APRICOT SQUARES

OSSI DI MORTI (DEAD BONES)

CHOCOLATE BAT COOKIES

PUMPKIN PIE BARS

MEXICAN CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

SOUL CAKES

APRICOT SQUARES

Melt chocolate squares over low heat and transfer to large bowl. Gently fold in remaining ingredients until thoroughly coated. Pour mixture evenly into a foil-lined 8-inch square pan. Chill. With a sharp knife, cut into 2-inch squares. Chill until ready to serve.

Makes 16 2-inch squares

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CHOCOLATE BAT COOKIES

Sift dry ingredients together and set aside. Melt chocolate over low heat in a small saucepan. Set aside. Cream butter and sugar together. Add egg, milk, and vanilla extract and mix well. Mix in melted chocolate. Slowly add dry ingredients a little at a time until well blended. Make dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface to about 1/8 inch thick. Dip bat-shaped cookie cutter in flour and cut out Chocolate Bats. Place cookies on ungreased cookie sheets and bake 8-10 minutes.

Makes about 2 dozen

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MEXICAN CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

Mexican chocolate can be found in the international/Hispanic foods section of most well-stocked supermarkets. It is usually sold in round cakes stacked in colorful boxes. If Mexican chocolate cannot be found, 6-1/2 oz of bittersweet chocolate and 1 tsp of ground cinnamon may be substituted.

Spread nuts out in an 8 or 9" wide baking pan. Bake in a 350º oven until the pine nuts are golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes; shake often. Pour nuts from pan and set aside.

In a 2 to 3 quart pan, combine brown sugar, butter, Mexican chocolate, and unsweetened chocolate. Stir often over low heat until chocolates are melted and smooth. Remove from heat, and beat in eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon until well blended. Mix with flour and pine nuts.

Pour batter into a lightly oiled 9" square pan. Bake in a 350º oven until brownie springs back in center when gently presses, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool on a rack. Cut into squares or triangles; top brownies with whipped cream to taste, and garnish with a cinnamon stick.

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OSSI DI MORTI (BONES OF THE DEAD)

On the Day of the Dead, I Morti, the Sicilians eat fava beans, the emblematic dish of death. The Greeks saw the black spot on the petals of the fava as the stain of death and used the beans in ceremonies but refused to eat them. Pythagoras thought the stems reached down into the earth, presumably all the way to the Underworld, and thus the beans might contain the souls of those who had died. The Romans understood the connection with death but cooked and served the beans as the most sacred dish of funeral banquets. When the monks at Cluny celebrated I Morti in the 10th century, they boiled enormous batches of them and offered them up for the souls of the dead. Tubs of garbanzos and favas were left out on the street corners so everyone could help themselves.

These sweet shortbread-like cookies can be made in the shape of beans, to mimic the fava bean, or in the shape of bones.

PUMPKIN PIE BARS

With mixer, beat margarine and sugar until creamy. Stir in flour and walnuts until mixture is crumbly. Reserve 3/4 cup of mixture for topping. Press remaining crumb mixture on bottom of 15 1/2 X 10 1/2 X 1 inch baking pan (cookie sheet). Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until lightly browned.

Meanwhile, blend pumpkin, condensed milk, molasses, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla; pour over pastry crust.

Sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture. Bake 30-35 minutes more until set. Cool on wire rack in pan. Store covered in the refrigerator.

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SOUL CAKES

Soul cakes were sometimes made with saffron, in which case they seem to be sun symbols, appropriate for the ancient Samhain festival. In Italy, doughnuts are sometimes called soul cakes. In Belgium, it is said that the more cakes you eat, the more souls you save.

Put the scalded milk over the butter, salt and sugar. Cool. Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water and let stand until it bubbles (dry yeast will become liquid), about 5 minutes. Add the yeast and beaten eggs to the cooled milk. Gradually add the flour, beating it in thoroughly. Don't add any more flour than necessary to make an easily handled dough, as the buns should be light and tender. Turn onto a floured board or counter and knead until smooth and elastic. Place in a greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 1-1/2 hours. Punch down and turn out onto a lightly floured board. Shape into small buns and place in pans. Cover and let rise until dough is just to the tops of the pans. Bake in a 400-degree oven for 15 minutes or until golden.

If placed close together in buttered cake pans, buns will be soft and fluffy. If set farther apart on a buttered and cornmeal-sprinkled cookie sheet, they will be firmier and crustier.

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