Baking Soda

Misty Zimmerer of Baltimore was looking for a recipe for Amish Whoopie Pies, a chocolate-cake sandwich with a creamy white filling. There seem to be two basic versions of the traditional whoopie pie. One has a filling made with egg whites as the base, and the other uses marshmallow fluff as the base. I tested a recipe sent in by Alison Moore of Owings Mills that uses marshmallow fluff, Crisco and sugar for the filling. Moore grew up in Lancaster County, Pa., the heart of Amish country.

Kenneth Kelm of Glen Burnie was hoping someone would have the recipe for the "delightful" gingerbread cupcakes with chocolate frosting made by the now-closed Wolfe's bakery, which was in downtown Baltimore. Unfortunately, no one has yet sent in the exact recipe from Wolfe's that Kelm was looking for, but I had a recipe in my own collection for Gingerbread Cupcakes With Lemon-Cream-Cheese Frosting from the January 1990 issue of Gourmet magazine. This is a favorite recipe in our house, particularly this time of year.

It's raining 100-calorie snack packs. In 2004, Kraft launched the skinny-mini craze with teensy-tiny Oreo and Chips Ahoy cookies. Since then nearly every snack company has downsized a line of goodies. Portion control is a good idea, but sometimes the final dimensions can seem rather absurd. For instance, last summer Pepperidge Farms shrunk its chocolate chunk cookies to the size of a nickel. The pouch contains 11 tiny morsels, which pieced together equal about one average-size cookie.

The Pastry Queen Christmas By Rebecca Rather with Alison Oresman Christmas Sweets Georgeanne Brennan Chronicle Books / 2007 / $18.95 Talk about visions of sugarplums. This book will have you rolling dough and sharpening your X-Acto knife to create a gingerbread cookie box. Apricot-Pistachio Bars are gift-giving pretty. And the creative packaging ideas for your edible gifts spread the good cheer. joannah.hill@baltsun.com Apricot-Pistachio Bars -- Makes about sixty-five 1 1/2 -inch squares 1 teaspoon butter plus 1 cup (2 sticks)

I've been searching for Dutch-process cocoa. In the supermarkets, I just see Nestle and Hershey's cocoa, neither of which says "Dutch" or "processed with alkali." Chocolate liquor has two principal components - cocoa solids and cocoa butter - and in 1828, a Dutchman named Coenraad Van Houten invented a method for separating the two. The newly independent cocoa solids also could be pulverized to make a fine powder with lots of chocolate flavor but little fat: cocoa powder. Van Houten also invented a process by which cocoa powder, which is naturally quite acidic, was treated with an alkaline to neutralize the flavor and deepen the color.

The foundation of many a nourishing, fiber-rich breakfast is a prime staple for cookie-baking as well. Rolled oats contribute a distinctive chewiness and wholesome, toasted-grain taste that rounds out the butterscotch flavor of a classic oatmeal cookie. The only thing better is oatmeal cookies with a surprise ingredient -- dried apricots, coconut or chocolate -- in place of the usual raisins.Makes about 5 dozen cookies1 cup dried apricots1 1/2 cups flour1 teaspoon baking soda1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon1/4 teaspoon each: salt, ground nutmeg and ground cloves3/4 cup butter, softened1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar2 eggs1 teaspoon vanilla extract2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats1/2 cup chopped walnutsCut apricots into thin slivers.

Marge Chambers of Kelso, Wash., requested Baby Ruth candy-bar cookies.Tester Laura Reiley chose the response of Carolyn Drummey of Bel Air.Baby Ruth CookiesMakes 4 dozen cookies1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened3/4 cup sugar1 egg1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour1/2 teaspoon baking soda1/2 teaspoon salt2 Baby Ruth candy bars (2.1 ounces each), choppedIn a medium mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla; mix well. Combine flour, baking soda and salt.

Next to cash, there's almost nothing kids in college welcome as much as a taste of home, especially home-baked cookies.Nutmeg and lemon zest accent the buttery sweetness of the cakelike cookies in the first recipe.Walnuts and raisins give the cookies in the second recipe a craggy appearance, but inside, these "rocks" are soft and tender.Raisin RocksMakes about 54 (2-inch) cookies1 cup each: all-purpose flour and whole-wheat flour3/4 teaspoon baking soda3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon1/4 teaspoon ground cloves2/3, cup butter, softened1 cup firmly packed brown sugar2 eggs1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract1 1/2 cups raisins1 cup chopped walnutsIn a bowl, stir together flours, baking soda, cinnamon and cloves to combine thoroughly; set aside.

To make the greatest omelet in the world, make sure that the eggs are at room temperature by leaving them out of the refrigerator for 30 minutes before using them. Cold eggs are too stiff for an omelet. Also, if you always add a little milk to your omelet, try adding a small amount of water instead. The water will increase the volume at least three times more than the milk. The water molecules surround the eggs' protein, forcing you to use more heat to cook the protein and make it coagulate.

