Walnuts

  Gruyère and walnut bread Total time: About 1 1/2 hours, plus rising and cooling times Servings: 16 to 20 Note: Adapted from "Bake!" by Nick Malgieri. This recipe requires the use of a stand mixer. Show us your photos: If you try this recipe, we want photographic evidence: Click here to upload pictures of the finished dish. 6 1/2 cups bread flour (spoon into a dry measuring cup and level off) 1 tablespoon sugar 1 tablespoon salt 2 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper or crushed red pepper, optional 1/4 cup (1/2 stick)

  Torta di Noci (Rosangela's flourless walnut cake) Total time: 1 1/2 hours Servings: 8 Note: Adapted from "My Calabria" by Rosetta Costantino. Show us your photos: If you try this recipe, send us photographic evidence: Click here to upload pictures of the finished dish. 8 ounces walnuts Butter and flour for the cake pan 6 eggs 3/4 cup sugar, divided Grated zest of 1 lemon Pinch of kosher salt Powdered sugar for dusting 1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

How high is too high when it comes to your blood pressure? A reading of 140/90 and up is considered high. About two-thirds of Americans older than 65 have high blood pressure, and more may experience pre-hypertension. There's no quick and easy way to reduce blood pressure, but a combination of exercise and eating right can help. DASH, or Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension , published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, outlines specific foods and serving sizes for a 2,000-calorie diet that may help bring your numbers down.

  Dear SOS: Every summer, we vacation at Twin Lakes near Bridgeport, Calif., in the Eastern Sierra. The 1881 Coffee Cafe, in a historic 1881 house, has the most incredible baked goods. We recently had an apple walnut loaf with a crusty cinnamon topping — absolutely delicious. Do you think you could obtain the recipe? Nancy Dworzak Westminster Dear Nancy: We were smitten with this loaf even before it came out of the oven, the scents of cinnamon and apple perfuming the kitchen as it baked.

Supporters of a white former BART officer convicted of involuntary manslaughter for killing an unarmed black passenger squared off against anti-police protesters Monday in a noisy demonstration that closed a suburban commuter thoroughfare and brought a massive police presence. The demonstration in this upscale, predominantly white suburb a short distance from Oakland began as a rally to express sympathy for Johannes Mehserle, who is behind bars as he awaits sentencing. Demonstrators who said they were retired officers or had friends and family in law enforcement gathered in a courthouse parking lot with signs that read "Mercy for Mehserle," "Jail Criminals, Not Police" and "If U Don't Like Police Officers, Next Time You Need Help, Call a Meth Head."

Brush fires burned across parched hillsides in three Southern California counties Tuesday, briefly threatening homes in Walnut and Camarillo and scorching at least 2,700 acres at Camp Pendleton. The wildfires came as the region basked under sunny skies and warm weather after experiencing gloomy conditions and lower-than-normal temperatures for much of July. "This was our first warm day," said Ventura County Fire Department Capt. Ron Oatman. In the Camarillo and Walnut blazes, fire officials credited aggressive tactics and vigilant brush clearance by residents with helping crews beat back flames.

  My husband and I really enjoy Mountain Restaurant, which we find to be one of Southern California's hidden jewels. Among their delicious offerings is a walnut praline shortbread cookie. Can you get us the recipe? John and Ginny Robinson San Diego Dear John and Ginny: Mountain Restaurant was happy to share its recipe, which we've adapted below. It combines rich, crumbly walnut shortbread with a sweet honeyed praline and chopped walnuts. The recipe makes about three dozen cookies, which is a good thing because it's hard to eat just one. Mountain Restaurant's walnut praline shortbread Total time: 35 minutes, plus chilling Servings: About 3 dozen cookies Note: Adapted from Mountain Restaurant in Idyllwild.

Celery salad with pig ear, bacon and walnuts Total time: 1 hour, plus braising and chilling times Servings: 6 Note: Pig ears can be found at Chinese and select general Asian markets. This recipe makes more pig ears than is needed for the salad; they store well covered tightly and frozen. BRAISED PIG EARS 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 cup diced carrots 1 cup diced celery 2 cups diced onion 3 cloves garlic, chopped 2 pounds pig ears (about 4)

Update: A Beverly Hills house designed by architect Wallace Neff in 1956 for comedic actor Groucho Marx has sold for $8.8 million. The rebuilt and updated Trousdale Estates home, which maintains its Neff footprint, is approached through a motor court with a central fountain. The one-story contemporary has walls of wood and glass and floors of terrazzo and walnut. There are five bedrooms, six bathrooms, a library and a maid's suite in slightly more than 6,000 square feet.