My friend and neighbor Cindi Rasmussen is also our local postmaster here in Weimar. She was just awarded the official postmaster position in December and the residents of Weimar couldn't be happier. She is so friendly and efficient and she's a great cook to boot!
I decided to host a pre-Christmas gathering at our house, and being it was right during the busy, hectic holiday season, we all agreed that a potluck would be an excellent idea.
I really love dinners where people bring their very favorite dishes, because it's a great way to collect tried and true recipes!
Cindi offered to bring a couple of vegetable dishes - one a spunky corn casserole and the other an absolutely delicious carrot dish. Both were wonderful.
In fact, we celebrated our son's 20th birthday dinner on Sunday, and I made this carrot dish.
When I told him what it was, he said, "Ooh - I don't like carrots at all." When he asked for seconds, I was not surprised, but he sure was!
Cindi first tasted this dish at A.J. Bump's restaurant in Freeport, a delta town just south of Sacramento. She and her mother-in-law loved the dish, but were never given the recipe from the restaurant.
So through trial and error, she finally arrived at this version and she thinks it is actually quite close.
"It's been a favorite of family and friends for years," Cindi noted.

- Cindi's Carrots of the Ritz
2 lbs. carrots, peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces (or 2 lb package of baby carrots)
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1/3 cup butter, cut into small pieces
1 package of Ritz crackers (about 35), crushed
1 egg, beaten
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup cheddar or jalapeno jack cheese, shredded
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Cook carrots in boiling water till just soft. Drain, reserving one cup of the water. Mash carrots and while still warm stir in butter, onion, crackers and reserved water. Add egg, salt and pepper. Mix well. Spray 8x8 inch baking dish with non stick spray. Place carrot mixture in dish. Bake 30 minutes. Top with cheese and bake another five minutes or until cheese is melted.
*When I made this, I accidentally mixed the cheese into the carrot mixture before baking and after realizing my mistake, I sprinkled a little grated Parmesan over the top. This turned out really well, too. I think it would also be good to mix half the cheese into the carrot mixture before baking and sprinkle the other half over the top for the final five minutes.
Susie can be reached at suziven@hughes.net.