Readers a helpful source for recipes

When I stop to think about the collective resource that the readers of this column are, I am truly amazed. Among the thousands of readers, each with his or her own stash of cookbooks, recipes clipped and saved and networks of friends and family, there must be hundreds of thousands of recipes at our disposal. I am always grateful to those who share their recipes.

In a recent column, I noted a few requests that went unfilled in 2004. In a matter of days, two copies of the following recipe for a Dolly Parton Salad made their way to my mailbox. One reader found it on the Internet another found it in an old F.O.E. auxiliary newsletter titled “Mrs. Eagle” so we’re not sure of the recipe’s origins, but it does make a tasty, Spring-like salad.

Dolly Parton Salad

Origin unknown

1 (3-ounce) package instant lemon pudding

1 (6-ounce) package lemon Jell-O

1 (3-ounce) package tapioca pudding

2 cups boiling water

1 (20-ounce) can crushed pineapple, with juice

1 (11-ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained

1 (12-ounce) container Cool Whip

Dissolve pudding, Jell-O and tapioca in boiling water. Let set until syrupy. Add pineapple and oranges. Fold in Cool Whip. Pour into a 9-by-13-inch pan and chill.

Yield: 15 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 89 calories, 1.7 grams fat (1.4 grams saturated, 17 percent fat calories), 1.8 grams protein, 20 grams carbohydrate, 1.2 milligrams cholesterol, less than 1 gram dietary fiber, 75 milligrams sodium.

Another reader recently sent in a recipe that is a close match to a request from April 2004 for a bread pudding that was delicious cold. Marcella Schafer wrote, “This may be the bread pudding recipe that one of your readers requested. … It’s the one we served at our Mexican restaurant for 22 years before we sold it in 1998 (El Rio Mexican Restaurant).”

Bread Pudding

From Marcella Schafer

4 or 5 day-old sweet rolls or large donuts, cut into 1-inch cubes (see note)

8 cups whole or 2-percent milk

1 tablespoon vanilla

2 cups eggs (about 10 large eggs)

1 cup sugar

Ground cinnamon, to taste

Place bread cubes in a single layer in the bottom of a large greased pan. Scald milk, remove from heat and add vanilla. In a separate bowl beat eggs then beat in sugar. Add egg mixture to scalded milk, blending well, then pour over bread cubes. Sprinkle with cinnamon, to taste. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes or until set. Serve hot or cold.

Note: There should be enough bread pieces to line the bottom of a 15-by-10-by-2-inch pan.

Yield: 15 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 237 calories, 10.6 grams fat (4 grams saturated, 40 percent fat calories), 8.2 grams protein, 28 grams carbohydrate, 138 milligrams cholesterol, less than 1 gram dietary fiber, 184 milligrams sodium. (Note: Nutrition was calculated using cake doughnuts and whole milk.)