the rice. The seaweed and rice combination is then rolled, cone-like, and lightly dipped in soy sauce. The crunch of the seaweed, the complimentary sweet and briny flavors, and the eye-watering heat of wasabi (horseradish mustard paste) create a most satisfying combination.

Excellent ingredients are important, as they will be standing on their own merits. There is maguro(raw tuna), tobiko(flying fish eggs), scallops, and flounder. If you don't like raw fish, use smoked salmon, or cooked crabmeat and shrimp. Cucumber strips, radish sprouts, watercress, shiso leaves (a plant in the mint family), avocados, steamed asparagus, sweet shitake mushrooms, and omelet strips provide balance and texture. Cutting things into similar sizes and grouping them on a large platter makes a beautiful presentation. Condiments are soy sauce, wasabi, and gari shoga(vinegared ginger slices).

Raw fish must be bought at reputable places; there are no bargains. Be prepared to pay $15-$20 per pound for tuna. Sliced thin and as part of a large array of food, a half-pound goes a long way. The storage, cutting, and handling of the fish is important. Don't be intimidated; just be vigilant. You do not need to buy the pre-cut and very expensive sashimi slices if you stick to simpler fish choices. A good scrub in soapy hot water of your knives and cutting boards before and after using is crucial.

Rice remains the most important ingredient. There is no substitute for short-grain, Japanese rice. It's ''sticky'' characteristic gives it the distinctive quality necessary in making sushi. Many brands are available, even at local supermarkets. Mamiko Maki of Winchester, who is Japanese, recommends using Tamaki brand and says Nishiki is passable. The Japanese know rice and make very clear distinctions among the brands. Mamiko uses Kagayaki (available in Japanese markets), which she considers ''good quality and reasonably priced.''

The only cooking you have to do is making the rice. A rice cooker is convenient, but a heavy-bottomed pot with a good fitting lid will do. The preparation of short-grain rice is different from that of long-grain rice. Short-grain rice must be washed and soaked before cooking, and the water must be cold when the rice begins to cook. After cooking, a mixture of rice wine vinegar, sugar, and salt is stirred into the steaming rice, coating the grains until shiny. There is a bottled version of this seasoning, and it is good enough, even for the most particular Japanese cooks.

Once considered exotic ingredients, most of the makings of a sushi party now can be found in any supermarket with a reasonable international or Asian section. For the really authentic, however, try an Asian or Japanese specialty market. It will be one-stop shopping (except for maybe the fish), and you are more likely to find the freshest of everything due to the high turnover.

Where to find fresh ingredients for sushi:

The following stores carry fresh fish and other good sushi ingredients.

Fish Sea to You 212 Northern Avenue Fish Pier Boston 617-350-0130

New Deal 622 Cambridge Street Cambridge 617-876-8227 Fresh Pond Seafood 355 Fresh Pond Parkway Cambridge 617-497 - 9821

Japanese Specialty Markets These stores can be pricey but will have everything you are looking for (Some have fish available).

Yoshinoya's 36 Prospect Street (Central Square) Cambridge 617-491-8221

Kotobukiya 1815 Massachusetts Ave. (Porter Square) Cambridge 617-354-6914

Pan Asian

Reliable Market 85 Union Square Somerville 617-623-9620

China Merchandise 120 Cambridge St. Burlington 781-229-6886


Te Maki Sushi Party for 8
Arrange all ingredients on one or two platters


Sushi Rice - makes 7 cups cooked rice
Double to make sure you have enough.
(When preparing Japanese rice add 1 ¼ cups water for each cup of uncooked rice.)

2 ½ cups short grain rice
2 ¾ cup water

Seasonings
5 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt

*You can use prepared sushi - su seasoned vinegar - check the package
for proportions.

