Garlic Powder

This Sunday, the Ravens will have to brave frigid Foxborough, Mass. to take on the New England Patriots. But you won't have to stand out in the cold to make these ribs. Instead of a grill, you can use your oven to roast this tender, savory game-time snack. No-grill BBQ ribs Makes 1 rack 1 full rack of ribs (country or baby back) 1/2 cup orange juice Juice of 2 limes 2 tablespoons honey 1 teaspoon liquid smoke Extra-large aluminum foil 1 cup of your favorite bbq sauce Spice rub 5 tablespoons brown sugar 3 tablespoons chili powder 1 tablespoon garlic powder 11/2 teaspoon ground cumin 11/2 teaspoon ground coriander 11/2 teaspoon onion powder 11/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon dry sage 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon cayenne powder In a bowl, combine all of the dry rub ingredients.

Clearly colorful plastic wrapWhy settle for boring clear plastic wrap, when you can jazz up treats, school lunches and gift baskets with colorful coverings in rose, yellow, blue, green and violet from Reynolds Crystal Color Plastic Wrap? For recipes and other ideas, order a free "Quick and Easy Treats for Kids" brochure by calling the Reynolds Kitchens at 800-745-4000.Food for ThoughtSeveral nationally recognized chefs and cookbook authors will demonstrate their culinary skills at the Baltimore Book Festival this weekend in Mount Vernon Place on Charles Street.

READERS offered some old, new, usual and not so usual suggestions to our recent request for ways to eliminate fleas on dogs and cats.Carole and John Micklos of Essex own a 100-pound female Doberman pinscher named Mandy, who is flea-free. The couple uses a combination of different sprays to eliminate fleas in the house, outside and on the dog. To save on the cost of an exterminator, John suggests buying a large sprayer ''for about $7'' and attacking the outside and inside with a good commercial flea spray.

If you want to go the natural route for flea control, remember, there is only anecdotal evidence that these methods work. And people who use them say they are only useful for flea prevention,ixture. Put in a spray bottle and mist the pet daily. Or put it on a sponge and rub it over the pet.* Brewer's yeast and garlic. Use brewer's yeast and garlic powder available in grocery stores and sprinkle liberally on the pet's food. Some pet stores now sell brewer's yeast and garlic mixture to add to pet food.

Production of our favorite spaghetti-sauce ingredient, Spatini, was ceased in January by its maker, Lawry's. It's been difficult to find a replacement. Better yet would be an ingredients list for me to try to make the mix at home. Spatini is the brand name of a packet of seasonings that you add to either a tomato paste and water, unseasoned tomato sauce or canned tomatoes to make spaghetti sauce. I found a list of Spatini's ingredients on foodfacts.com: sugar, salt, dehydrated onion, potato starch, spices, natural flavors (including dairy)

My Crab Cakes Ingredients: 1 lb. crabmeat 2 tsp. melted butter 4 tbs. mayonnaise 1 tsp. mustard 1 beaten egg 1/2 tsp. Old Bay Sprinkle and add some bread crumbs, or 1 slice of bread, torn into small pieces. Instructions: Form all into large hamburger-size pieces and place on a plate in refrigerator for a few hours. Spray a tinfoil-covered cookie sheet and place in oven at 350 degrees until light brown on both sides. --Pat Keefe, Pasadena Crab Cakes Ingredients: 1 lb. lump crabmeat 2 eggs 1 tbs. Worcestershire sauce 1 sprinkle Tabasco sauce 1/2 tsp. Old Bay 1 tsp. Horseradish 1 tbs. honey mustard 4 slices bread, no crust 1/4 cup mayonnaise Instructions: Mix all ingredients except crabmeat.

I never knew Patrick Clark personally.After reading the handsome new book "Cooking With Patrick Clark" (Ten Speed Press; 1999), I sure wish I had.Clark was a major player in the revolution that rocked the American food scene in the 1980s and '90s. He was the chef of such groundbreaking restaurants as the Cafe Luxembourg, Metro and Odeon in New York. His stint at the Tavern on the Green is credited with raising that Central Park landmark to its current glory.Clark also was the first black chef to achieve superstar status and as such has served as an inspiration and role model for a new generation of African-American chefs.

Restaurants pop up in Lauraville like spring onions. The stretch of Harford Road between Herring Run Park and the Safeway grocery store seems especially fertile. That is where Chef Mac's Louisiana Cuisine opened its doors last October, taking over a space once used by Alabama BBQ. It is a storefront with three tables and a handful of chairs that offer a view of Harford Road through the glass front. Chef Mac's full name is Maclonza Lee. He is a native of Alexandria. La., who worked in restaurants in St. Louis.

Arlene Bird from Sonoma, Calif., was looking for the recipe for the rich and delicious cheese biscuits that are served warm with every order at the Red Lobster restaurant chain. She clearly is not be alone in her craving for these biscuits because Shirley Zehner from Baltimore sent in a copy of the recipe that was published in the August 1994 issue of Ladies' Home Journal. Just like Bird, several readers had written to the magazine and asked them to obtain the recipe for the biscuits from the restaurant chain.

Here is the method for homemade cheese popcorn that is much like the product sold at popcorn shops or comes in bags as snack food. The recipe takes about five minutes to make.Cheese Popcorn1/4 cup cooking oil1/2 cup popcorn kernels4-6 tablespoons powdered process cheese, see note belowDHeat the oil in a large kettle. When it is hot, but not smoking, add several kernels of popcorn. When the first kernel pops or spins around the pan, add the remaining kernels. Cover the pan loosely. Shaking the pan constantly, cook over medium-high heat until all the kernels have popped.