Recipe(tried): Surprise Cheese Puffs, Fabulous Chocolate Cake, Red Potato Salad with Asparagus

Congratulations on your PhD. Your idea of a bbq celebration sounds like a lot of fun. Here are a few few ideas, Khalilah. These are a few of my personal favorites.

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SURPRISE CHEESE PUFFS

Yield: 50 servings

1/2 c Butter
2 c Grated sharp cheese
1/2 ts Salt
1 ts Paprika
1 ds Cayenne or red pepper
1 c Sifted flour
50 sm Stuffed green olives.

Allow butter to soften; blend with cheese, salt,
paprika and cayenne. Stir in flour, mixing well. Mold
1 tsp of this mixture around each olive, covering it
completely. Arrange on a baking sheet and chill until
firm. Bake in 400 oven for 15 minutes. Serve hot.
Makes 50 puffs.

**NOTE** These puffs are so easy to serve at parties
as they may be made in advance, frozen on a baking
sheet to keep round and stored in a plastic bag in the
freezer. Bake as needed. I have also made these using
black olives, or nuts.

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Fabulous Chocolate Cake
This may take a little more time, but the results are sure worth it!

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter-flavored Crisco shortening (solid)
4 heaping Tablespoons cocoa
1 cup water
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla

Frosting:
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
4 heaping Tablespoons cocoa
6 to 8 Tablespoons milk
3/4 box powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Ingredients must be mixed in proper order for best results.

Cake: Sift flour, sugar, and salt together. Set aside. In a saucepan, mix butter, Crisco, water, and cocoa. Heat until it almost boils. Pour over dry ingredients. Beat well by hand. Add soda and buttermilk and beat gently only to mix. Add eggs and vanilla last. Mix gently. Pour into 9 x 13 inch greased and floured pan. Bake for 20 minutes only. 10 minutes into baking time, start to make frosting.

Frosting: Mix ingredients together in microwavable bowl. Heat in microwave until warm only. Pour over cake immediately after removing cake from oven.

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Red Potato Salad with Asparagus and Artichoke Hearts

3 pounds red potatoes (15 or 16 small or 8 or 9 large [3"} potatoes)
1 pound fresh asparagus, 1 inch trimmed off the base and, if the stalks are thicker than a pencil, peeled.
4-1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1-1/2 teaspoons honey
3/4 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 14-ounce can whole artichoke hearts, drained, each heard cut vertically into eighths
3 ounces blue cheese (about 3/4 cup) or more to taste, crumbled (optional)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Freshly milled black pepper
Fresh arugula or spinach (optional)

Place the potatoes in a large pot with enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until they can be pierced with a fork, 15 to 12 minutes for small potatoes or 25 to 30 minutes for larger ones. Drain and let cool for a few minutes. Cut the potatoes into bite-size pieces and place in a large bowl.

Steam the asparagus until tender but not soggy, just until a knife can pierce the thick part of the stalk, 8 to 12 minutes. Immediately remove from the steam and transfer to a cutting board to cool. Slice into 1-inch lengths and add to the potatoes.

Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, honey, and salt in a small bowl. Drizzle in the olive oil, whisking until well blended and creams. Add the artichoke and dressing to the potatoes and toss lightly.

Add the blue cheese (if using), dill, and pepper to taste. Toss lightly, taste and adjust seasoning with more salt, pepper, and/or blue cheese to taste.
Refrigerate until serving time. Serve on a bed of arugula or spinach, if desired.

VARIATION ~~ No-Frills, Red Potato Salad.
Omit the asparagus, artichoke hearts and blue cheese. The dill can be omitted, too, though I prefer to use it. Add 1/4 medium red onion, diced, and one large celery rib, diced.

[From "3 Bowls Vegetarian Recipes from an American Zen Buddhist Monastery" by Seppo Ed Farrey with Myochi Nancy O'Hara, Houghton Mifflin Company 2000]