Make the rice no more than 2 hours before you plan to use it


1. Place rice in a bowl or pot and wash by stirring and draining three or four times until the water becomes almost clear.
2. Let the rice soak in 2¾ cups rice for 20 minutes. The rice will turn white and plump up the grains.
3. If using a rice cooker start cooking. If using a pot, cook the rice over medium heat until the water starts to boil. Then turn the heat to low and cook for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off and let the rice steam for 10 minutes. The pot should be covered during the entire process. Total time about 30 minutes.
4. Remove the rice to a large bowl and with slashing movements toss and lift the rice. Do not mash and mix it.
5. Combine the seasonings for the rice. Make sure sugar and salt is dissolved.
6. Sprinkle the seasoning mixture onto the rice as you toss the rice, coating all the grains until shiny. With a newspaper or magazine, fan the rice to cool it down as you mix it. It does help to have someone else do this while you are tossing the rice.
7. Place in a shallow serving bowl. Cover the rice with a clean damp dishtowel to keep from drying out. Never refrigerate sushi rice.

Seasoned Shitake Mushrooms

6-8 dried shitake mushrooms - soaked in water (reserve the soaking liquid) until soft, rinsed, and sliced into strips.

½ cup mushroom liquid
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon mirin (sweet rice wine) you can add another teaspoon of sugar if not available

1. Cook the mushrooms in a saucepan with the mushroom liquid, soy sauce, sugar and mirin until the mushrooms have absorbed all the liquid, about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Do not walk away from this pot.


Assorted Fillings

½ pound fresh tuna - sliced ¼ by 2- 3 inch
½ fresh crabmeat
½ pound cooked shrimp sliced down the center
4 ounces tobiko - flying fish eggs or salmon roe
½ pound smoked salmon
½ pound scallops - sliced horizontally in thirds - with lemon juice
2 avocadoes - peeled and cut into 8 long sections
2 English cucumbers (no peeling necessary) seeded and cut into ¼ by 3
inch strips
1 bunch watercress, washed and dried
radish sprouts, rinsed and dried
(2 packages shiso leaves - 8 to a package)
seasoned shitake mushrooms
Steamed asparagus spears, lightly salted

20 sheets nori - roasted seaweed sheets, cut in half
Soy sauce
Gari shoga pickled ginger slices
Wasabi - Japanese horseradish paste - it comes in tubes all prepared in the refrigerator section or as a powder in a small can. If you buy the powder - you will need to mix a few teaspoons of the powder with a little water.

Set a plate, disposable wooden chopsticks, and a small dish for soy sauce and wasabi for each person.

To make a roll:

1. Take a rectangle sheet of nori rough side up, and spread a small amount of rice on the left side of the nori. Flatten rice and spread a little wasabi on the rice.
2. Lay the fillings of your choice on the diagonal. Fold the lower left corner of the seaweed over the filling and continue to roll into a cone.
3. Dip into soy sauce.

Ginger acts as a palate cleanser.

Put a little life in child's lunchbox

By Debra Samuels
GLOBE CORRESPONDENT

DECEMBER 28, 2000 LIFE AT HOME SECTION

Is your child tired of the same old lunchbox fare? Have you had it with one more request for a Fluff sandwich? Are you suspicious that your children might be trading their carrot sticks for corn chips? Are you sure they couldn't care less about any effort on your part?
We lived in Japan when my elder son was a first-grader. It was an education for all of us, not least of all when it came to the preparation and presentation of lunch for a 7-year-old. The Japanese moms made Rembrandts out of rice balls and fruit. Their masterpieces were not only nutritionally balanced, but also made your eyes water: mini. franks cut into the shape of an octopus, hard-boiled eggs cut to look like tulips. With a snip and a slice, the apple wedge became a bunny rabbit. W ith a tuck and a roll, a colorful spiral sandwich emerged. All the food groups were covered. Every child brought a folded cloth napkin and perky pals on the thermos in a handmade drawstring bag.
Needless to say, this did not go unnoticed by my son. It was great being the only American in class, but coming to school with peanut butter and jelly, celery sticks, banana, and juice box in a brown paper bag was demoralizing. To save his face and mine, I bought "100 Ideas on Children's Obento" (portable lunches), just one of dozens of books and over sized how-to magazines in my local bookstore. Dazzling lunches are serious business for Japanese children and for their mothers, who would no more dream of creating an unplanned meal than their children would consider not eating every last morsel.
My son barreled through that book and chose the first of many edible art projects I would make that year: a sandwich in the shape of a little boy's face complete with bologna bangs. Endless minifranks and fruit and vegetable ménageries later, I realized children did notice and did care. And yes, he did eat the whole thing.
Of course, I don't recommend going to these lengths, nor do I subscribe to the concepts of guilt and obligation that underlie this.
(Well, maybe I do, but just a little.)

