jhg:

I see what you mean by the feature being "locked".
And there doesn't seem to be a way to "clear" the list that shows up.
You CAN however get the list to change to what you want, it just won't do it automatically. You probably already know how to do it manually, but here it is anyway.

In the Favorite Folders window, click on the open folder icon,
then navigate to one of the folders that you would like to be in the Favorite Folders list (say, PARTY), and click OK.

Now when you go to File > Open Special > Favorite Folders,
the PARTY folder will be at the top.

You'd have to repeat for each folder you would like to see in the list.
Perhaps an entry for the Wish List would be to have a "Clear" button,
and/or radio buttons for "Favorites", "Recently chosen" added to that "Favorite Folders" window.

Good luck!
LLOYD S