Do you ever feel as if you're committing a crime when you serve your favorite baked goods? Pat Wolf, who wrote to us from Pittsburgh, does."I enjoy making loaves of this Chocolate Zucchini Bread for my friends," she writes, "but I feel as if I'm killing them. Can you reduce the fat and calories and still produce a nice moist loaf?"The recipe was very satisfying to reinvent. Our version has the original's tender crumb, crunchy nuts and rich, chocolaty flavor, but only one-third the fat. It was so good, in fact, our staff tasters unanimously agreed that we have indeed created a loaf to die for.Streusel-topped apple bread was an old favorite in Louise Watson's family.

Joyce Sanders from Selman City, Texas, was looking for a recipe for a cookie that she loved when she was a teenager made with Grape-Nut flake cereal. She said the recipe came from the back of the cereal box. Now she wants to make them for her own family. Evelyn Osteraas from The Sea Ranch, Calif., sent in a recipe that was given to her by her sister in law that uses both Grape-Nuts and Grape-Nut flakes. She says everyone in her family enjoys these cookies and it's easy to understand why. The cookies are wholesome and very delicious.

Marcy Callahan from Parkton was looking for a recipe for a chocolate applesauce cake similar to the one her mother had come across in a magazine around 30 years ago and now is lost. Jacquelyn Meadors, who says she has resided in Baltimore for the past five years, saw Callahan's request and was prompted to send in her recipe for this delicious cake. She says she is in her 86th year of life and is so blessed to be able to still bake occasionally. She says that "this cake is so easy and so moist and is a family favorite."

Florence Shimano of Glen Ellen, Calif., was looking for a recipe for banana cake like the one her mother used to make. She remembers that her mother's recipe called for the addition of sour cream. Helen Frantz of St. Clair, Pa., sent in a recipe for a banana cake that was given to her by a friend in 1953. She says that she has made this cake for her family many times over the years, and folks always love it. This is a great recipe to have in your collection when you need to use up over-ripe bananas.

Vivian Sykes of Baltimore was looking for a cookie recipe she used to make back in the 1950s. The recipe came from the wrapper of a Baby Ruth candy bar and the cookies had the chopped up candy in them. Dorothy Lancaster, also from Baltimore, had the recipe Sykes was looking for. Her mom used to make these cookies every Christmas. Now she makes them and she says they are so popular she always makes a double batch. Lancaster has adapted the original recipe. She says that is best to bake the cookies on parchment paper and then transfer them on the parchment to a rack to cool.

Have you been lax about getting your flax? Flaxseeds are naturally high in omega-3, an essential fatty acid that keeps your skin, nervous system and immune system functioning properly. Unfortunately, the positive effects of omega-3 are blunted by omega-6, a fatty acid found in highly processed foods made from soy and corn. When it comes to getting the right ratio, "a lot of Western-style diets are way out of whack," says Kelley Fitzpatrick, director of health and nutrition for the Flax Council of Canada.

Chris Catherman of Boise, Idaho, was looking for a recipe for Grape-Nuts cookies. They were made with applesauce and Grape-Nuts, and she says they were some of the best cookies her mother ever made. She thinks the recipe came from a box of Grape-Nuts cereal back in the 1950s. Marilyn Fella of Loudon, Tenn., had the recipe that Catherman wanted. She has had it for at least 45 years, and she says the cookies are delicious. I agree that they are yummy. They also are wholesome-tasting, and both kids and grown-ups are sure to enjoy them.

TIP 37 Save on cleaning supplies by making your own The ingredients are probably all right there in your kitchen or bath cabinets - baking soda, ammonia, vinegar, rubbing alcohol. Know what to mix with what and you could make your own household cleaners and save money at the grocery or drugstore. Be careful and make sure you follow all the directions to be safe. Instead of paying extra for Pine Sol, Windex or Tilex, make your own floor, window and tile cleaners, suggests Web site www.creativehomemaking.

Misty Zimmerer of Baltimore was looking for a recipe for Amish Whoopie Pies, a chocolate-cake sandwich with a creamy white filling. There seem to be two basic versions of the traditional whoopie pie. One has a filling made with egg whites as the base, and the other uses marshmallow fluff as the base. I tested a recipe sent in by Alison Moore of Owings Mills that uses marshmallow fluff, Crisco and sugar for the filling. Moore grew up in Lancaster County, Pa., the heart of Amish country.

As a bride in the 1950s, Dorothy McMann of Baltimore used to make an applesauce cake with a recipe that came from the label of the Ann Page applesauce jar. Unfortunately, she never copied down the recipe and she was hoping someone might still have a copy. Millie DiBlasi of Linthicum sent in a recipe for an applesauce cake that she clipped from the newspaper in 1979. Any good-quality, natural-style applesauce will work just fine for this dense but moist spice cake. This cake tastes even better the day after you make it and will keep well for several days.

Vegetarian Desserts Bakery 827 N. Howard St., first floor; 410-383-7770. Hours by appointment. Place orders at veggiedesserts.com. What price are you willing to pay for "purity?" That is the question I mulled over as I sampled a $40 chocolate cake and $25 a dozen oatmeal cookies made with no animal products. They came from Vegetarian Desserts Bakery, a one-year-old enterprise run by Charmane Baker. When I asked Baker about the price of the cake - $40 seemed like a lot - she replied that the cake is large, 9 inches in diameter and 3 inches high, and serves 20 to 30. She added that her products use no eggs, milk, honey or preservatives.