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Tuck these Christmas favorites away for next year. These delights were served by members of the Driftwood Garden Club at the group's recent holiday luncheon:

Cranberry-Pineapple Gelatin Salad

By Laura Thomas

2 (3 ounce) packages raspberry gelatin

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1/2 envelope (1/2 teaspoon) unflavored gelatin

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1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, packed in its own juices

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1 (15 ounce) can whole-berry cranberry sauce

1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts

Spray a 4-cup gelatin Mold or a 9-inch square pan with vegetable oil cooking spray.

In a medium glass mixing bowl, combine the raspberry gelatin and unflavored gelatin. Add 1 cup boiling water and stir with a metal spoon continuously for 2 minutes until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Stir in 1/2 cup cold water. Add the pineapple and juice, cranberry sauce and walnuts. Stir with a metal spoon until all of the ingredients are completely incorporated. Pour the mixture into the prepared Mold, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm.

About an hour before serving, invert the Mold onto a serving platter and allow to sit at room temperature. The salad will release itself and come cleanly from the Mold. If you are in a hurry, fill the sink with about an inch of hot water and place the bottom of the Mold into hot water for about a minute, then invert the salad onto a serving platter.

Slice the salad into 16 pieces.

Spicy Sweet Potatoes in Orange Cups

By Nancy Howell

5 sweet potatoes

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4 Tablespoons butter

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1/2 cup orange juice

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1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

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1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

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1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

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3 teaspoons cinnamon

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12 orange shell halves

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12 large marshmallows

Boil potatoes until tender, cool and peel. Mash potatoes. Combine potatoes with butter, juice vanilla, brown sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon until smooth. Pour mixture into orange cups and top with a marshmallow. Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes.

Orange-Cranberry Glazed Pork Tenderloins

By Lea Hamilton

1 (16 ounce) whole-berry cranberry sauce

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1 teaspoon grated orange rind

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2/3 cup fresh orange juice

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2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

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1/8 teaspoon salt

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1/2 teaspoon pepper

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1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

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1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

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1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

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1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloins, trimmed

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Garnishes: fresh rosemary sprigs, whole cranberries

Bring first 9 ingredients to a boil in a large saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer mixture, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes.

Place pork in a lightly greased shallow roasting pan.

Bake at 425°F for 40 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest portion registers 160°F, basting occasionally with half of cranberry mixture. Slice pork and serve with remaining cranberry mixture. Garnish, if desired.
 

Volunteer Firefighter Succumbs To Leukemia

Circleville Firefighter's Leukemia Went Into Remission

NORTH HUNTINGDON TOWNSHIP, Pa. - A Circleville volunteer firefighter has died following a battle with leukemia.

Brandon Lewis, 21, was taken by ambulance to Forbes Regional Hospital on Friday. He passed away later that night.

Lewis had leukemia that was in remission. In September, the community got behind Lewis -- who had just beat leukemia -- by remodeling his home, eliminating Mold.

"When he asked me for an application, he said, 'I want to join Circleville. I want to join where you're at. I want to be part of the community because the community was part of me.' That's what he wanted to do. He wanted to give back," Circleville Assistant Fire Chief Bill Sombo said.

The former Norwin football player was an active firefighter since November 2007. Lewis was a big Steelers fan, and will be buried in a Troy Polamalu jersey, Sombo said.

Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced.

A fund has been set up to help pay for Lewis' funeral. Donations can be sent to:

Brandon Lewis Memorial Fund

First National Bank

Circleville Office

200 Clay Pike

North Huntingdon, PA 15642

Donations made at the Christmas Light Display at 1907 Bernice Drive in North Huntingdon through Sunday night will go to the Brandon Lewis Memorial Fund. Hours for the display are 5:30 p.m. to midnight Saturday and 5:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday.
 

Town celebrates antique coin Mold

The original clay Mold used to mint the first 1913 Indian Head Buffalo nickel designed by sculptor James Earle Fraser has found its way back home after approximately 80 years.

The thick, clay nickel made of terra cotta was unveiled in front of township officials and members of the Historical Association of Woodbridge Township and the township Historical Preservation Commission earlier this month.

The exhibit at town hall also includes

artifacts of the storied Woodbridge brick and clay industry,

including Salamander Works, the Federal Terra Cotta Co., and the M.D. Valentine Brick Co., that flourished for nearly a century.

According to the U.S. Mint, the Indian Head Buffalo nickel was minted from 1913 to 1938. The American Indian depiction in the nickel design is believed to be based on three different Indian chiefs. The reverse design of the coin features the American bison.

The exhibit included a terra cotta bomb from World War I, Nancy China pottery, a terra cotta plaque removed from the Route 9 bridge that passed over Route 1 north displaying the word "Jersey," and doorknobs that are 120-plus years old.

The owner of the historic nickel, Gordon Henderson, let the township borrow the piece to allow township residents and visitors to observe a piece of history.

"It's still my piece," Gordon Henderson reminded township officials at the unveiling.

Henderson, a third-generation stained-glass artist, said he could have sold the piece along the way, but had realized the importance of the terra cotta industry in Woodbridge.

The township, which is the fifth largest in the state, is known for its clay history.

"The Woodbridge Community Center was built on clay pits," said Mayor John E. McCormac.

In "The Making of America Series - Woodbridge, New Jersey's Oldest Township," by Robert J. McEwen, who died in September 2007, and Virginia Bergen Troeger, a whole chapter is dedicated to the clay industry.

"If there is one word to describe nineteenth and early-twentieth-century Woodbridge, that word would have to be 'clay,' " wrote McEwen.

