Almond Cookie Brittle
Your family will love these chewy, easy to make cookies...

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour
1 cup sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine butter, sugar, salt and almond extract. Beat until creamy. Stir in flour gradually, beating until blended. Fold in nuts. Press dough 3/8-inch thick in a jelly-roll pan. Dough will only fill 3/4 of the pan but won't spread.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Leave in pan to cool, and then break apart like peanut brittle. Store in an airtight container. Note: The shorter bake time produces a chewier cookie while a longer time makes a crisper cookie. To make a chocolate chip version: replace the almond extract with vanilla, use pecans instead of almonds and add 1 cup chocolate chips.

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
2 small zucchini, sliced
2 small yellow squash, sliced
1 red onion, sliced
1 bell pepper, green, red or yellow, sliced
1/2 cup Italian salad dressing

Place vegetables in a large bowl. Add salad dressing and marinate for 1/2 hour. Pour mixture into a strainer over the sink to drain off dressing.

Grill in a grill basket or grate made for small items. Grill, tossing several times for 10-12 minutes. Cook only until crisp tender. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

1 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 2/3 cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled (1 stick)
1/4 cup dairy sour cream
1 cup finely shredded cheddar cheese (4 oz.)
1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
3 green onions, trimmed and finely chopped

Line twelve 3-inch muffin cups with paper liners or lightly coat with nonstick cooking spray; set aside. Stir together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.

Mix together the buttermilk, eggs, butter and sour cream in a large bowl and blend well. Add the cornmeal mixture to the egg mixture and stir just until dry ingredients are moist and blended. Do not over mix. Fold in the cheese, corn, jalapeno and green onions.

Scoop batter into the prepared muffin pan with a large ice-cream scoop (1/3 to 1/2 cup scoop). The batter will come to the top of the paper liner or muffin cup.

Bake in a 375° oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until the tops spring back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes. Turn the muffins out of the pan and serve immediately. Makes 12 large muffins.