In Japan, however, there is a down side to all this: competition among the children and among the mothers. Moms are not just feeding their children or impressing them and their pals with their efforts. The teacher and other parents doing their PTA duties notice, too. Tongues cluck, children talk, and the teacher might even make a call home about a child's being embarrassed and teased due to a mother's insufficient effort.
Since 60 percent of Japanese women work I thought perhaps it was only the stay-at-home moms who had the time to do this. Wrong again. For everyone, working or not, there is internal and external pressure across educational and economic lines to make attractive, well-balanced meals with at least the appearance of their being homemade. Sure, plenty of women buy little salads, but before they go into the lunch box they are placed in a foil cup, and those store-bought meatballs are speared with a colorful plastic pick with a flag on top.
Even for someone like me, who loves playing with food and torturing little hot dogs into another species, this is way over the top. I did learn a great deal about the value of planning lunches and making them look appetizing, though. Children were delighted with their meals and ate with gusto.
With just a bit of effort and a few new ideas, you may be pleasantly surprised to find those lunch boxes comming back empty because the contents actually have been eaten, not fed to the trash.

(P.S. My sons never traded their meals when we came back to the States - they sold them!)

Apple Bunny

Cut and core one apple into 6 wedges. Slip a paring knife under the apple peel and slice carefully about two thirds of the way up. Cut a V into the apple skin flap and remove. You now have two ears. Add a splash of lemon juice to a small bowl of water and dip in the apple bunny to help prevent browning.

Octopus Franks

Cut each little frank almost to the top. You now have two pieces attached to the head.
Carefully slice each flap into thirds. Place in boiling water until the legs begin to curl up.
So this marine mollusk has six legs? Who's counting?

Little Known Lunch Fact:

Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino remembers this about his early school lunches: "In first grade, every day, I took bologna, except Friday, when I took tuna fish."

Pinwheel Sandwich (Makes 4 servings)

4 slices of smoked salmon, turkey or ham
Bean sprouts, red or green pepper strips
4 slices of cheddar cheese or cucumber strips
12 slices of white or whole wheat bread, crusts removed
½ stick butter or margarine softened
¼ c. light mayonnaise(with 1 teaspoon mustard and or tarragon)
4 leaves of loose-leaf lettuce plastic wrap, washed and dried

Place 3 slices of bread in a row leading away from you on top of a sheet of plastic wrap.
Flatten the bread with a rolling pin. Spread with butter or mayo mixture and overlap the slices ¼ inch on the tops and bottoms. Press them together.
Place the lettuce on the two slices of bread closest to you. Place slices of salmon, turkey, or ham on top of the second slice of bread and the cheese on the third slice.
Add the sprouts (or other vegetables) on the salmon.
Lift up the first slice of bread and roll the sandwich forward, away from you.
Enclose the roll in the plastic wrap and chill overnight or for at least 2 hours. Slice into 4 rounds.
Repeat with remaining ingredients.
Make this the night before and slice in the morning.
Also try roast beef with spiced cream cheese, but avoid tuna and egg salads, as the bread will become soggy.

This story ran in the Boston Globe on 12/28/2001.
© Copyright 2001 Globe Newspaper Company.

Hot cereal brings comforting start to the day

WHETHER you call it porridge, gruel, mush, or hot cereal, there is a world of wonderful grains for hot breakfast on a cold New England morning.

