Recipes by Marty Allen: Spring Salad Yogurt Dip; Stuffed Celery; Stuffed Pepper with Crab Meat; Tuna Salad in Cucumber

Marty Allen's Spring Salad Yogurt Dip

1/3 cup yogurt
1 small peeled cucumber, chopped
4 scallions (white part only), finely chopped
6 radishes, finely chopped
Freshly ground pepper
Vegetable salt (or lemon to taste)

To yogurt, add chopped vegetables. Season to taste with vegetable salt (or lemon). Use as dip with celery or carrot sticks. Makes about one cup. Two tablespoons equals about 15 calories.

Marty Allen's Stuffed Celery

1 cup cottage cheese (skimmed if dieting is strenuous)
1/4 minced green pepper
Chopped herbs (parsley, dill or chives optional)
Vegetable salt to taste
Ground pepper to taste
Hearts of celery (or celery stalks)

Combine cottage cheese, green pepper and chopped herbs. Add vegetable salt and pepper to taste. Stuff cleaned hearts of celery (or stalks) with cheese filling. Chill well before serving. One large stalk filled with about 2 tablespoons of filling equals about 30 calories.

Marty Allen's Stuffed Pepper with Crab Meat

1 cup crab meat (fresh or canned)
About 2 teaspoons diet mayonnaise
Few drops lemon juice, optional
Green pepper
Freshly ground pepper

Mix crab meat with enough diet mayonnaise to moisten well. Add few drops lemon. Wash, steam and scoop out seeds from green pepper. Cut pepper in sixths. Fill with crab salad. Chill well before serving. Top with a dusting of ground black pepper. Makes 6 servings; each portion equals about 28 calories.

Marty Allen's Tuna Salad in Cucumber

1 cup canned tuna (water pack, or rinse oil-packed tuna well under running water)
2/3 teaspoons diet mayonnaise to taste
1 hard-cooked egg
Few tablespoons minced celery (optional)
4 cherry tomatoes, chopped
Vegetable salt (or salt substitute) (or lemon)
1  large cucumber

Flake tuna, add diet mayonnaise, sieved hard-cooked egg, celery, tomatoes, vegetable salt (or lemon) to taste. Cut peeled cucumber into 6 slices crosswise. Top with tuna. Chill before serving. Makes 6 portions. Each portion equals about 60 calories.

Gracie Allen's Creamed Turkey

Gracie Allen's Creamed Turkey

Shred eight ounces of turkey white meat. Make a cream sauce as follows:

Melt two tablespoons flour, one heaped tablespoon butter, and dash of salt and pepper in a double boiler. Add one and one half cups milk. To this sauce add two raw egg yolks (removing pan from stove before beating in the eggs). Add one tablespoon sherry wine. Stir in the turkey meat. Pour mixture on to croutons and top with a tablespoon jellied consomme. Serve with cranberry sauce.

Jane Alexander's Marinated Roast Leg of Lamb

Jane Alexander's Marinated Roast Leg of Lamb

1 small jar Dijon mustard
3/4 tsp. soy sauce
1/8 clove garlic, crushed
1/8 tsp. thyme
1/4 cup vermouth
1/4 cup bouillon (canned beef broth or bouillon cube)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 tbsps. olive oil
Small leg of lamb, boned, rolled, weighing about 5 lbs.

1. To prepare marinade, mix together mustard, soy sauce, garlic, thyme, vermouth and bouillon; mix well. Add pepper to taste, gradually add olive oil a few drops at a time.

2. Place lamb in shallow bowl. Pour marinade over roast, turning roast once. Cover and let stand 2-3 hours in refrigerator. (Let stand longer if stronger flavor is desired. Turn several times.)

3. Place roast on rack in shallow roasting pan. Roast uncovered in preheated 300 degrees F. oven about 3 hours (or until meat thermometer registers 170 degrees for rare). Remove roast to warm platter and allow it to firm up 10 minutes before carving. Make sauce from pan drippings. Cook down to thicken. Taste to correct seasonings. Pour over lamb. Serve with broccoli and lemon butter or green beans almondine. Serves eight.

Thoughts: This is adaptation of an old French recipe. If desired, use less mustard, bot do not make substitutes. "Sometimes I throw in some other herbs (rosemary, bay leaf or tarragon), but the mustard and garlic are so strong flavored," Jane said.

Recipes by Denise Alexander: Fillet of Sole with Sorrel Sauce; Fish Florentine with Sherry-Mushroom Sauce

Denise Alexander's Fillet of Sole with Sorrel Sauce

For sorrel sauce:

2 lbs. sorrel
6 tablespoons sweet butter
Salt, white pepper to taste

Rinse sorrel several times. Shake off excess water using salad basket. With sharp knife, cut along midrib of each leaf; rip away and discard stem and midrib.

