Cookies from cake mix

Heloise

Dear Heloise: I’ve lost your cookies from cake mix recipe, and I need to get a copy ASAP. My church is preparing our annual bake sale to be held in March to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. It’s a way to raise funds for the Battered Women’s Shelter here in our city. Currently, we get well more than 100 women who call us every month and ask us to help them find shelter for themselves, their children and their pets. Some are in very dangerous situations.

Last year at our bake sale, we sold out of the cookies I made from your cookies from cake mix recipe, and I made more than 200 cookies! So, would you please reprint that recipe and help us reach our goal? — P., via email

Margaret, I would be happy to reprint that recipe for such a worthy cause. Here it is:

HELOISE’S COOKIES FROM CAKE MIX

Choose any flavor of cake mix and add up to ¼ cup chopped nuts, raisins or chocolate chips if you’d like.

1 (18.25 ounce) box cake

mix

2 eggs

½ cup vegetable oil

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Mix ONLY the above ingredients in a large bowl until blended. Drop the batter by teaspoonfuls onto an UNGREASED baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Place the baking sheet on the middle rack. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. You must watch them carefully, because they will brown quickly. Ovens vary, so stand by for the first batch.

Do you like easy-to-make recipes that add new flavor to your usual fare? Do you need recipes that don’t take hours to prepare? Then you’ll love my pamphlet “All-time Favorite Recipes.” To get a copy, just go to www.heloise. com, or send $3 along with a stamped, self-addressed long envelope to: Heloise/all- Time Fav., P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 78279-5001. You’ll be glad you have this handy reference at your fin- gertips whenever you want to make something tasty and easy to prepare for family or guests. —

Household Hints

Chocolate bloom

Dear Heloise: For Valen- tine’s Day, I received a box of chocolates, but when I opened the box, some of the candy had a whitish-gray appearance. I wondered what caused it and whether or not it’s safe to eat. I’ve been told that once this happens, the chocolate takes on a differ- ent flavor and it’s not very appealing. — Katharine O., Independence, Missouri

Katharine, that grayish color is called the “bloom,” and it occurs when the cocoa butter in the chocolate rises to the top. When chocolate candy is stored someplace warm or humid, a bloom can happen. It doesn’t really affect the chocolate, but visu- ally it might be unappealing since we’re not used to see- ing chocolate with a bloom. —

Dear Heloise: The other night while dinning out with my date, he tucked his nap- kin into the collar of his shirt. I thought this was poor eti- quette but said nothing. He’s well educated and should know better, shouldn’t he? — Karen D., Erie, Pennsyl- vania

Yes, he should. You never tuck a napkin into the collar of a shirt or blouse unless you are 6 years old or younger. —