TEXAS COOKING ONLINE * October, 2003 NEWSLETTER *

Top Brands at Wholesale Cost Top Sellers Coral Calcium Product Line Atkins Baking Products Atkins Bars Ah, October. There's a nip in the air and the scent of wood smoke at dusk. The State Fair of Texas is in full swing (it runs through October 19), and you can almost hear the midway. There's a lot going on in Texas (just check out the Texas Events Calendar for specifics), and at Texas Cooking, too. How could we possibly publish an October edition without a pumpkin article? Sidney Carlisle does the honors in Fall into Pumpkin Desserts, including recipes for Pumpkin Cake with Vanilla Icing, Pumpkin Squares and, of course, Pumpkin Pie. John Raven takes advantage of the cool autumn weather by putting his Dutch oven through its paces. Dutch Oven Drill will take you through the basics of campfire cooking with this versatile piece, along with tips, pointers and good sound advice. And don't forget to look in at Ask Dr. John. John is dealing out recipes for Jalapeño Poppers and Armadillo Pie, together with his usual salient advice. Texas is where cultures come together, and the subject of Trish Bales' article, The Mexican Martini, is a strong reflection of that phenomenon. She further discusses the fine points of developing a signature house drink to provide the host or hostess with a unique stamp. Over at Texana, our sister site, Alfredo Alvarez has returned from a trip to Sweet Berry Farms in Marble Falls. In Pumpkin Painting, Mazes and Fall Fun, he reports on the state of pumpkins in the field, as well as their Walk Across Texas corn maze. Don't miss the aerial photograph of the maze. We've included a recipe for Chocolate Haystacks that will help satisfy the gobblins who arrive at your door late in the month. These treats are so easy to make and so irresistible, you'll find excuses to whip up a batch any time. You can also expect to find book reviews we hope you'll find of interest and, of course, this month's T-shirt contest winners. So you better get started. The days are shorter now.

Order up delicious steaks, poultry & seafood from 5-star restaurants Visit the Texas Cooking Food Gift Store for great offers and coupons. Online Groceries: Many of our West Coast readers can now conveniently shop for their groceries online. Click on our link to find out more. Special $10 off coupon with certain purchase. Special Features Dutch Oven Drill Join John Raven around the campfire as he holds forth on one of his favorite cooking containers, the cast iron Dutch oven. According to John, "the Dutch oven is sort of squatty. Even with the largest models, the lid is no more than six or eight inches above the bottom. There is a reason for this. Coals are meant to be placed on the top of the oven for baking operations, and the distance must be kept to a minimum for the heat to radiate down. " The Mexican Martini by Trish Bales Develop your own Signature House Drink. The Mexican Martini, is popular in chic restaurants in Austin. Writer Trish Bales describes how she brought this tequila-based martini with her on a visit to Maine. Fall Into Pumpkin Desserts by Sidney Carlisle October is the beginning of pumpkin season and signals the approach of the two official pumpkin holidays - Halloween and Thanksgiving. Sidney Carlisle goes through everything picking and carving pumpkins, to making homemade pumpkin pie and pumpkin cake. She also shows how to cook fresh pumpkin. Texas Events: Pumpkins, Mazes and Fall Fun Sweet Berry Farms in Central Texas welcomes folks to explore their special mazes, enjoy the Fall outdoors, and pick a fresh pumpkin. Looking at the New Tangerine Fiestaware by Patricia Mitchell Patricia Mitchell reviews the new Fiestaware color for 2004, Tangerine. Her new 5-piece place setting apparently inspired additional purchases. We also peek at the special American Christmas Tree Fiestaware pattern for the holiday season. Have you read John Raven's latest advice column, Ask Dr. John? This month's column includes, among other topics, marinades, cast iron skillet maintenance, barbecued chicken, crab balls and pickling jalapeños. Talk about variety! Great jackets, jerseys, shirts, caps and watches for Longhorns, Aggies and Red Raiders fans. Visit today to find these and many other fun items. Texana Book Review: Chinqua Where? and Growing Up Simple We take a look at two entertaining books about growing up in Texas in the 1950's. Fred McKinley tells of life in an East Texas town so small it is not on any maps. George Arnold details a more urban upbringing growing up in middle class Austin and Waco, much along the lines of the film American Graffiti. Click here Read more original book reviews in the Lone Star Bookstore Sale - Dinners for Four at a Restaurant Near You New Recipe: Chocolate Haystacks These are a great little Halloween or any-other-time treat. 