__birdie Casement Food

BAGUETTE STUFFED WITH BRIE AND CHERRIES

Steps:

• For the compote: In a small saucepan on medium-high heat, add the cherries, wine, salt, pepper and thyme and stir. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat slightly to medium. Continue to cook at a rapid simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, 25 to 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and let cool, then remove the thyme sprigs.
• For the baguette: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Using a paring knife, cut a deep "v" on the top of the baguette. Pull out some of the soft bread to create a deep crevice. Place the Brie slices into the crevice, overlapping each slice. Transfer to a baking sheet.
• Bake until the cheese is melted and the bread is slightly toasted, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board. Spoon the cherry compote over the melted Brie. Slice into thick slices, garnish with the remaining thyme sprig and serve.

__KAREN DURRETT

Steps:

• I grew up in a large family--seven children--in a small town in Indiana," Karen Durret says. "It was great. My mother was the traditional homemaker, and my greatest memories growing up all relate to food. There was always a pot of something on the stove. My mom expressed love through food." The beuaty of American cooking is that a small-town Indiana girl can combine elements of Italian, Mexican and Midwestern cuisines to create a spectacular result that is pure American: Chicken and Black Bean Tostizzas.From "Pillsbury Best of the Bake-Off Cookbook." Copyright 2004 General Mills. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

__BIRDIE CASEMENT

Steps:

• If anyone ever asks you what it was like to live richly through the twentieth century, direct them to the story of Birdie Casement. "I married Russ," Birdie says, "then World War II changed our lives. We found ourselves wrestling with gas rationing, sugar stamps, tire shortages, among other shortages, and two wee tots....The following years were a merry-go-round of PTA, fund-raising, cake bakes, Brownies, Cub Scouts, car pooling, measles, trips to the zoo, picnics and all the fun, tears, brawls and challenges that go hand in hand with parenthood. Time flies, and soon no one was hurrying home for that noontime sandwich." Birdie became a kindergarten teacher and was nominated for Colorado teacher of the year. At the Bake-Off® Contest, she wowed everybody with her ebullience, her wisdom and, of course, her salad.From "Pillsbury Best of the Bake-Off® Cookbook." Copyright 2004 General Mills. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.