Hi JJ,

OK, I confess, I collect cookbooks. I love 'em, though anyone who knows me personally will tell you I never make any recipe exactly as it's written, and I never make the same recipe twice... For me, cookbooks are idea starters and cooking is a highly creative endeavor which I really enjoy...

The oldest cookbook I own is "The Fannie Farmer Junior Cook Book," which was my mother's when she was a girl, and my grandmother gave it to me when I was in about 3rd grade. It's roughly 200 pages, published in 1942. I made many of the recipes as a girl, and this is a real keepsake...

Another old favorite is called "Be Milwaukee's Guest," and it consists of recipes collected and tested by the Junior League of Milwaukee. It's copyright 1959, but my copy is from the 4th printing in 1970, and came from my mother on the occasion of my first marriage. I don't make many recipes from this book, but it is fun to read, and contains an excellent recipe for German Potato Salad...

Perhaps the oddest book in my collection is called "My Favorite Recipes from the Wild," and it's by Helen R Wilke. This cookbook was a gift from my father, who knows I like unusual recipes -- though I am not sure I will ever have a need for a recipe for "Dandelion Coffee," or "Raccoon with Bacon."

The most interesting thing for me about this book is the preface, which tells me that Margaret shared her recipes over the years with Euell Gibbons...

I remember Euell used to be on a TV commercial for Grape Nuts cereal. Does anyone else remember that?

Orchid, I'd love to know more about nouveau fusion cooking styles.