CAff MAY COUNTY MAGAZINE / 9

bags may be stored in a box to prevent any damage to the asparagus stalks. The amount you normally use for a recipe should determine the amount in each bag. In this time of saving energy, planning oven meals or one-dish meals are Important. Two recipes my family enjoy came from cookbooks from this area. The first is from the Regional Cookbook From South Jersey, the other from the Denrtisville United Methodist Church 100th Anniversary Cook Book. ASPARAGUS SUPREME 1 Cup fresh bread crumbs 1H lb. asparagus 4 Hard cooked eggs 1 small jar pimentoes 1 Cup grated sharp cheese 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons flour 1 cup milk Break up asparagus in small pieces and cook until almost tender. Make white sauce from the last three ingredients. Grease casserole. Put in a layer of asparagus (using one half), a layer of 2 cut up eggs and half the pimentoes. Pour half the white sauce over this. Then repeat. Top with 1 grated sharp cheese and bread crumbs. Bake in 350 degree oven for, one-half hour or until hot. )

ASPARAGUS CASSEROLE 1 pkg. frozen asparagus Buttered Crumbs 1 can cream of Mushroom Soup Arrange in a casserole in layers, beginning with asparagus and ending with soup. Cover with buttered crumbs. Season to taste. Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees. * • • A variation of the above recipe that can be used as a main dish and a way to use up leftover ham or chicken: Roll two or three cooked spears of asparagus in a slice of ham or chicken. Place in casserole and cover with white sauce and buttered crumbs and bake in a 350 degree oven for one-half hour. For additional recipes send a self-addressed envelope to Cape May County Magazine, P.O. Box 484, Cape May, N.J. 08204. Florence Beal is former Supervisor of Horhe Economics for the Style of New Jersey, and a resident of Cape May.

—Jersey Cape NATURALLY 1 by Anne Galli Many have shared with a child the wonder of discovering the sound of the sea in a shell. The seasheil one most commonly listens to is actually the protecting covering of a large snail called a whelk or conch. The next time you pick up a whelk, look as well as listen because there are two different kinds. The channeled whelk has a smooth, deep groove that winds around each whorl of the snail’s spire. The knobbed whelk is aptly named for the distinct knobs projecting from its spire. f Whelk egg cases commonly wash ashore, particularly after a storm tide. The cases are tan parchment-like discs about the size of a half-dollar, strung together on a tough cord. After the egg cases dry out fln the beach, the shells of the young whelks inside will rattle when the string is shaken.

Anne Galli is asst, director of The Wetlands Institute. Illustrations by Wendy Beard Allen. '•

W e \i^9onJs ^Merfdn c Inri now open daily 4:30 p.m. •DINNERS •COCKTAILS 106 DECATUR ST, CAPE MAY Early Diners ’ Specials Daily! . 6 95 4:30 to 6 p.m.