SOUTH PARIS – “We don’t think of ourselves as being twins,” said Gloria Tretheway Sawyer. “I just think of her as my sister, unless someone asks if we’re twins.”

“Some days we look more alike, I think. Some days we don’t,” added Marilyn Tretheway Leighton.

Together, the two spend many hours doing volunteer work that involves cooking. They have served countless meals to many people, especially at the First Congregational Church. “This is a very, very busy church,” said Leighton. “Once a month, we do the Church Women United luncheon and we do an AARP luncheon once a month. We’re in on those committees every time.” The two women are also involved in Kiwanis.

“We’re also part of another group that does wedding and funeral receptions, and we’ll travel for that. But we like it here (at the First Congregational Church) because we’re spoiled with our nice great big kitchen, so we suggest our church for the reception as often as we can,” said Sawyer.

The sisters are dedicated to putting on Rotary Club breakfasts. “We have a Rotary breakfast every Wednesday morning. This week, our convection oven wasn’t working, so we had to come up with dishes we could make with just one oven and stovetop, and we managed,” said Leighton.

“The folks at Rotary are very much ‘tryer-outers.’ They’ll try anything. And we try things on them. Sometimes it works, and sometimes we think, ‘Well, we won’t bother with that again,'” said Leighton. “The good part about cooking for a crowd though is that it’s gone by the end of the meal, and you won’t have to take anything horrible home,” Sawyer noted.

The pair learned to cook when they were young, or as Sawyer put it, “We’ve cooked forever!”

“Our grandmother was an elegant cook, and our mother loved to do desserts and fancy things. We kind of grew up in a cooking family. It makes a big difference if people cook and exchange recipes,” said Leighton.

Sawyer cooked for five years at the Norway Nursing Home and then spent five more years cooking for Creative Living, a home for the elderly who care for themselves with some assistance, also in Norway.

Sawyer admits to being a comfort food cook. Leighton loves breads. But, they both really like to make breakfast foods and are always looking for new and different recipes.

“My first cookbook I bought was ‘Good Housekeeping,’ which I still have, in shambles,” said Leighton. Sawyer perfers a variety of books. “After you cook for a hundred years, you don’t always use a cookbook, you just put food together,” she said.

The sisters make it a habit to pick up recipes whenever they travel. “We’ve been on quite a few tours. In fact, one of the recipes I got that we use here for Rotary is the New Orleans beignets, little fried doughnuts that they put confectioners’ sugar on and they serve with cocoa,” said Leighton.

For Mardi Gras this year, they put on a celebration, complete with New Orleans street signs, beads and chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil. “I told the people that if we weren’t going to Mardi Gras, Mardi Gras was coming here,” she said.

When they aren’t cooking, both Leighton and Sawyer love to knit. “We do craft shows. We do special-order knitting. We do as many shows as we’re up to. This year we’re doing 11,” said Leighton.

The twins share a home. Sawyer has six children, four of whom live in town. She also has many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, most of whom live in the area. Leighton and her husband raised a foster son.

New Orleans beignets

Ingredients:

1½ cup warm water

1 package yeast

½ cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup evaporated milk

7 cups flour

¼ cup shortening

Oil for frying

Confectioners’ sugar

Method:

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add sugar, eggs and milk. Gradually add 4 cups of flour, beating with a wooden spoon. Beat in shortening and add rest of flour, 1/3 cup at a time. Beat until stiff, then knead on a floured board. Cover bowl and refrigerate over night. Roll out dough on floured board to 1/8-inch thick. Cut into 2½- by 3½-inch rectangles. Heat oil to 360 degrees F and fry dough until puffed and golden. Drain on paper towels and dust with confectioners’ sugar. Serve warm with coffee.

Orange spice buns

Ingredients:

1 16-ounce package frozen bread

1 tablespoon margarine or butter, melted

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Method:

Thaw frozen bread dough according to package directions. On a lightly floured surface, pat or roll dough into a 12- by 6-inch rectangle. Cut crosswise into a dozen 6- by 1-inch strips. With your fingers, stretch each strip to 10 inches long. To shape into rosettes, tie each rope into a loose knot, leaving one long end. Tuck the end under the roll. Place 2 inches apart on a lightly greased baking sheet. Cover with a clean towel and let rise in a warm place until double in size (about 30 minutes). Once they have risen, brush rosettes with margarine or butter. Combine sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over dough. Bake, uncovered, in a 375-degree F oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a wire rack. Drizzle with orange glaze (see recipe below). Makes 12.