Some gag at the thought of hot cereal. Others drool thinking about brown sugar, a pat of butter, and milk melting into a creamy bowl of steaming oats. Carol Halewood of Lexington shudders as she recalls how her mother held Carol's nose and force-fed her oatmeal when the weather dipped below 40 degrees. She won't go near the stuff today.

Carol Bohmer of Cleveland, on the other hand, smiles thinking of her Sunday semolina supper. Growing up in New Zealand, she remembers, ''after a big midday meal, we were given hot cereal for dinner. The best part was the square of chocolate my mum put into our bowls. We watched it melt and made spirals with our spoons.''

A wide variety of hot cereals is on grocery shelves. Quaker Oats are smooth and creamy, while McCann's Irish Oats are crunchy. Wheatena is toasty and textured, while Farina is bland but satisfying. Cream of Rice looks like wallpaper paste, but adding milk, a smidge of butter, and brown sugar is great for a hurting tummy. Wolff's Buckwheat Kasha is often eaten as a side dish and makes an earthy porridge. Remember Marky Maypo who bellowed, ''I want my Maypo!''? This instant, maple-flavored, presweetened combination of oats and rye is deliciously nostalgic.

Grocers put the ''pure'' stuff on the top shelf and place the flavor-enhanced (artificial), presweetened, individually packeted items at eye level. These are adorned with pictures of vanilla beans, cinnamon buns, and apples. One oatmeal brand even contains ''dinosaur eggs.'' A candy egg melts and a candy dinosaur emerges.

With all the hype, you can't be sure just what you are buying. Ingredient lists consist of multiple, multi-syllabic words and sugar in its varied forms (dextrose, sucrose, guar gum). Compare this to the one or two ingredients listed on the packages you can barely reach.

Most of us eat hot cereal with something on top. Adding your own salt, butter, milk, brown sugar, maple syrup, granola, or raisins gives you some control, and you can at least pronounce what you are eating. One teaspoon of brown sugar is 15 calories, raisins add iron, cinnamon a little flavor, and maple syrup about 50 calories per tablespoon. Nutritionists turn to hot cereals when looking for good sources of fiber and iron, especially for women. The cereals are naturally low in cholesterol and fat.

Cooking time is determined by how much the manufacturer has processed the cereal. The larger the oat flake, the longer the cooking time. ''Instant'' means fairly small and very processed and requires 30 to 90 seconds; ''quick cooking'' needs about 3 minutes; and ''old-fashioned'' will take anywhere from 5 to 8 minutes. Grits and Irish oats are in the ''eternity'' category at 20-30 minutes.

John McCann's Irish Oats (available at Trader Joe's and Bread and Circus) are prized by oatmeal aficionados. Their crunch, grainy texture, and nutty flavor attract devotees. The whole-grain groat (inner part of the oat kernel) is not rolled flat, but cut into two or three pieces, leaving little nuggets, which is the reason for the 30-minute cooking time.

McCann's Web site offers shortcuts, though. Soaking oats overnight, chopping the oats in a food processor, toasting them in the oven, and microwaving all save time. Basically, you are doing the processing. The microwave takes about 12 minutes for two bowls, and can leave a big mess if the oatmeal overflows - but the crunch remains.

One suggestion is to put the oats in a crock pot overnight on the low setting (one cup of oats to four cups water) and add raisins and cinnamon. You wake up to a wonderful aroma and a pot of delicious hot oatmeal. The problem is that the crunch disappears. If you like creamy oatmeal, this is a great idea. Make enough for several days and store in individual containers in the fridge. Just add a little milk and reheat for 2-3 minutes in the microwave. However, to enjoy this cereal as it is intended, there is no substitute for standing at the stove, stirring occasionally, and eating right away.

This feast can come out of your kitchen

A lot of people are convinced they cannot cook. Bad experiences, low motivation, little time, no understanding of cooking terms - these are just a few of their reasons. Each has a remedy.