1 6-ounce package chocolate chips 1 6-ounce package butterscotch chips ½ cup peanut butter (creamy) 1 cup chopped pecans 1 10-ounce package chow mein noodles Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips and peanut butter. Stir in the pecans and chow mein noodles. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto waxed paper. Refrigerate. Makes 4 dozen little haystacks. If using a microwave, melt the chips and peanut butter in a large plastic bowl. Then stir the remaining ingredients directly into the bowl, and you'll have only the one bowl to clean up. Michigan Bulb has a huge assortment of great bulbs to choose from and now’s the time to place your order. Our prices are as competitive as ever and these quality flowers are sure to provide a dazzling show next spring. Order Now... Plant them this fall... Enjoy a Burst of Spring Color in 2004! Stop Spyware! Kazaa, Gator and other similar programs have been sneaking their way onto people's computers wreaking havoc to their systems. This malicious set of programs are difficult to remove. They flood the screen with their own pop-up ads, and they open the computer up to a host of viruses. If you have programs like Kazaa, TopText, Gator, WhenU and others on your system, take a moment to learn about the problems these programs cause. We have written a useful and quick tutorial that informs you about them, and how to uninstall them from your computer. Free Catalogs Get Great Savings from These Free Catalogs Clothing Bridal / Wedding Wine & Brew Sporting Goods Hobbies / Crafts Pets _________ Click here for MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTIONS Town & Country Food & Wine O (Oprah) Country Living House & Garden Ellé Decor The best prices! Buy as gifts! T-Shirt Contest We award T-shirts to ten readers every month. The winners are announced in the first newsletter of the month. September Contest Winners Glen D. of Tuscaloosa, Alabama Ronald H. of Cleveland, Ohio Jenna H. of Madison, Wisconsin Linda J. of Victoria, Texas Candace L. of Dallas, Texas Chip R. of Bakersfield, California Lee S. of Independence, Missouri Tina T. of Killeen, Texas Connie W. of Rochester, New York Darlene W. of Lake Charles, Louisiana Congratulations winners! We are frequently asked if we award T-Shirts to non-US residents, and the answer is Yes. We have had quite a few Canadian winners, and have also sent T-Shirts to winners in England, Australia, Ireland, Switzerland and Germany. The Rules Since we began our T-Shirt giveaway five years ago, our contest rules remained unchanged. Readers have been able to enter as many times as they like, and their entries were retained in our database. As you can imagine, our contest database has become very large (which is good), BUT much of it consists of old email addresses that are no longer valid. Therefore, we are making the following change in our contest rules: Readers can still enter as often as they like; however, each contest entry will expire three months following the date it was entered and will disappear from the database. This will greatly reduce the number of "names in the hat" and improve the odds of winning. We think this change will result in an even better contest. Shop Krupp's Home & Garden Decor - 5% Discount Arbors | Waterfalls | Wheelbarrows | Garden Beds Bird Baths | Bridges | Mailboxes | Trellis Beautify your home and garden with over 2,200 decorations. Enter Rebate code: cj3579 and you will receive 5% off your next order. Subscription / Unsubscribe Help This newsletter is sent to you because you, or someone on your behalf, indicated you would like to receive it when you signed our Guest Book or entered our T-Shirt Contest. If you wish to stop receiving the Newsletter, click here or point your browser to http://www.texascooking.com/unsub1.ihtml If you would like to change your email address, please send an email to txmailbox@texascooking.com. ©2003 Texas Cooking Online. All rights reserved.