Jane Henegar

March passes speedily away and salad days are coming. Today's first requests have to do with salads made with spinach, kale and iceberg lettuce. And here's one more: The best chicken stock one can buy or make.

Jo Trimble is "hoping someone will have the recipe used at Eidson's Restaurant on their spinach salad. I would even be happy with a good copycat recipe."

Her request gave ideas to another reader, who bought a huge bag of baby kale greens at Whole Foods, where the produce man told her it worked well for salads. What salads? How to make them? And further, the reader wants precise instructions for making the now-popular iceberg lettuce salads.

Jane Guthrie is getting into what she calls oriental bowl cooking and wants to know the best stock for the job. At the Guthries' Sunday School party last week, she prepared the meat and others brought sides. Two of those recipes follow. After all, what is a Sunday school party without some recipes worth asking for?

Mississippi Corn Grits

1 cup quick grits

1/3 to 1/2 cup self-rising cornmeal

1/3 cup butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/3 cups milk

3 eggs, beaten

Cook grits according to directions on the box. Into the cooked grits, while still warm, stir cornmeal, butter, salt and milk. Cool a little and add eggs.

Grease a 2-quart casserole. Heat oven to 350 degrees and bake 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until brown and firm.

Makes 7-8 servings.

- Adapted by Judy Elb

Tee's Corn Pudding

1/4 cup sugar

3 tablespoons flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

6 large eggs

2 cups whipping cream

1/2 cup melted butter

6 cups frozen whole kernel corn (32-ounce bag)

Combine first 4 ingredients.

Beat eggs with a fork and stir in whipping cream and butter. Gradually add sugar mixture until smooth. Stir in corn.

Bake in a lightly greased 13- by 9-inch baking dish in a preheated 350 F oven for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the mixture is set.

- Joyce Bay

Signal Mountain Rose had Anita Patton's Fudge Pie in her collection, as well as several others from Mrs. Patton's kitchen.

Chocolate Fudge Pie

2 squares bitter chocolate

1 stick margarine

1 cup sugar

2 beaten eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup chopped nuts, if desired

Melt chocolate and margarine over low heat.

Mix sugar, eggs and vanilla. Add the chocolate mixture. Cook on moderate heat, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved. Pour into uncooked pastry shell and bake 20 minutes in a 350-degree oven. Sprinkle with nuts. Pie also is good served with a spoonful of coffee or vanilla ice cream on top of pie.

Dolores Bowling had the requested no-bake fruit cake in her collection. It might not be a springtime dish - then again, it might.

No-Bake Fruit Cake

3/4 cup evaporated milk

2 dozen finely cut marshmallows

1/3 cup orange juice

6 dozen (2½ inch) graham crackers

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cloves

1 1/2 cups raisins, preferably half golden and half dark

3/4 cup finely cut dates

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 1/4 cups ready-mixed, cut-up candied fruit, bulk or canned and extra for topping

Bourbon for sprinkling

Put into a bowl and mix together evaporated milk, marshmallows and orange juice.

Roll graham crackers into fine crumbs, put in a large bowl and mix with cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, raisins, dates and walnuts. Add candied fruit.

Add milk, marshmallow and orange juice mixture. Mix with spoon and then with hands until crumbs are moistened.

Place a clean cloth in a tin and press cake firmly into the tin. Sprinkle with bourbon. Top with additional fruits and nuts. Fold cloth over cake and cover tightly. Chill 2 days before slicing. Keep in a cool place. Makes 1 (3-1/2-pound) cake.

And here's another tried-and-true version of the same pie. Signal Mountain Rose says "this is the recipe I have used for nearly 50 years. I got it from a friend of my mother's. It's almost like Miss Anita's but without the crust. I melt the chocolate and butter in my microwave."

Fudge Pie

1 stick butter (or margarine)

2 squares Baker's unsweetened chocolate

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour

Pinch salt

Take butter (or margarine) and use it to grease Pyrex pie plate. Melt rest of butter and unsweetened chocolate together in a double boiler.

Beat eggs, and add sugar, flour and salt to the melted chocolate and butter.

Pour into pie plate and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. May add nuts, if desired. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Bowling also sent a grape salad "from my good friend, Audrey Herod. It is so good and there is never any left."

Grape Salad

1 pound red seedless grapes

1 pound green seedless grapes

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

8 ounces sour cream

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Wash and dry grapes and cut each one in half. Mix other ingredients except brown sugar and chopped pecans or walnuts; fold into grapes. Place in bowl.

Mix brown sugar and nuts, then spread it over top of grape mixture. Refrigerate overnight.

Just a Dash ...

Jane Guthrie got this dash of a recipe from "Eating Well" magazine. For pulled pork; put loins or tenderloins, as many as you want, in the slow cooker. Pour root beer over the pork to cover and cook on low for 6 hours or more. Shred, using two forks. Remove most of the juice and reserve. Add sauce, although she likes using a dry rub. To cover her bases, she puts out the dry rub and other barbecue sauces, so the meat can be doctored to taste.

There you have it: The usual gracious plenty. Thanks to you all, and keep it up.