As peaches come into season, thoughts turn to cakes made with the ripe, juicy fruit. Janelee Sunderland of Baltimore wanted an "old-fashioned Baltimore peach cake with a shortcake or hardtack dough like the one a local bakery once sold."

Audrey Lasseth of Baltimore came up with a recipe that suits the request.

Baltimore Peach Cake

Serves 4-6

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 tablespoons butter

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 cup milk

4 peaches

sugar, to taste

Sift flour, salt and baking powder. Rub in butter with fingers; add egg and milk, and stir gently just until dough comes together. Roll out about 1/2 -inch thick and lay on a shallow, greased baking pan. Peel and cut peaches into eighths and arrange pieces neatly on dough. Sprinkle with sugar to taste. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven for about 30 minutes.

Tester Laura Reiley's comments: "I liked the texture and look of this recipe. The crust resembles a simple shortbread with a nice crumble, and the pretty baked peaches are a nice contrast of flavor and texture. The crust is not at all sweet, so I would suggest adding 1/2 cup of sugar to the flour, salt and baking powder in the first step."

Recipe requests

* Daryl Olson of Powell Butte, Ore., wants a "brown betty recipe, which was made with apples, bread cubes and a brown-sugar sauce that caramelized and had no milk or eggs." He also is looking for a recipe for a rhubarb crisp, which had an oatmeal topping and a caramelized sauce.

* V. Hartman of Baltimore is seeking a buttermilk candy, which "is a sinfully rich treat."

* Jan Christensen of Baltimore is seeking an English muffin bread, "which I made years ago and have since lost my copy of the recipe. The texture and appearance was like English muffins, but it was prepared as a bread loaf and had a sandwich-bread shape."

* Donna E. Welly of Whispering Pines, N.C., writes that she is seeking a "spinach cheese dip which is served hot. I tasted a delicious one at Charley's Restaurant in Charlotte, N.C."

If you are looking for a recipe or can answer a request for a hard-to-find recipe, write to Ellen Hawks, Recipe Finder, The Sun, 501 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, Md. 21278. If you send in more than one recipe, please put each on a separate sheet of paper with your name, address and daytime phone number. Important: Please list the ingredients in order of use, and note the number of servings each recipe makes. Please type or print contributions. Letters may be edited for clarity.