The book quotes John M. Kreger, a ceramic consultant: "Clay was the business of our township … never again will Woodbridge be blessed with a single industry that employed such a large percentage of its population as did clay."

Before McEwen passed away, he was working on a fourth book about the clay industry.

Henderson, who will turn 90 years old in January, said he remembers seeing the original 1913 Indian Head Buffalo nickel, which he has held onto all these years, when he was a young boy.

"It was always around the house on the shelves," said Henderson, who grew up in Rutherford. "My father had acquired it around 1929 and I have kept it in storage all these years."

Henderson said he became a collector like his father.

"I displayed my work and the coin at the [Jane Voorhees] Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers University in New Brunswick," he said.

Anna M. Aschkenes, executive director of the Middlesex County Cultural and Heritage Commission, made a call to township officials informing them of the nickel.

Dr. Dolores Gioffre, president of the township Historical Preservation Commission, said that when she heard about the nickel, she was thrilled.

Jeff Huber, president of the township Historical Association, also expressed his

elation about the nickel.

"It's wonderful that we get back the [Indian Head Buffalo] nickel that was originally made here," he said.

Anthony Poos, 81, who has lived in Woodbridge all his life, contributed a clay brick to the exhibit.

"I remember bringing lunch to my older brother at the [Mutton Hollow Fire Brick] factory that was behind the parking lot of the Hess building," he said.

Longtime Fords resident Andrew Nagy, 73, remembers his days as an apprentice architectural draftsman at the now-defunct Federal Seaboard Terra Cotta Corp. in Perth Amboy.

"I had just graduated from Woodbridge High School in 1952 at the age of 16," he said. "The work [done at the corporation] was outstanding … the fa?ade of the old Woodbridge National Bank on Main Street was made of terra cotta."

The coin Mold, unveiled Dec. 2, will be on display until the end of December.
 

Sutton School Re-opens

The Sutton School is set to reopen this morning after being closed for nearly a month because of Mold problems.

School officials say a foul smell in the building was traced to a leaking roof, and that the affected areas have either been fixed or are in the process of being fixed.

Some parents have expressed concerns about the indoor air quality, but tests show the school is safe.
 

Stubborn black Mold must be dug out

Q. My bathroom and tub surround are completely tiled, with grout in good shape in most cases, but in a few areas such as corners, and where the tub meets the floor, the grout tended to break up a bit, so the tiler caulked over it. And at the floor line, where he used clear caulk, it has turned black. What if I used white caulk instead of clear; would that work?

TIRED OF BLACK Mold

A. No, it will not work, and caulking is the wrong thing to use, since the grout has stayed intact except in a few places where it was not compacted enough. The tiled corners are always a problem because there is more space behind the corner tiles than elsewhere, and the cure is to keep pressing in grout until no more will press in. It is a matter of being well compacted.

As for the clear caulk that has turned black, that black is Mold and is probably under the clear caulk, but it can migrate through almost anything. So, dig all caulking out with a sharp pointed tool, then dig out all old grout, treat that joint with full-strength household bleach, rinse, and let dry. Then insert the grout - compactly. You must rinse the bleach off because bleach is compatible with nothing.

Q. My copper water pipes have developed a green stain that sometimes I can rub off. Some people said it is harmless, another said to cut out a short section of the pipe where the stain is and replace it. What is it? Is it harmful? Do I really have to cut out a section and replace it?

FRANCIS GUARDINO, Watertown

A. Leave it alone. It isn't hurting a thing. It is oxidation, which occurs when water hits copper, causing the green color. The water is not from a leak; it is usually from condensation. The oxidation, the green color, is the same on a copper roof or copper gutters, which turn green from weathering. The patina (that green stain), is actually good for the copper, preventing further oxidation.

Q. There is a rough spot on my stainless steel refrigerator, where I used the wrong abrasive on it. How can I restore it to its original good looks?

DESPERATE

A. First, there are no abrasives I know for stainless steel. There are many stainless steel lotions and polishes on the market. Find one and try it. It will relieve the rough part, but I am not sure how long. I am not enamored of stainless steel appliances. There are numerous taboos on their treatment, and they need special treatments themselves. I get a lot more questions on how to treat stainless steel than I do over old-fashioned (and reliable) painted finishes. The only stainless steel appliance that works is my sink, which is full of tiny scratches but still looks good. At least good enough to me.

SoBoCo fights Mold problem at Primary School

The SoBoCo Primary School had different classrooms and various parts of the building checked for Mold on Monday. The testing, ATC Associates, included air testing for Mold where it forced a kindergarten class to move to another classroom.

"Two representatives from ATC came and saw how we cleaned the Mold and observed the steps we had taken," said SoBoCo's facilities director Rick Briedwell. "They said we have taken all of the proper steps and they took air samples from that room and different areas of the school, as well as outside."

The kindergarten room of teacher Beth Glascock was moved recently after Mold was observed on the walls. Primary Principal Scott Salmons said there have not been any student absences due to the Mold problem.

"We moved Mrs. Glascock's room to the Parents As Teachers room and moved the students' tables and daily supplies there as well," Salmons said. "Other teachers have helped make that transition as well. Our first job is to make sure that this is a safe place for children to learn."

Briedwell says the Mold problem stems from block used in construction that turned out to allow moisture in the building.

"It was not a common practice to waterproof the blocks when this building was built," Briedwell said. "They (Midwest Brick and Block) have since discovered some problems with this type of construction block."

Briedwell said the building's general contractor, Septagon Construction, has been seeing a similar problem in a number of buildings.