FayRuth Fisher, 25, a graduate of Hampshire College now working as a legislative and political coordinator for Massachusetts AFL-CIO, is a smart young woman who says she has a hard time following recipes. ''I get all motivated by looking at the pictures and the finished product, then somewhere halfway into the recipe I decide something is taking too long,'' she says. ''I get resentful and eliminate a step or two.''This clearly was the source of her problem when she made a cake that called for stiff egg whites. Not knowing what stiff egg whites looked like or why they had to be stiff (makes the cake rise), she got frustrated and beat them only a little and added them to the cake batter. The result was a very flat cake and gales of laughter from her mom and friend who then took a picture of the cake for posterity. Fisher was convinced that ''cooking was not my thing.''

Debbie Louis, 49, a mother of two and vice president of e-business operations at Centra Software, likes to cook but has very little time during the week. Still, she feels it's important for the family to sit together and have a ''nice nutritious meal.'' She knew others at her company felt the same, so she asked caterer Bob Yacavonis of Sensational Foods of Watertown (617-924-6703) if employees could order full-course meals that he would deliver to the office each week. Her company provided refrigerator space.''I'm a two-bag-per-week customer,'' says Louis. ''That's five meals for a family of four.'' She says it costs about $100 a week, and is worth it.

Louis found her solution, but most people who think they can't cook just need a bit of confidence, a few simple, no-fail recipes, a little motivation, and maybe even cooking classes. Wendy Greenberg, mother of two, avowed non-cook, and object of derision from her family for most of her culinary efforts, found salvation through cooking lessons, a gift from a friend. With glee and pride in her voice, she recently announced she had made pizza, dough and all, from scratch: ''My husband came home to the smells of food cooking and thought he was in the wrong house.''

With Thanksgiving - and all its expectations for a glorious multi-course meal - imminent, there is alarm among those who find this too daunting a task. No meal could be simpler, however, precisely because the menu is mostly set. Herewith, a complete Thanksgiving dinner in which no dish has more than two main ingredients (simple spices, water, and butter do not count as extra ingredients).

After setting some rules (no prepared food allowed in the main meal), we set about creating a great dinner with all the trimmings and no stress. Instead of a whole turkey, we chose a fresh turkey breast. (Sorry, dark-meat lovers.) A vegetable duo of baby carrots and sugar snap peas is, indeed, a snap, and stuffing with cranberry sauce even made the cut. As for garnishes, a sprig of fresh parsley does wonders.

With the main meal complete, we stretched the rule for dessert and made it an assembly project: four things combined and very do-able. There is no weeklong preparation timetable. The only thing you need to do in advance is go shopping. This meal can be done in just a few hours on Thanksgiving Day. The smell of food cooking and the accompanying kudos will be very satisfying.

Basic cooking and baking courses are offered at many adult education programs through local high schools. The Boston Center for Adult Education (617-267-4430) offers Basic Cooking Principles in three sessions and also has single-session workshops on topics such as vegetarian Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving side dishes, Thanksgiving leftovers, and holiday baking.


Roast Turkey Breast with V-8 Gravy

One 5-pound turkey breast
2-3 cups V-8 juice salt, pepper, and paprika

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Rinse turkey breast under cold water. Pat dry with paper towels.
3. Place turkey breast in a roasting pan, breast side up. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and paprika, and rub into skin.
4. Mix 2 cups V-8 juice with 1 cup water, and pour over and around the turkey breast. 5. Follow cooking directions on turkey package. Spoon the pan juices over the turkey every 15 minutes. Add more V-8 and water as needed to maintain at least an inch of juice in the pan.

A 5-pound breast takes about 2 hours. A meat thermometer placed in the thickest part of the breast and not touching the bone should reach 185 degrees. If you do not have a thermometer, pierce the breast with a knife. If the juice runs clear, the turkey is ready. Slice and serve.


Pepperidge Farm Stuffing with Whole Cranberry Sauce

This stuffing is prepared outside the turkey. Just before serving, pour pan juices from turkey over the stuffing.

