Pound Cake

Claudia S. Grant, a homemaker and volunteer, died of complications from Parkinson's disease Sunday at the Green Ridge Village retirement community in Newville, Pa. The former Ruxton resident was 83. Born Claudia Rhett Stuart in Arlington, Va., she was raised in Washington's Georgetown neighborhood and earned a bachelor's degree in 1944 from George Washington University. Mrs. Grant, who resided for many years in Towson and Ruxton, had volunteered at Greater Baltimore Medical Center. She had lived at the retirement community since 2003.

A Mass of Christian burial for Louise C. Gieron, a retired seamstress. will be offered at 10 a.m. tomorrow at St. Casimor Roman Catholic Church, Kenwood Avenue and O'Donnell Street Canton.The Baltimore native died Friday of cancer at the Stella Maris Hospice in Lutherville. She was 85.She owned and operated a small grocery, Louise's Store, in Highlandtown in the 1930s and '40s. After she sold the store, she worked as a seamstress until her retirement in the early 1970s.During World War II, she contributed blood regularly to support the military and won several awards from the Red Cross in recognition of her donations.

Here's a simple recipe that makes good eating (in six weeks) and great gifts to save for the holidays. Use as a topping over ice cream, pound cake, flan and bread pudding. Add to chocolate cake or brownie batter. Or combine with other fruit in season.Brandied CherriesMakes 1 1/2 quarts2 pounds fresh sweet cherries, pitted2 cups sugar1 quart brandyCombine and mix well. Store in tightly covered jar in cool place for 6 or more weeks. Portion into canning jars for gifts and store in a cool, dark place.

The holidays are rapidly approaching so please be sure to get your Christmas recipe requests in as soon as possible. Please keep in mind that recipe finder does not send recipes through the mail under any circumstances.This Smearcase recipe is for Diana Colligan. It is from Sarah Morris of Fallston.Smearcase CakeCrust:1 1/4 cup flour1/4 cup sugar1/4 teaspoon salt1/2 cup butter1 egg, beatenCombine flour, sugar and salt. Cut in butter. Add egg and mix well. Pat dough into a 9x13-inch pan and bring halfway up sides.

This week's menus; A clip-and-save guide to a week's worth 0) of mealsEach day of the week offers a menu aimed at a different aspect of meal planning. There's a family or holiday meal, usually Sunday, a kids' menu aimed at younger tastes, a heat-an-eat meal that recycles leftovers, a budget meal that employs a cost-cutting strategy, a meatless dish for people who may not be strict vegetarians but are trying to cut down on meat, an express meal that requires little or no preparation and an entertaining menu, usually the Saturday meal, that's quick but worthy of company.

To embellish a meal of romance on the day designed for love, consider this effortless menu masquerading as a culinary feat. Arty and appealing roulade rounds are a tasty use of vegetables with the always popular steak. The trick for instant tenderness is to have the butcher run the steak through his tenderizer machine and this takes only a minute. (Otherwise, your flank steak could well be stringy and tough.)Simple fresh steamed green beans add a bright touch as the vegetable and can be fanned out on the plate for an attractive presentation.

Each day of the week offers a menu aimed at a different aspect of meal planning. There's a family or holiday meal, usually Sunday, a kids' menu aimed at younger tastes, a heat-and-eat meal that recycles leftovers, a budget meal that employs a cost-cutting strategy, a meatless dish for people who may not be strict vegetarians but are trying to cut down on meat, an express meal that requires little or no preparation and an entertaining menu, usually the...

Fruit and chocolate baked in a cakeWhat do you do to improve the image of the most sneered-at food product on Earth? You add chocolate, of course. Barbara Rubin has created a new and delicious take on the traditional fruitcake. Her Potomac company, Bobbie Bakes, makes "Frudge" gourmet cakes of dried fruits, chocolate, rum and nuts. If you have trouble finding them, you can call 888-4FRUDGE to mail order. The 1.75-pound cake is $20 and the 5-ounce mini-cake is $4.70 plus shipping.Save the fruitThe new Produce Saver by Extend-a-life, as seen on TV, is the latest weapon in America's fight against rotting produce.

This Italian soup is for Connie Stricker of Baltimore. Kari Fandek of Towson sent it to us. She says the recipe will take about two hours to make.Chick Pea Soup1 cup dried chick peas6 cups water1 teaspoon rosemary, tied in cheesecloth1 teaspoon salt3 anchovy fillets1/4 cup olive oil2 cloves garlic, peeled and put through a press1 6-ounce can tomato paste1/2 pound shell-shaped pastaSalt and pepper to tasteIn large saucepan combine first four ingredients....

Annie L. "Jennie" Hinton, a retired waitress and longtime active church member, died of respiratory failure April 22 at Envoy Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Sudbrook Park where she had lived since 2002. She was 91. Annie Lucinda Meachman was born and spent her early years in Palmer Springs, Va. In the early 1930s, she moved to Baltimore, where she attended city public schools. In the late 1930s, she worked as a housekeeper, and with the outbreak of World War II, worked in a Curtis Bay munitions plant.