TOUGH TO GO WRONG WITH GARLIC AND BEEF:

For Halloween, dare to return to Dracula's Romanian roots in these recipes (MARY MEITUS, October 18, 2006, ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS)

If you'd like an authentic touch of Dracula's homeland at a Halloween party, consider preparing some of the dishes of Romania. [...]

The food is primarily bread- and meat-based. After years of occupation by many countries, Romania's cuisine takes its influence from Hungary and Russia, as well as the seasonal availability of native ingredients.

The Romanian National Tourist Office (www.romaniatourism.com) in New York City describes these ingredients as sour cream, eggs and tarragon, and lists favorite foods such as tart soups, hearty stews, mititei (small skinless grilled sausages), lamb, beef and poultry dishes, carp and herring, tuica (a plum brandy), breads, polenta and clatite, a dessert crepe. The region also produces some well-respected wines.

Bram Stoker, whose famous "Dracula" started it all, is thought to have based his character on a real-life "dracula." Rather than downplay the Dracula myth, many Romanians embrace the original Stoker story, even if it's just for the benefit of tourists. In Bucharest, the capital, there's even a restaurant called the Count Dracula Club. And the Romanian National Tourist Office provided the crepe recipe, with permission from Nicolae Klepper, from her cookbook "Taste of Romania." [...]

FLEICA (GRILLED STEAK WITH GARLIC)

# 3-4 garlic cloves, peeled
# Juice of 2 lemons
# 1/2 teaspoon salt
# Freshly ground black pepper to taste
# 1 (2- to 3-pound) flank steak or 4 sirloin (New York) strip or rib-eye steaks or an equivalent amount of skirt steak
# 3 tablespoons butter, melted
# 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves

If you have a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic with the lemon juice and salt until a paste is formed. Otherwise, mince the garlic finely and stir it with the salt into the lemon juice. Use the back of a wooden spoon to smash the garlic as much as you can.

Press the pepper into the steak and then spread the garlic mixture evenly on both sides. Let the steak marinate for an hour at room temperature.

Meanwhile, start a charcoal or gas grill or preheat the broiler; the fire should be moderately hot and the rack about 4 inches from the heat source.

When ready to cook, brush the melted butter onto the steak and then place on the grill. Continue to baste with any remaining butter while the steak is cooking, about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Garnish with the parsley and serve.

From "The Best Recipes in the World" by Mark Bittman