Carmelitas - Testing

https://www.bostongirlbakes.com/milk-chocolate-caramelitas/

Oatmeal dough

¾ cup (170 g) butter, melted

¾ cup (160 g) packed light brown sugar

2 tsps. vanilla extract

1 cup (120 g) flour

1 cup (100 g) rolled oats

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

1¼ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Caramel sauce

350g Millionaire soft caramel

1. Make the caramel. It needs to be fluid when you're ready to pour it into the dessert.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). 
3. Line an 8×8-inch metal pan with parchment paper and grease the paper. Lining your pan is highly recommended for ease of cleanup due to the stickiness of the caramel; set pan aside.
4. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the melted butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth. 
5. Stir in the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt, and stir until combined. Mixture will be thick. 
6. Add half of the cookie mixture to the prepared pan and smooth. Set the rest aside. Bake in the preheated 350°F for 15 minutes.
7. After 10 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle with the chocolate chips. Slowly pour the caramel over the chocolate, leaving a small border to the edge. (The caramel has a tendency to stick, so I make sure to not spread the caramel right to the edge.) 
8. Crumble the remaining oatmeal dough on top. 
9. Return the pan to the oven and bake for about 15-20 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned and the center is bubbling slightly. If using a glass pan, your bars may take slightly longer.
10. Allow bars to cool completely, for 1 to 2 hours, in the pan before slicing and serving. This permits the caramel time to firm up. (Time may vary on cooling, and may take longer). You can speed up the process through refrigeration.

Biryani Omelette - Testing

We had a potluck and someone left biryani. What to do? Throw an egg on top!

Per Single Serving

1 cup leftover biryani rice (ensure it is cold)

2-3 large eggs

1-2 tbsp chilli oil or ghee (ghee enhances the biryani flavor)

1 tbsp spring onions, chopped (optional)

Salt & pepper to taste

1. Heat the oil/ghee in a 8" oven-proof fry pan. 
2. Add the leftover biryani rice and spread it in a thin, even layer. 
3. Press it down with a spatula to help it form a crust. 
4. Let it cook undisturbed for 5-6 minutes until golden and crispy.
5. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs with a pinch of salt and pepper until frothy. 
6. Pour the whisked eggs directly over the rice, ensuring it covers the rice completely.
7. Immediately sprinkle the spring onions over the eggs. 
8. With the egg still uncooked on the surface, (not just slithery but actually jiggly), slip the pan into the oven and broil.
9. When the egg is set and the edges puff up a little, take it out of the oven and carefully fold the omelette before serving.
10. Fold the omelette in half and serve immediately with hot sauce or yogurt.

Apple Jelly Layer Cake - Testing

https://food52.com/recipes/23704-old-fashioned-apple-jelly-cake

2 cup sugar (450g) (I want to try decreasing by 1/4 cup)

3 1/2 cup flour (450g)

1 Tbsp baking powder

228g/1 cup butter, cut into pieces

5 eggs

1 cup milk

1 Tbsp vanilla 

500-600g apple jelly

1. Prepare four 8" cake pans by buttering them.
2. In a mixer bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
3. Gradually blend the butter in until thoroughly combined - it will look like rough sand. 
4. Add the eggs one at a time before adding the milk slowly, and finally the vanilla.
5. Divide the cake batter into four equal portions and pour into the cake pans. 
6. Bake at 325F for 15-20 minutes per layer, or until layers are golden around the edges and a toothpick comes out clean. 
7. Allow layers to cool a bit in the pan, then turn out onto a clean dish towel or cooling rack.
8. While the layers are still warm, put the first layer on a serving platter. Spread a layer of the apple jelly (I SHOULD KNOW THE WEIGHT), apply the next layer and repeat until you put the fourth layer on.
9. Spread the rest of the jelly over the entire cake. Let it cool completely before serving.

Zuppa d’Orzo Trentina with Beans - Untested

https://www.davidezambelli.com/ricette/minestra-d-orzo-trentina/

150g hulled barley (preferable, but pearl is ok)

60g dried borlotti beans

350g potatoes, small cubes

150g carrots, small cubes

2 celery stalks (90g) small cubes 

100g Savoy cabbage or cabbage, small cubes

40g leek, small cubes

1 cleaned pig's trotter (or smoked ham hock) about 500g

80g bacon ends, large chop

Approximately 2 litres of water

400 ml milk

Salt to taste

1. Soak the borlotti together for 8–18 hours. 
2. Bring the water to a near boil, add the drained beans and the barley, then all the vegetables cut small. 
3. Cook covered for 20 minutes, then add the hock and the bacon ends, salt, cover with a slight gap, and simmer for 90 minutes stirring occasionally. 
4. (Here you could remove it from the heat and refrigerate overnight to remove the cold fat cap on the surface.)
5. Thirty minutes before the end, add the 400ml of milk — this is what gives the soup its characteristic creaminess and body.
6. Remove the bacon ends and the hock. You can either set it on a board cut into serving pieces for diners to help themselves or chop the bacon in chunks and shred the hock and mix in (removing fat, skin and bone of course).

