Untested - Spiced Pumpkin Cookies

http://www.onceuponachef.com/2012/10/spiced-pumpkin-cookies.html#tabreviews
http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2013/09/04/pumpkin-chocolate-chip-cookies/

3 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off with back edge of knife
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/4 cups canned pumpkin purée (from one 15-ounce can, though you'll have some left over)
2-3 tablespoons turbinado (or demerara) sugar

1. Arrange oven racks in upper and middle thirds and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter with the white and brown sugars until light and fluffy, a few minutes. Scrape down the bowl, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in the vanilla and pumpkin puree (don't worry if the mixture looks somewhat broken). Scrape down the bowl, then mix in the flour mixture on low speed. Wrap and put in the refrigerator to rest for one hour and up to 72 hours.
4. Scoop the dough by heaping tablespoons (preferably using a 1-1/2 tablespoon ice cream scooper) onto the prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle cookies evenly with turbinado sugar and bake for about 20 minutes, rotating pans midway through, until puffed and slightly browned around the edges. Remove from the oven and let rest for a few minutes on baking sheets, then transfer with a spatula to a wire rack to cool. These cookies are best enjoyed warm out of the oven, or on the same day.

Test 3 NOTE - Pasta e fagioli (Spaghetti with Bean Sauce)

1- Sometimes, failures are awesome. I had a cup of cooked Hidatsa Shield Figure Beans and tried making the Pottage recipe, which requires uncooked beans; I also didn't have any oregano, dry or fresh, on hand, so I substituted with marjoram. It turned out really wet, so I boiled it down, which created a really delicious sauce, which I serve over pasta! Awesome!
2 - A lovely, simple, understated comfort food.
3 - Again used the Hidatsa, but doubled the amount, and changed the instructions a bit to mix the pasta directly into the sauce before serving. I will graduate it to Test 3 even though I've made these changes, and if next time it ends up being as delicious, I will publish it, otherwise I will hold it back.
4 - NOTE : I've slightly altered the recipe, looking up Italian recipes for pasta and beans - there I found that the beans are run through the blender! How exciting! I will try this in my next attempt at this recipe.

5 - Sep 18 2021 - After a few years since last I made this, I made it again and it continues to be very good. I did try to grind the beans, using a food processor for a rough chop. Ben thought it was good like that, but I don't know if, for me, it was that the beans weren't quite cooked (I used purchased Mexican red beans) and were a bit grainy, or if it was the bean skins. Next time I will blender the beans into a fine slurry to see how that goes. No alterations for proportions or anything of the sort.

6 - Jul 17 2022 - This doesn't get made often because dry beans and fresh tomato season don't really go together. But I did make it, and it was good, and I learned some more about it. First, this time around it was obvious that, if I'm mixing the noodles with the sauce, 8oz is definitely too little in terms of dry pasta proportions. I am changing it to 1lb of pasta. Secondly, I made it with pinto beans that started to go soft, and didn't remove the tomato skins. I did a quick pulse in the blender to combine the two, and I feel that the texture is not right, and the skins of both the beans and the tomato are the problem. Next time it may be to liquify in the blender, or it may be to pass the sauce through a sieve, or maybe even both. It could also be that there are two recipes in this - one for firm beans in hot stewed tomato sauce over pasta, the other a creamy bean sauce that happens to have tomato in it.

2 cups cooked white beans (if possible, cooked with bay and thyme in the water)
2 Tbsps olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 tsp marjoram, dry
Salt, to taste
1/2  tsp pepper
3 large tomatoes, skinned (to skin, cut an X on the bottom and simmer in water for 1 minute)
2 cups chicken broth
1 tsp fruit vinegar (either, red wine, white wine, plum, apple cider, etc)
Parmesan
1lb pasta

