Bonita Burbank, of Redmond, was looking for a recipe for what she called mock apple pie. She said this was a popular recipe back in the 1970s and that it was made with Ritz crackers in place of apples.

Many readers sent in the recipe for a two-crust pastry version of a mock apple pie that appeared on the box of Ritz crackers back in the day. (In fact, several readers sent me the recipe cut from the side of the Ritz box.) I also received several recipe versions from the Internet.

Since that seemed so easy to find, I decided to test a slightly more unusual recipe for faux apple pie that was sent in by Dovey Kahn, of Baltimore, for a dish called apple pie mirage. She said it came from a cookbook called “Thoughts for Buffet” and that she tried it many years ago and it really did taste like an apple pie. I have a copy of the book, published in 1958, that belonged to my mother, and sure enough, there in the menu for the Football Buffet Supper (along with an eggnog pretzel pie) is the recipe for apple pie mirage. This old book is full of period recipe and entertaining tips, many of which are quite elegant but clearly from another era.

It’s surprisingly good and, amazingly, tastes like real apple pie. Plus, it’s simple to make, thanks to the fact that it has no pastry crust or apples to prepare, and the house smells great while it cooks. As it says at the end of the recipe, “believe it or not, this is Apple Pie — no apples, no errors.” Serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and I’ll bet you’ll have just about everyone fooled.

Recipe requests

Debbie Housden, of Baltimore, is looking for two recipes that she thinks may have been in The Baltimore Sun 10 or 20 years ago. The first is for an apple crisp that was made with apple pie filling instead of fresh apples, along with cornflakes and cinnamon. The second recipe is for chicken divan. The chicken and broccoli were covered with a mixture that included mayonnaise and cream of chicken soup, but she can’t remember anything else.