Stack half leaves of sorrel and cut crosswise with sharp knife into very thin shreds. Melt butter in large saucepan; add sorrel. Stir well to coat with butter.

Cover, cook over medium heat until tender, stirring once or twice. Do not overcook to mushiness. Cooking takes only a few minutes.

For the fillets:

2 lbs. fillets of sole
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. white pepper

Fold fillets envelope-fashion by lapping each end over toward center. Arrange 1 layer deep in buttered 2-quart casserole or au gratin dish. Sprinkle generously with salt and white pepper.

Bake uncovered in preheated 350 degrees F. oven for 15 minutes. Remove liquid from fish, using a bulb baster, then cover fillets with sorrel sauce.

Bake uncovered, 10 to 15 minutes longer or until fish flakes easily when touched with a fork. Serve at once. Delicious with dry white wine, sourdough bread and green salad. Makes meal complete. Low in calories, too. Serves 6.

Thoughts: A more elaborate sauce can be made by using equal quantities of fish stock or bottled clam broth, sorrel puree (made by putting washed sorrel through food mill or blender) and heavy cream.

Heat, taste and add more cream to taste. Beat 1 egg yolk to each 1 1/2 cups of liquid and thicken sauce by cooking over indirect heat, stirring once or twice. Season to taste.

Sorrel is best when picked fresh from the garden. However, it can be easily frozen as follows: chop, wash as directed above.

Place sorrel in large saucepan over medium-high heat and cook, without adding water, until leaves are barely wilted and tender, turning often with fork. This takes only a few minutes.

Puree sorrel in food mill, blender or food processor. Cool quickly, pack with 1/2-inch headspace, seal and freeze at once.

Dried sorrel is available at many health food stores and may be substituted for fresh sorrel. Rehydrate according to package instructions. Fresh or frozen spinach can be substituted for sorrel.

Denise Alexander's Fish Florentine with Sherry-Mushroom Sauce

1 can (4 ounces) sliced mushrooms, undrained
1/2 cup sherry
1 pound fillets of fish (sole or flounder)
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen spinach
2 recipes White Sauce Base (recipe below)

In an 8 x 12 x 2-inch baking dish, combine liquid from mushrooms with wine. Fold each fillet in thirds, place in baking dish. Dot with butter. Cover with piece of wax paper.

Bake in 350 degrees F. oven for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, cook spinach according to package directions. Drain in a sieve, pressing out excess liquid with the back of a spoon. Remove fish from baking dish; measure and reserve 3/4 cup liquid from dish.

Make White Sauce Base***, substituting 3/4 cup fish liquid for 3/4 cup of the milk. Combine 1/2 cup white sauce with drained spinach; spread in bottom of baking dish.

Place fish over spinach. Add mushrooms to remaining white sauce; pour sauce over fish. Bake in 350 degrees F. oven 15 minutes, or until sauce is bubbly. If desired, serve with additional Tabasco sauce. Yield: 4 servings.

White Sauce Base

2 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1 cup milk

Melt butter in saucepan over low heat. Blend in flour, salt and Tabasco. Gradually stir in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens and comes to a boil. Simmer for 1 minute, continuing to stir. Yield: About 1 cup.

Recipes by Alan Alda: Che-Cha; Steak au Poivre

Alan Alda's Che-Cha

14 good-size Italian plum tomatoes or 2 (14 ounce) cans plum tomatoes
2 handsful fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/3 pound reduced fat mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 tablespoon olive oil
10 ounces fusilli (corkscrew macaroni) or your choice of noodle

Fill a pot with enough water to cover tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Add tomatoes to boiling water. Remove after about 10 seconds.

Mix the tomatoes, basil, garlic and cheese with the olive oil. Let stand in a covered bowl for at least 3 hours (or overnight) refrigerated.

Cook fusilli. Drain. Add sauce to hot pasta. Mix well and serve warm.

Alan Alda's Steak au Poivre

2 lbs. top-grade steak, cut 1-inch thick
2 tablespoons peppercorns (black and-or black and white, mixed)
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon fresh minced parsley
Few drops oil from pressed garlic
3 tablespoons beef broth
3 tablespoons cognac
Watercress (or parsley) for garnish

Dry steaks with a paper towel. Crush peppercorns coarsely with a rolling pin (or with a mortar and pestle). Rub and press crushed peppercorns into both sides of the steaks using your fingers and heel of
the hand. Let steaks stand at room temperature 2 hours or in refrigerator several hours, until the meat absorbs the flavor of the pepper.

Broil steaks 3 or 4 inches from source of heat until brown. Turn and grill on reverse side about 5 minutes longer for very rare meat (longer for well-done steak). Transfer steak at once to a heated platter. Salt meat to taste.

Pour cooking juices from broiler pan into a small skillet, adding butter, parsley, garlic oil, beef broth and cognac. Cook over medium heat until sauce is reduced in volume by one-half. Pour sauce over steak. Garnish with watercress (or parsley). Serve at once. Lovely served with French fries and a crisp green salad. Serves 4.