1 pound package herbed seasoned stuffing
1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce, thinned with 1/4 cup warm water.

1. Prepare stuffing according to package.
2. Add the cranberry sauce and toss together. If the stuffing seems dry, add a little water, 1 tablespoon at a time.


Baked Sweet Potatoes with Maple Syrup

4 whole sweet potatoes
maple syrup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1. Wash and dry sweet potatoes. Rub the skin with a little vegetable oil. Pierce with knife in several places.
2.Place potatoes in a pan, and bake for approximately 1 hour. They are done when a knife slips easily into the center. (Put the potatoes into the oven while cooking the turkey in its last hour.)
3. Split the potatoes lengthwise and drizzle on maple syrup. Mash with fork to incorporate the syrup. Finish with a little more syrup.


Sugar Snap Peas and Baby Carrots

1 small bag peeled baby carrots
1 pound sugar snap peas (frozen are fine)
salt and pepper 1 tablespoon butter

1. Bring 4 cups of salted water to a boil in a large pot.
2. Add peas and cook them for one minute. (No need to defrost if frozen.) Remove peas with a slotted spoon.
3. Bring water back to boil and add carrots. Cook until just soft, about 4 minutes. Drain.
4. Combine peas and carrots in a dish with 1 tablespoon butter. Season with salt and pepper. Serve


Pumpkin Ice Cream Parfait

Pumpkin Ice cream is sold at Toscanini's in Cambridge (617-354-9350), Lizzies Ice Cream Parlor in Waltham (781-893-6677), and Shaws Farm (a working farm), 195 New Boston Road, Dracut (978-957-0031). Wilson Farms in Lexington (781-862-3900) also carries the Shaws Farm pumpkin ice cream.

Pumpkin ice cream
Soft lady fingers (3 per person) found in supermarket bakery sections
Marshmallow Fluff
Granola or chopped pecans

1. Split all lady fingers. Line individual cups, small bowls, or wine glasses with six lady finger halves placed vertically around the cup and overlapping on the bottom.
2. Spread 1 tablespoon of Fluff on top of the lady fingers at the bottom of the cup.
3. Place a large scoop of pumpkin ice cream on top of the Fluff.

Sprinkle granola or chopped pecans on top.

Navigating the nutrition info highway

Looking for some good food jokes? Try the KidZone page at asfsa.org, sponsored by the American School Food Service Association. Need a lesson plan and ''ready to print'' activity sheets on the food pyramid and good food choices? Visit nutritionexplorations.org, the site of the National Dairy Council. Looking for ways to reduce the fat in your favorite fettuccine Alfredo recipe? Click on cyberdiet.com and go to ''recipe recreations.'' Not only will you get a recipe, but you'll find a ''before'' and ''after'' calorie and nutrient analysis as well.

An enormous amount of nutrition information is on the Web, but it can be hard to find. The Center on Nutrition Communications at the Tufts School of Nutrition Science and Policy provides a way to navigate it all. It's called Nutrition Navigator, at navigator.tufts.edu, a ''rating guide to nutrition Web sites.'' Ask dieticians for their favorite Web site and most point to this as the very first place to visit. Tufts nutritionists review and rate Web sites for accuracy, depth of information, and usability, among other categories. Each Web site that is reviewed on the 25-point scale (25 being the best) gets an overall rating and information on target audience, sponsor, and commentary.

Hundreds of sites are reviewed under headings including Family, Special Dietary Needs, Hot Topics, and Women. It is not overwhelming. Each site mentioned has a short summary, then a single page with the site's Web address, rating, and more about the content. Still interested? Click and you're there.

Most sites have a variety of options once you get there. Parents looking for recipes for children are also likely to find activities they can do online with their children, such as game show-style quizzes, puzzles, and nutrition information.

