We have a quick recipe that's easy enough for kids to prepare. “Dog in a Blanket” is just a clever name for hot dogs wrapped in cheese and refrigerated biscuits. They're fun to make — but each serving contains 23 grams of fat. To reduce the fat, we:

        • Replaced the refrigerated biscuits with refrigerated dinner rolls. We used “traditional-style” — not the higher fat “crescent” rolls.

        • Used fat-free hot dogs.

        • Used light American cheese slices. We tried “fat-free” cheese slices, but felt they lacked flavor.

        The refrigerated dinner rolls worked well as a replacement for the higher fat biscuits. Hot dogs and light cheese vary according to individual taste, so use the ones you like best.

        With only 4 grams of fat each, we think the whole family will enjoy a “Dog in a Blanket.”

        Tip of the Week: We don't normally single out specific brands, but feel compelled to mention our favorite fat-free hot dog. Ball Park Fat-Free Franks are the best we've tried.
       Contact Karen Weber, Pat Streicher and Ellen Illig of Jewish Hospital's Cholesterol Center by phone: 585-7946; fax: 585-6107; e-mail (weberkd@healthall.com).
       
       Dog in a Blanket
       

        1 can (8 count) refrigerator dinner rolls, such as Pillsbury Traditional Dinner Rolls
       8 fat-free hot dogs, such as Ball Park Fat Free Franks
       8 slices light American cheese individually wrapped singles, such as Kraft 2%

        Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray cookie sheet with vegetable oil spray. Flatten rolls into 4 to 5-inch circles. Place slice of cheese on each circle; place hot dog on cheese. Roll up, slightly overlapping roll. Secure with a toothpick. Place on prepared sheet; bake at 375 degrees 10 minutes or until rolls are brown. Makes 8 servings.
       Before And After
       Values based on 1 serving
       Dog in a Blanket...Adapted
       Calories 322 ...175
       Fat...... 23 g....4 g
       Carbohydrate...18 g...19 g
       Sodium 1177 mg...923 mg
       Cholesterol 38 mg...23 mg
       Calories
       from fat.... 64%...22%
       Nutritionists recommend those on a daily 2,000 calorie diet limit their fat consumption to 65 g or less, cholesterol to 300 mg or less and sodium to 2,400 mg or less per day.
       
       

Campbell's Scoop
        Where to take a Leo (July 23-Aug. 23): Leos, whose ruling planet is the sun, are described as people who think themselves the center of the universe: egocentric, passionate and extravagant. Take your Leo to Tink's Cafe in Clifton, where he or she can be the center of attention, not just of the restaurant, but the people walking past on the street as well. 3410 Telford Ave.; 961-6500.
       

Required Reading
        Salt is the cheapest, most common seasoning we use in the kitchen; saffron the most expensive and exotic. Two recently published books explore the history, uses and lore of these two substances. Salt: Grain of Life (Columbia University Press; $22.95) is the more scholarly. Author Pierre Laszlo, a professor of chemistry, travels discursively and rather verbosely through salt's chemistry, its commercial history, its metaphorical and literary associations and its central position in much of human history. Salt was certainly not always the cheapest seasoning, and empires were built and and wars fought for its sake. Saffron: The Vagabond Life of the World's Most Seductive Spice (Beacon Press; $23) is a more personal book, and an easier read. Pat Willard begins with a story of a saffron seafood dish that became a seduction and then explores the long and eventful history of a spice that is still valuable because it is so painstakingly raised and harvested. Crocuses, relatives of the common spring flowers, are planted in June and harvested by hand in October. The slender stigmas then are removed and dried.
       

For Good Measure
        Recipes don't always call for ingredients measured the way you have them. The July issue of Good Housekeeping contains this chart of useful equivalents for some summer fruit:

        • Strawberries: 1 pint equals 3 1/4 cups whole, 2 1/4 cups sliced.

        • Raspberries and blackberries: 1/2 pint equals 1 cup.

        • Blueberries: 1 pint equals 2 1/2 cups.

        • Peaches and nectarines: 1 pound (three medium) equals 2 1/4 cups peeled and sliced, 2 cups peeled and diced.

        • Plums: 1 pound (four to five medium) equals 3 cups sliced or diced.

        • Sweet cherries: 1 pound equals 3 cups; 2 cups pitted.

        • Apricots: 1 pound (six medium) equals 1 cup sliced.

        • Green grapes: 1 pound equals 3 cups
       

Tube Food
        Tailgating and Florida swamp food highlight Extreme Cuisine at 4:30 p.m. Sundayon the Food Network, with a look at a steak-eating contest, champagne tower and a giant chocolate dinosaur.
       

Learn To Cook
        These cooking schools offer classes at different times of the year. Call for schedules and prices.

        • Cooks' Wares, Shops at Harper's Point, Symmes Township. 489-6400.

        • Cooking School at Jungle Jim's Market, Fairfield. 829-1919, Ext. 3.

        • Culinary Sol, Rookwood Commons, Norwood. 841-2665.

        • Dorothy Lane Market School of Cooking, Dayton. (937) 434-1294.

        • Kremer's Market Cooking Classes, Crescent Springs. 341-1067.

        • Restaurant Equipment Outlet's Cooking Classes, Northside. 542-5900.

        • Wild Oats, Rookwood Commons, Norwood. 531-8015.

        • Williams-Sonoma Grand Cuisine, Kenwood Towne Centre, 793-3445.

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