Orange glaze

Ingredients:

1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1 to 2 tablespoons orange juice

Yellow or red food coloring (optional)

Method:

In a small bowl, stir together powdered sugar and enough orange juice to make an icing of drizzling consistency. Add a drop of yellow or red food coloring, if desired.

Peach French toast

Ingredients:

1 29-ounce can sliced peaches in syrup, cut smaller

1 cup brown sugar

½ cup margarine

2 tablespoons water

French bread, sliced

3 eggs

1½ cup milk

1 tablespoon vanilla

Method:

Drain peaches, reserve syrup. Heat sugar and margarine over low heat until melted. Add water. Cook until thick and foamy. Pour into 9- by 13-inch pan. Cool 10 minutes. Place peaches on cooled sauce and cover with sliced bread placed close together. Beat eggs, milk and vanilla. Pour over bread and refrigerate overnight, covered. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes. Loosely cover with foil for the last 10 minutes, if browning too quickly. Serve with warmed peach syrup (recipe below), if desired.

Peach syrup

Ingredients:

2 cups peach juice (from the canned peaches)

4 tablespoons cornstarch

½ cup sugar

Method:

Mix peach juice, cornstarch and sugar. Cook until thick.

Sausage-apple quiche

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon oil

1 large apple, peeled and thinly sliced (any cooking apple)

¾ pound breakfast sausage, crumbled (diced)

1¼ cups chopped onion

1½ cups shredded cheddar (medium or sharp)

3 tablespoons flour

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup half-and-half

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1/8 teaspoon celery seed

1/8 teaspoon dry mustard

1 9-inch crust

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In 10-inch skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add apple and cook, turning often, about 4 minutes. Remove from skillet. Add sausage to skillet. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, about 10 minutes or until thoroughly cooked. Remove sausage from skillet. Pour off all but 1½ tablespoons drippings. Add onion to skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat. Toss the shredded cheddar cheese with flour. Set aside. In large bowl, stir eggs with half-and-half. Add parsley, celery seed and dry mustard. Stir in cheese mixture. Spoon sausage into bottom of pie crust. Top with onion, then apple slices, reserving eight slices. Pour egg and half-and-half mixture into crust. Arrange reserved apple slices on top. Bake 40 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before cutting.

Cinnamon-date scones

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons sugar, divided

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

2 cups flour

2½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons cold butter or margarine

½ cup chopped, pitted dates

2 eggs

1/3 cup half-and-half or milk

Method:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Combine 2 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon in small bowl; set aside. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in medium bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in dates. Beat eggs in separate bowl with fork. Add half-and-half; beat until well blended. Reserve 1 tablespoon egg mixture in small cup. Set aside. Stir remaining egg mixture into flour mixture until soft dough forms. Turn out dough onto well-floured surface. Knead dough gently 10 to 12 times. Roll out dough with lightly floured rolling pin into 9- by 6-inch rectangle. Cut dough into six 3-inch squares with lightly floured knife. Cut each square diagonally in half, making 12 triangles. Place triangles 2 inches apart on lightly greased baking sheets. Brush triangles with reserved egg mixture; sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden. Remove from baking sheets to wire racks. Serve warm or cool.

Crustless quiche

Ingredients:

1½ cups croutons

½ teaspoon butter

1 cup chopped onion

½ pound ham, shredded

1½ cups grated Swiss cheese

4 large eggs

1 tablespoon flour

1½ cups half-and-half or milk

Dash pepper

Method:

Spread croutons in bottom of greased quiche dish. In a large skillet, melt the butter. Add onion and sauté about 3 minutes or until onion has turned a light golden brown. Using a 2-inch heart shaped cookie cutter, cut six hearts from ham slices. Coarsely chop trimmings from the ham and sprinkle ham over croutons in the quiche dish. Spoon the onion over the ham and top with grated cheese. Place eggs in a medium bowl. Using a mixer, beat eggs thoroughly. Add flour, half-and-half and pepper. Beat on low speed until thoroughly combined but not frothy. Place quiche dish on oven rack and pour in egg mixture, making sure all ingredients are covered. Gently push rack back into oven, being careful not to spill egg mixture. Bake 50 minutes in 375-degree F oven until top is golden. Part way through, top with ham hearts, arranging them so that the points are all directed toward the center of the dish. Cool 10 minutes before cutting.