Many nutrition sites are sponsored or co-sponsored by commercial firms or business associations. For instance, healthychoices.org, aimed at teachers and day-care providers, is sponsored by the Growers of Washington State Apples and Tree Top, a fruit processing company. The site promotes healthy eating throughout the food pyramid and has lessons and coloring sheets to download for preschoolers, though all the recipes use some form of apple.

Even the Tufts Navigator site is sponsored by Kraft Foods. Some groups' agendas are more obvious than others. The Vegetarian Resource Group, vrg.org, rated a 24 (among the best) by Tufts, has as one of its titles ''Afraid of Mad Cow Disease?'' It directs you toward alternatives to meat products, such as veggie burgers. The site has informative articles, tips on feeding a vegetarian child, and loads of recipes.

The National Dairy Council Web site, nutritionexplorations.org (rated 22, among the best), originally was designed to support the many Dairy Council programs that are already in the schools. For teachers, lesson plans and activities are ready to download. The site also includes information for food service professionals and parents, a Nutrition Bookshelf, and a colorful place called the familyfoodzone.com with a funky interactive refrigerator, games, and recipes. The primary message is about the importance of calcium in one's diet through dairy products but as part of a well-balanced diet from the five food groups.

Cyberdiet.com, with a high rating of 24, promotes health and fitness, and features articles, on-line diet support, and a variety of topics. Colorful, easy to follow, reasonable advice and a free weight assessment tool make this site user-friendly.

All these sites have links galore to other sites. You can spend time going from one place to another and end up in Ireland, at the Healthy Food magazine sponsored by the Department of Health in Dublin: indigo.ie/~indicom/crunch.htm. The recipes might be in grams and the Irish spell yoghurt with an ''h,'' but the information is useful.

The site dole5aday.com, with a rating of 21, has activities and tips for parents to encourage children to eat more fruits and vegetables.

''Hey Mikey, what did the banana do when it heard the ice scream? It split!'' There's plenty more where that came from at asfsa.org/kidzone/jokes.asp.


Black Bean and Mango Salsa
(Adapted from nutritionforkids.com)

1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (7 ounces) yellow corn
1 medium mango, peeled and diced
1/2 red pepper, seeded and diced
1/4 cup Spanish onion, finely diced
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons olive oil.

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl and chill. Serve with baked tortilla chips.

To make a burrito: Place 1/2 cup of black bean salsa on a tortilla. Sprinkle on some grated Monterey Jack cheese, fold the burrito in half, and grill in frying pan for 2 minutes on each side.


Raisin Buddy Banana Muffins
(Reprinted with permission from dole5aday.com)

2 ripe, medium bananas
1 egg, beaten
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup raisins

1. Lightly grease muffin tins. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mash bananas until smooth. Add eggs and oil.
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Add banana mixture and stir until moistened. Stir in raisins.
4. To make mini muffins, spoon 1 tablespoon of batter into each mini-muffin pan cup. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Cool muffins before popping out. For regular muffins, spoon 1/3 cup batter into 10 or 12 prepared muffin cups. Bake for 20-25 minutes.


Hot Legs
(Adapted from the Munch'n Crunch @ Lunch site indigo.ie/~indicom/hotleg.htm)

Serves 6

8 carrots, peeled and sliced into strips
12 chicken drumsticks
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large onion, sliced thin
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 can (16 ounces) chopped tomatoes and juice
2 heaping teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoons ketchup
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

1. In a 9-by-13-inch casserole, spread the carrots along the bottom.
2. Wash and dry drumsticks and sprinkle on salt, pepper, and garlic powder. In a frying pan, brown the drumsticks in the oil for 3 minutes each side. Place them on top of the carrots.
3. In the same frying pan, saute the onions. Mix the cornstarch and water. Add the chopped tomatoes and cornstarch mixture to the onions. Heat until bubbly. Add the chili powder and ketchup. Mix well until thickened.
4. Pour the sauce over the drumsticks. Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes.
5. Remove the foil and cook another 10 minutes.
6. If you wish, serve with a dollop of plain yogurt over each serving. Rice makes a good accompaniment.