1. Soak the dry beans overnight and then boil in fresh water with a bay leaf and a sprig of thyme until perfectly done (slightly underdone beans will create a mealy texture in the final sauce.)
2. Brown the garlic in the oil; remove the pan from your heat source.
3. Add marjoram and bay leaf and beans, stir in for about a minute more just to allow the flavours to mingle. Remove the bay leaf, season with salt and pepper. 
4. Run this mixture through a blender until smooth, adding a flavorful liquid such as the bean cooking water or broth from step 2 if it gets too thick. (You may want to run this through a sieve to remove any tough skins that haven't ground down enough.)
5. In a separate pot add the tomatoes and the chicken stock. Bring to a boil to cook the tomatoes. 
6. In yet another pot prepare the noodles in salted water.
7. Reduce to a rapid simmer and cook, uncovered, until the liquid reduces by about a third to a half. Stir occasionally. This should take as long as it takes for the pasta water to come to a boil and cook the noodles.
8. Stir in the ground beans to heat through.
9. Add the fruit vinegar (I use plum).
10. Combine the pasta and the sauce before serving.
11. Top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and fresh ground pepper.

Slowly Cooked Spiced Red Cabbage Soup - PUBLISHED

1 - A really interesting blend of flavours. Was it a fluke, or can I reproduce it?
2 - Yes! And it was good. There was talk of increasing the tartness, so next time I may grate the rind of 1 lemon and add it to the soup instead of just a strip of peel in the spice bag.
3 - Universally good. Still a bit sweet, so I think next time I'll try reducing the sugar and tasting up to the right amount. Did not grate the rind.

4 - This is a slow recipe, or it takes a long time to cook. I have to keep this in mind. And I should also indicate that it's great to have simmering on a wood stove to take advantage of the radiant heat and avoid using gas or electricity by keeping just a stovetop on.

5 - Taking the time to let it cook properly really makes a big difference. Very good.

Cook Time: 2h30min

6 slices smoked bacon (approx. 90g), chopped en lardons
1 large onion (10oz/285g) chopped small
1 large carrot (4 to 5oz/145g) chopped small
1 firm, tart apple, chopped small
1½ tsps. caraway seeds
1 small head (1½ lbs.) red cabbage, diced
¼ tsp pepper
⅛ tsp nutmeg
In a cheesecloth bundle collect: 5 or 6 juniper berries; 3 or 4 whole cloves; 2 fresh bay leaves; a strip of fresh lemon or lime peel (grated instead, maybe?); 1 small cinnamon stick
1⁄4 cup plum vinegar or cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp dark brown sugar
6 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
1 tsp salt

1. In a soup pot render the fat from the bacon until the meat is crisp. Remove the bacon bits and set aside. If there isn't enough fat at the bottom of the pot, add some oil.
2. Add the onion, carrot, apple, and caraway and cook until the onion is soft. 
3. Add the cabbage and season with pepper and nutmeg. Cover and cook just to wilt the cabbage. 
4. Return the bacon to the pot and add the spices, the vinegar, brown sugar, stock, water and salt, and bring to a boil. 
5. Simmer uncovered until the cabbage is very tender and the soup has thickened/reduced, about 1 to 1½ hours.
6. Adjust the salt to your taste.

Test 1 - Cabbage Soup

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/cabbage_soup/#ixzz4SN2iuMHp

1 - Excellent, and could be improved upon. The flavouring is good with the spices and heat, and more could make it even better. Maybe rice? A mix of mirepoid-type veggies? Beans? Although if I add beans, then I for sure have to add some seaweed because the methane production could be disastrous.
2 - Added a mirepoid of carrot and celery and it turned it into a very good vegetable soup. Not stellar, but very good... I suppose there's only so much you can do with cabbage soup.