Thoughts: If desired, steaks may be pan-fried in a skillet. Use a mixture of half salt and half sweet butter to pan-fry steaks. If desired, a pat of parsley or tarragon butter (flavored with a few drops of fresh lemon juice and 1 drop of garlic) may be added directly to steaks just before serving and sauce omitted in the preparation. Either way the steak is sensational!

Recipes by Jack Albertson: Boston Clam Chowder; New England Boiled Dinner

Jack Albertson's Boston Clam Chowder

1/2 peck clams in shell
3 tbsps. salt pork, diced
2 onions, peeled and sliced
4 potatoes, peeled and sliced
2 large stalks celery, chopped
Sprig of thyme (or 1 crumbled bay leaf)
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Water
2 tbsps. butter
1 qt. milk

Wash clams in cold water; let clams soak in cold water a few minutes. Discard any broken clams and any dead clams that float to the surface. Place clams in large kettle over medium heat, without any water. Cook until shells open (about 18-20 minutes). Remove shells; reserve liquor. Discard any coarse outer covering on clams; remove and discard black necks on clams. Saute pork in large, deep skillet (or kettle) until brown; remove pork bits, reserve. Add onion to fat in skillet (or kettle); saute onion until brown. Add potatoes, celery, thyme (or bay leaf), salt and pepper. Strain and measure clam liquor, add enough water to make 3 cups; add to skillet (or kettle). Simmer 1/2 hour (or until potatoes are tender). Add clams, butter and milk; heat thoroughly, but do not boil. Ladle into soup bowls. Garnish each bowl with cooked salt pork bits. Serve with crackers. Serves 6.

Jack Albertson's New England Boiled Dinner

5 lb. corned brisket of beef
Cold water
1 yellow onion, sliced
8-10 cloves
8 crushed peppercorns
1 stalk of celery, chopped
1 small bay leaf, crumbled
8 small potatoes (skin left on)
6-8 small onions, peeled
4 turnips, peeled, cut in half (or 1 large rutabaga, cut in large hunks)
4 large carrots, peeled, cut in half
1 medium-sized cabbage, cut in wedges

Wipe brisket with damp cloth; put in large kettle. Add water until covered. Add sliced onion, cloves, peppercorns, celery and bay leaf. Bring to boil; cover, simmer slowly about 4 hours. Remove scum that forms on surface from time to time. Remove brisket from kettle. Add all vegetables, except cabbage; cook 15 minutes. Add cabbage wedges and cook 10-15 minutes (or until cabbage is tender). Put brisket back in kettle long enough to reheat it. Put meat on platter. Arrange vegetables around it. Serve at once with hot buttered beets (or pickled beets), mustard pickles and thick slabs of buttered sour dough bread. Serves 8.

Recipes by Eddie and Margo Albert: Blueberry Elixir; Guacamole

Eddie Albert's Blueberry Elixir

1 cup fresh orange (or apple) juice
1 cup frozen (or fresh) blueberries
1 tbsp. sesame seeds
1 tbsp. wheat germ
1 tbsp. powdered yeast
1 tbsp. sunflower (or pumpkin) seeds
1 egg, including shell
Honey to taste
Few drops wheat germ oil

Put all ingredients into a blender. Cover and whirl at high speed until smooth. Drink at once. Makes one serving.

Thoughts: Eddie advises, "You can go almost any way with this elixir, using yogurt (or essence of yogurt plus powdered whey, available at health food stores) and your choice of fruit juices and fresh fruits."

Eddie and Margo Albert's Guacamole

1 small clove garlic, peeled
2 large, ripe California avocados
1 small tomato, peeled, seeded, chopped (drain off any excess liquid)
2-3 tablespoons finely minced onion (or scallions or chives)
1 or 2 Mexican chile peppers (the kind that come pickled in small bottles),
seeds removed, finely minced
2 tablespoons farmers' cheese (or small curd cottage cheese)
About 1 tablespoon fine-grade olive oil (or safflower oil)
2 sprigs fresh coriander (or 1/2 tsp. dried coriander)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Rub mixing bowl with garlic. Peel and mash avocados with fork, but be sure you have small chunks of avocado left in bowl. Add remaining ingredients, being certain to mix until guacamole is thick and light. Serve at once with fried tortilla chips or as dressing for green salad. Makes about 4 cups.

Thoughts: Eddie and Margo's guacamole is grainy and beautifully-flavored. Margo advises, "Be certain each ingredient retains its character and texture so it can be seen as well as savored. Remove seeds from Mexican
chile peppers, otherwise you will fly to the moon! For Texans, I sometimes add just a touch of chili powder."

Guacamole can be made in advance, adding a few drops of lemon or lime juice to prevent it from turning dark. Cover tightly, chill before serving.