Recipes by Arlene

• 4 eggs
• ½ lb. sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• 1½ cup green onions, chopped fine
• Dash garlic powder
• Parsley
• 2 6-oz. jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained and oil reserved
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 6 soda crackers, crumbled
• Dash Tobasco sauce

Chop the artichoke hearts. Sauté the onions on a little of the reserved oil. Add all ingredients, except the artichoke hearts, and mix with a fork. Gently add hearts. Pour into an 8” x 8” greased pan and bake in preheated 325° oven for 30 minutes or until hot. Cool before cutting into small squares. Can be chilled or frozen and then reheated. Makes about 36 squares.

• 1 cup American cheese, chopped
• 1 cup wild rice
• 1 cup ripe olives, chopped
• ½ cup cooking oil
• 1 #2 can tomatoes (about 2½ cups)
• 1½ cups boiling water
• ½ cup onions, chopped
• 1 cup canned small mushrooms
• Salt and pepper to taste

Soak rice in water overnight. Drain water from rice and add all ingredients. Mix well. Bake in 350° oven for 1 hour or more.

For a variation, try a combination of ⅓ cup brown rice and ⅔ cup wild rice.

Slice or dice 3 cups cooked or canned beets. Stir the following in a double boiler until smooth:

• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tbsp. cornstarch
• ½ tsp. salt
• 2 whole cloves
• ½ cup cider vinegar

Cook and stir until clear. Add beets and place over hot water for 30 minutes. Before serving, heat beets – don’t boil – and add 2 tbsp. butter. Then add 1 tbsp. orange marmalade or 1 small ground orange (or juice from orange) plus grated orange peel. Makes 6 servings.

This mixture can double as a fondue dipping sauce for assorted fresh fruits, marshmallows or cake pieces and as a fudge sauce to dip ice creams, sorbets, fresh fruits or cake slices.

• 12 oz. semisweet chocolate chips or semisweet chocolate, broken into small pieces
• 1 1-ounce square unsweetened chocolate, cut up
• ⅔ cup heavy cream or half-and-half
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• Cut-up fresh fruits, large marshmallows, cubes of cake, ice cream or sorbet

In a 1-qt. mini electric slow cooker, combine the chocolates and cream. Cover, plug in and cook 1¼ hours, stirring twice until the mixture is melted, smooth and hot. Stir in vanilla. Serve hot or warm with fresh fruits, marshmallows and cake cubes for dipping or serve over ice cream, sorbet, fruits and/or cake. Refrigerate any leftover sauce.

There are several variations you may wish to try:

1. Chocolate-Orange Fondue or Sauce: Stir in 1 tbsp. grated orange zest along with the vanilla.
2. Espresso Fondue or Sauce: Stir in 1 tbsp. instant espresso powder with the vanilla.
3. Chewy Fudge Sauce: For a chewier fudge sauce for ice cream, stir in 1-2 tbsp. light corn syrup with the vanilla.

The recipe can be doubled and cooked in a 3½-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on the low heat setting 2¾ – 3 hours, stirring once or twice, until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth and hot. Makes about 3¾ cups. Refrigerate any leftovers as the chocolate mixture hardens into one large mass and is difficult to break up into smaller amounts.

• 1 can beer
• 1 can beef broth
• 1 can French Onion soup
• 2 lbs. lean beef roast

Combine all ingredients and simmer in a crock pot all day on low setting, turning roast over once. Remove from crock pot and place on cutting board. Cut into thin slices and put back in crock pot until ready to serve. Serve with hoagie rolls and use juice to dip sandwiches.

• 3 – 3¼ pounds banana or hubbard squash, rind removed, cut into 1- to 1½-inch cubes
• 1 8-ounce can unsweetened crush pineapple
• 1 to 1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
• ⅓ cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. butter, cut into small pieces

Place the squash in a 3½- or 4-quart slow cooker. IN a small bowl, mix together the pineapple with its liquid, cinnamon, brown sugar and butter. Spoon over the squash and mix well. Cover and cook on the low heat setting 6½ to 7 hours, or until squash is tender. Stir gently to mix. Serve immediately.

• 1 10-ounce package frozen copped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
• ½ cup chopped scallions
• ½ tsp. garlic pepper
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• ⅓ cup chopped drained water chestnuts
• Crackers and/or cut-up assorted fresh vegetables, for serving

In a 1-quart mini slow cooker, mix together the spinach and cream cheese. Stir in the scallions and garlic pepper. Cover and cook 1 hour and 45 minutes, stirring once or twice, until very hot. Reserve 2 tbsp. cheese for the top. Stir in remaining cheese and water chestnuts. Sprinkle the reserved cheese on top. Pass crackers and/or vegetables for dipping.

You can follow me on Twitter and also now on Facebook. Some interesting people I’m beginning to follow on Twitter:

• Martha Stewart
• Rick Bayless
• Emeril Lagasse

Are there any more people I should be following??

Note: Great for St. Patrick’s Day. The slow cooker is the perfect way to go for this traditional dish since it must bubble away untended for hours. Be sure to serve with crusty bread and Dijon mustard and horseradish on the side.

• 4 cups hot water
• 2 tbsp. cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1 large or 2 medium onions, cut into wedges
• 1 (3-pound) corned beef round or brisket packaged with spices
• 8 small white or yellow potatoes, scrubbed and cut into quarters
• 1 head of green cabbage (about 1½ pounds), cored and cut into 10 wedges

In a 6-quart slow cooker, combine the water, vinegar, sugar, pepper and onions, mixing well. Place the corned beef on the mixture. Scatter the potatoes over the top and along the sides.

Cover and cook on the high heat setting for 4 hours. Remove the lid and scatter the cabbage wedges over the top. Cover and continue cooking on high 3 to 4 hours longer, or until beef is tender. To serve, carve the beef into slices and serve with the cabbage and potatoes, with some of the cooking liquid spooned on top of the beef to keep it moist.

• 2 lbs. round steak cut in cubes or strips
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 4-oz. can sliced mushrooms and juice
• 1 can consommé
• 1 4-oz. can tomato sauce
• ½ cup cooking sherry
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. salt
• ⅛ tsp. pepper
• 1 cup sour cream

Brown meat in hot fat; sprinkle with flour. Stir in onion, garlic and other ingredients (except sour cream). Cook in slow oven about 2 hours (covered). Thicken gravy and add sour cream. Serve over rice or noodles. Serves 4 to 6.

Note: This can be made ahead of time, adding sour cream when ready to serve. This recipe can be doubled to serve more or to have leftovers.