Halloween has been here and gone. Lots of parties scheduled. Some for children, some for adults and anyone I talked with said it was a great holiday. I used to go to a Halloween party every year. It was so much fun to figure out a costume to wear: I mentioned in my October column last year how the employees who worked on Halloween at my restaurant and my dad's when he had one always wore costumes. They loved it and so did the customers.

The Italian-American club had one at the Sunset with music by Sam Giangreco. I'm away for a few days so I missed the party but my friend told me it was a fun one with costumes and great food and everybody dancing.

There have been so many classes listed in the paper to learn different things. There's one to learn to square dance, one to learn hypnosis and one to learn yoga. Guess what? Years ago, a couple friends and I took all those three classes. We had so much fun. Two of the things I still do. I have to admit I don't square dance anymore, but when we did we enjoyed ourselves so much. It seems everyone is always happy when they are dancing, even more so when there is a group involved instead of just couples. I'm going to keep checking the paper. There may be some other classes that I can learn some new things.

Well, there was a bunch of geese swimming around down at the lake last week. I wonder how many other parts of the lake had so many stop along the shores. They get here early in the morning and leave in the afternoon.

I wouldn't believe the snow plows have already been out in different parts of the country. My niece, who lives in Santa Fe, N.M., said when they got up the other morning they were greeted by snowflakes. At least some people have the opportunity to live where the weather suits them: warm.

The Merry-Go-Round Playhouse ended for the season. I love going to it. I was so pleased to usher for a couple of the shows. There were certainly a lot of busloads of people that came for the matinees. I like taking bus tours for different events, like a day in New York City. I went on one every year for years and always loved it.

I'll be returning from my short vacation by plane. Hopefully the crew doesn't fly past the city we're supposed to land at. I've never heard of that happening before until I read about it in the paper and saw it on TV. Have you?

We are heading for our winter season. I better get a project. I hope everyone has a healthy, happy season ahead.

If you would like to share a blooper, please do. I won't list your name if you don't want me to. Please send it to The Citizen care of Diana Sobus. Thank you.

My ethnic recipe today is Hungarian. It's for Hungarian pepper dish. My other recipe is for cranberry waldorf salad.

This week's blooper

My blooper today is from a friend. She is an excellent cook and uses a lot of different recipes, which she collects and enters in a notebook. She has a separate book for recipes that her family loves and asks her to cook many times. So far, she has four recipes in that book.

Diana Sobus, of Auburn, specializes in making ethnic foods

Hungarian Pepper Dish

(serves four)

4 large green or red peppers

1 pound ground pork or beef

1 chopped onion

3/4 cup tomatoes

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

3/4 cup cooked rice, cold

4 tablespoons grated cheese

1 1/4 cups water

Clean peppers, cut off tops. Remove seeds and veins. Place in ovenproof dish. Mix meat, onions, tomatoes and seasoning. Mix in rice. Fill peppers with mixture. Sprinkle with cheese. Pour water in bottom of dish so peppers don't burn on bottoms. Bake in oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until peppers are cooked soft. Serve warm with cold sour cream.

Cranberry Waldorf Salad

(serves eight)

1 12-ounce package, fresh cranberries

2 cups sugar

4 medium tart green apples

1/3 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup purple seedless grapes, halved

1/2 cup chopped walnut pieces

1/3 cup mayonnaise (optional)

Wash and pick open the cranberries. Drain well. Coarsely chop cranberries in a food mill or processor. Stir sugar into berries, cover and chill for four hours. Place cranberries in a sieve and allow them to drain well, about one to two hours. When cranberries are drained, core and chop apples, but do not peel. Combine apples, celery, grapes and walnuts and mayonnaise, if using. Gently fold in cranberries.