Eggplant

Celery-seed dressing and an eggplant Parmesan that can be made in the microwave may rev up your cooking mood.Cathy McNamara of Baltimore requested the celery-seed dressing. "In the '60s and early '70s, I worked in Hutzler's in Towson as a waitress and we served a chef salad with this dressing. It was fantastic, and I've lost the recipe and hope someone in good ol' Baltimore has it."Many offered recipes. Chef Gilles Syglowski chose one from Charles Cluxton of Baltimore, who wrote: "Although Hutzler's was privately owned, they did belong to a group of associated stores throughout the country.

Side dishes can make or break a diet. So when it comes to making smart choices, a veteran restaurant critic I know offers this rule of thumb: Never eat a starch unless it is "out of the ordinary." That effectively eliminates most mashed potatoes, french fries, pastas and white rice - largely empty carbohydrates with low nutritional value and just average flavor. What's left? Brown rice, whose chewy texture can break up mealtime monotony and boost nutrition. The government recently advised Americans to eat three servings daily of whole grains, which have been linked to a lower risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

The PlumpJack Cookbook Great Meals for Good Living From the Earth to the Table John Ash's Wine Country Cuisine By John Ash Chronicle Books / 2007 / $24.95 I cannot vouch for the Fresh Corn Ice Cream With Almond Lace Cookie Fans, one of the more offbeat recipes offered by author John Ash. But weird as it sounds, I am tempted to make it, if only because what I did cook from this book was so good. An expanded, paperback version of a volume first issued in 1995, this book will appeal to adventurous foodies.

THE THING TO remember about cooking on Labor Day is that you don't want to work very hard. The idea is to enjoy a day free of heavy toil, to avoid adding tasks to the workload you are comfortable carrying.That level of comfort varies from cook to cook. Meals that some folks regard as requiring no effort at all, others regard as an undertaking worthy of a lifetime achievement award.As for me, I go to the grill on Labor Day. That is where I feel at ease. Hanging around the grill seems more like playing with fire than producing supper.

It's full steam ahead at the B&O American Brasserie, which has just rolled out its new winter dinner, lunch and bar menus and launched a couple of social-media promotions.  Beginning Feb. 8, B&O American Brasserie will begin Wind Down Wednesdays, with 50 percent off bottles of wine during dinner service. And B&O will be reaching out to diners with social media offers. Rotating deals like 50-cent oysters, $1 sliders and $3 flatbreads will click in when diners check into the restaurant's Facebook page when placing their order.

This healthy recipe serves eight and takes about 40 minute to prepare.Vegetarian Moussaka1 eggplant1/2 cup bulgur1 cup boiling water2 teaspoons olive oil1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped1 medium clove garlic, peeled and minced2 (14 1/2 -ounce) cans peeled and diced tomatoes3/4 teaspoon cinnamon1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano, crushed1/4 teaspoon salt1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper2 cups low-fat milk3 tablespoons flour1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper1/8 teaspoon nutmeg1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheesePaprikafilling: Slice the eggplant into one-quarter-inch-thick slices.

Careful. Diane Kochilas' cookbook, Meze: Small Plates to Savor and Share From the Mediterranean Table (William Morrow, 2003, $24.95), could be the most subversive stuff published since student radical Abbie Hoffman's Steal This Book. Don't be fooled by the inviting prose or the many colorful photographs of little dishes set on white tablecloths, the close-ups of olive-oil cans and bottles of ouzo. It all looks innocent enough. Look again. The Greek meze or the plural, mezethes, springs from the words mezze, maza, meza, meaning middle - as in middle of the day (the time between lunch and dinner)

Thai green curry with chicken offers an appealing mixture of sweet and hot flavors. The curry paste has peppery, often fiery, notes, and a coconut milk sauce adds a gratifying creamy richness. The slices of chicken tossed with few bamboo shoots, some basil, a handful of sliced carrots, and maybe some eggplant and peas, give you a pleasing, potent dish served over rice. Among the thicket of Thai restaurants in Baltimore, I found three winning examples. Thai Restaurant Address --3316 Greenmount Ave. Phone --410-889-6002 Hours --Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; Dinner: 5 p.m.-10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 5 p.m.-10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 5 p.m.-10 p.m. Sunday An artful, if mild, mixture of chicken and vegetables, including eggplant, for $13.75.

Bamboo HouseYorktowne Plaza Shopping Center, Cockeysville. 666-9550. This is a comfortable, soothing oasis set incongruously in a shopping center off York Road. It is also a successful oasis, having recently grown from one room to three. The Bamboo House is more sophisticated in its approach to food and service than many Chinese restaurants. The food is flavorful and plentiful; the Szechuan Green Beans were outstanding. $$ 1/2 moderately expensive.(Last visited 11/90).10010 York Road, Cockeysville, 666-0006.

I almost dropped the phone. Alexis wanted a recipe for ratatouille.Every day, my daughter Alexis calls from college and often our conversations turn to the subject of cooking. That's not the point. It was the ratatouille part that puzzled me.Throughout her childhood it was a conundrum. This child loved vegetables, but hated ratatouille (pronounced rat-tah-too-ee). The flavors in this traditional dish from Provence, a southern region in France, sing with the flavors of a summer garden -- eggplant, summer squash, bell peppers and sun-ripened tomatoes.