Green Harissa - Untested

https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/gjustas-green-harissa

Schmear this on sandwiches, use it to marinate shrimp or chicken, or spoon a dollop onto eggs.

Makes about 2 cups

½ onion, halved

1 tomatillo, husk removed, rinsed

1 jalapeño, halved, seeds removed from 1 half

4 garlic cloves, peeled

1 tablespoon plus ½ cup olive oil

2 cups cilantro leaves with tender stems (from about ½ bunch)

2 cups parsley leaves with tender stems (from about ½ bunch)

2 cups trimmed arugula

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon chopped preserved lemon or 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Toss onion, tomatillo, jalapeño, garlic, and 1 Tbsp. oil on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast, tossing once, until vegetables are soft, 12–15 minutes. Let cool.
2. Purée vegetables in a food processor along with cilantro, parsley, arugula, vinegar, preserved lemon, and remaining ½ cup oil until smooth; season with salt and pepper.
3. Harissa can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and chill.

Cornbread with Acorn Squash - Testing

It's apparently a First Nations thing (the originators of cornbread) to add acorn squash mash to cornbread. This makes me very curious, so I'm going to try to incorporate it into my own recipe for cornbread.

1- This worked quite nicely. I made it in a shallower pan and in the Ninja oven, so the middle is a bit underdone and the top is a gorgeous brown (which means that baking it longer would have made to too dark). Next time I'll use a wide pie plate or cake tin, and maybe in the big oven, just to see? Anyway, I was looking for ways of using the acorn squash other than just baking it or stuffing it (I have an aversion to stuffed vegetables, I have no idea why), and there is precious little. I already have lovely soup though. I discovered that it is an Eastern Woodlands First Nations vegetable (my stomping grounds as a youth), and that acorn squash was used in the traditional cornbread.

½ cup milk (125g)

125g finely mashed acorn squash

6 Tbsps (3oz/84 gr) melted fat (butter, lard, olive oil, whatever)

2 large eggs

1¼ cups (210g) cornmeal 

1¼ cup (180g) flour

2 Tbsps to ⅓ cup sugar

1 Tbsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1. Heat oven to 400°F.
2. Halve the squash, brush with a little oil, roast with the cut-side down until completely tender — 35-45 minutes. Scoop and mash smooth until there are no lumps.
3. Grease bottom and side of a round cake pan or line with parchment paper.
4. Whisk the milk, butter and eggs in large bowl.
5. Plop in the remaining ingredients all at once and stir just until the flour is moistened (the batter will be lumpy).
6. Pour it into the pan.
7. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and it passes the toothpick test.
8. Cut into wedges and serve.

Chicken with Beluga Lentils and Swiss chard - Untested

A dish built in layers: browned chicken, lentils that take on that depth, and greens folded in at the end to soften and lift.

3 Tbsps. olive oil

1 chicken cut into 8 parts (skin on)

½ tsp salt, to taste

½ tsp chili flakes

1 cup leeks (cleaned and sliced (about 2 large leeks))

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp smoked paprika

1 cup beluga lentils

1 cup white wine 

14oz fire roasted tomatoes

2 cups chicken broth 

1 Tbsp hot sauce

½ tsp salt (to taste)

¼ tsp pepper

~250g Swiss chard, stem sliced thin, leaves chopped

1 Tbsp fresh thyme 

1. Heat the oil and the butter in a large lidded casserole. Season the chicken, then fry for about 5 minutes on each side until golden brown. Remove and set aside.
2. Pour off excess fat, but leave enough to carry flavour.
3. In that same pot, add the onion (this might be a better place for stems) and fry about 5 minutes, until soft. 
4. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, then add the Swiss chard stems, sliced thinly, cooking just as the stems start to soften.
5. If the pot feels dry or the fond threatens to catch too hard, loosen it with a splash of wine or broth. Let it reduce slightly; this is where the sauce begins to form.
6. Add the lentils and stir them to coat, then add the tomato, paprika, and broth. The liquid should feel sufficient but not excessive — this is not a soup. Bring it to a gentle simmer.
7. Add the chicken legs and thighs first, nestled into the lentils. Simmer very gently for about 15 to 20 minutes. 
8. When the lentils are just starting to soften, add the breasts and cook for about another 15 minutes.
9. Check the amount of liquid, if it's too soupy, let it cook uncovered to reduce the liquid. If too dry, add a little broth.
10. Fold in the chard leaves and continue to cook slowly for another 2 to 3 minutes.
11. Last but not least, add the vinegar and stir through. 
12. It does well to leave it sit off the heat for a bit; the lentils will thicken slightly and the flavours round out. If it cools too much, just reheat.