By Paula Dream (AKA Kale Haygood)

­­Valentines Day is over and I hope you all got the Valentine you wanted. It was strange this year because Valentine’s Day was Friday the 13. Wow, I hope no one had bad luck in love!

And here we are, in Mardi Gras season. That calls for some good food. Don’t get me wrong, I love the King Cake, but we’re not going to make one.

Instead, here is an easy-to-make recipe that will tie your beads in a knot. These pastry puffs with honey butter are oh-so-yummy when they are fresh out of the cooker. They’re great for breakfast or any time of the day.

And here is a kicked-up twist on everyone’s favorite sandwich, the BLT.

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PASTRY PUFFS WITH HONEY BUTTER
1/4 cup, plus 3 or 4 tablespoons butter (not margarine), softened and divided
1/4 cup honey
3 eggs
1 container (8 ounces) plain yogurt
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
Vegetable oil for frying

In a bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the butter and the honey until smooth; set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs for a couple of minutes. Add yogurt and remaining butter, and then mix it up a bit. Add the flour, baking powder and soda, nutmeg and salt, also mixing. Stir in the yogurt mixture. Heat enough oil to cover puffs in a deep fryer, electric skillet, or just one of your old deep iron skillets. Get it pretty hot, to about 350° to 360°. Drop batter by the teaspoonful into oil, but don’t overload your fryer. Fry until nice and brown, about two minutes, gently flipping once. Drain on paper towels and serve them with honey butter on the side. Yum!

‘WHEN PIGS FLY’ BLT SALAD
2 1-pound round wheat or whole grain bread loafs
1 pound smoked bacon
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Blue cheese crumbles (optional)
1 12-ounce bag shredded lettuce
2 to 3 ripe tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup sweet onion, diced
1/2 cup crumbs from the bread bowl, or panko

Slice one inch off the top of each bread loaf. Scoop out the inside of the loaf leaving a one-inch wall. Feed the insides to our bird friends or toast for croutons. Fry bacon ’til almost crisp, reserving one tablespoon of grease, and then drain on paper towels. In a medium-size bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, buttermilk, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, zest and bacon grease ’til smooth. Add optional blue cheese. Chop the bacon strips in half. Place lettuce in a large mixing bowl, toss with dressing, and then add all ingredients and toss. Place empty bread bowls and breadcrumbs on a greased cookie sheet, then lightly toast in 400° oven. Remove from oven, fill bread bowls with salad mixture, and then garnish with breadcrumbs. Serves two as a meal or four as a side, not using bread bowls.

Paula Dream, AKA Kale Haygood, owns Beyond Service, a Montrose-based, home-cooking catering company. For more information, call 713-805-4106 or email barrykale@yahoo.com