2 tsps oil
1 tsp butter
1⁄2 tsp coriander seeds (or 1⁄4 tsp ground coriander)
1⁄2 tsp fennel seeds (or 1⁄4 tsp ground fennel)
1⁄4 tsp cumin seeds (or 1⁄8 tsp ground cumin)
1⁄4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 1⁄4 cups)
1 carrot, small dice
1 celery, small dice
4 to 5 cups, packed, 1⁄4-inch wide sliced green cabbage (from about 1 small cabbage)
1⁄2 to 1 tsp salt
15 oz peeled tomatoes
4 cups light unsalted stock
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Grind spices if using whole spices: If using whole spices (coriander, fennel, cumin), grind them in a mortar and pestle or in a spice grinder until well ground.
2. In a soup pot, sauté the onions, carrot, celery and spices in the oil and melted butter over medium-low heat. Cook until the onions have softened, about 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the sliced cabbage. Add the tomatoes, with their juices, to the pot. Stir to heat through.
4. Add the stock and salt, and simmer for another 25 minutes or until the cabbage is completely cooked. Add more salt to taste.
5. Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper to serve.

Traditional Cassoulet

Start here, he has interesting things to say, in particular the points about supposed to be a simple country meal and also confit gets cooked twice:
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/10/traditional-french-cassoulet-recipe.html

Then:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/sausage-and-white-bean-cassoulet-14292
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1400/raymond-blancs-cassoulet
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2014/mar/19/how-to-cook-perfect-cassoulet
http://www.foodrepublic.com/recipes/claudettes-classic-cassoulet-recipe/

ALSO:
https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/2250-cassoulet

http://www.academie-du-cassoulet.com/le-cassoulet/recettes/

https://www.femina.fr/recette/cassoulet-de-carcassonne-de-julie-andrieu

Testing - Celeriac Soup with Cheddar

http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015711-celeriac-potato-leek-and-apple-soup

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2077/chunky-cheddar-and-celeriac-soup

https://www.rivercottage.net/recipes/celeriac-soup

1 Tbsp oil

1 onion, diced

2 leeks, sliced 

Salt to taste

2 lbs celeriac, peeled and diced

1 large floury potato (about 3/4 pound), peeled and diced

4 sage leaves, fresh

2 strips lemon peel

2 apples, cored, peeled and diced

6-8 cups water or light stock

Bouquet garni (a bay leaf, 2-3 sprigs each thyme, parsley, and celery root leaves)

Freshly ground pepper to taste

1. In a heavy soup pot heat cook the onion and leeks in the oil with a pinch of salt, about 5 minutes over medium heat.
2. Add the sage, stir and cook until fragrant, then add the celeriac, potato, sage, lemon peel, apple, liquid and bouquet garni and simmer gently until the veg are tender and the herbs have infused the soup, about 20-30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, dice the cheddar quite small.
4. When the veg are tender, remove the lemon peel and bouquet garni and puree with a wand blender until partially blended, ie. with some chunkiness left for texture.
5. When ready to serve, stir in the cheddar and ladle into soup bowls.
6. OPTIONAL - for a garnish, at the beginning, fry a few sage leaves in the oil and set aside. When the soup is ladled in the bowls, garnish with the fried sage leaves. 

Sausage and bean stew - PUBLISHED

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/vegetableandbeancass_82705

1 - This worked out quite nicely. The night I made it, I was distracted and forgot to add the salt. The next day, we had it for lunch, and I realized my mistake. I also sprinkled some fresh Parmesan. It made all the difference.
2 - Made it with Cassoulet beans... the clear winners! They are very thin skinned, and cook up soft, and absorb flavour and fats like crazy. In this dish they naturally thicken the broth in to a sauce. Lovely!
3 - I do believe that spicy Italian sausage is better. It'd be easy to substitute with sweet Italian sausage and extra chilli flakes.
4 - Definitely no canned tomato, only fresh. Canned tomato makes it taste like a failed pasta sauce.

1⁄4 cup olive oil
3-4 Spicy Italian pork sausages
2 Tbsps chopped fresh rosemary
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 bay leaf
Optional (if you like it super spicy) 1⁄2 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 small Turban squash, cubed (about 8 oz)
4 cups cooked Cassoulet beans
1 tsp salt
3⁄4 cup boiling water or chicken broth
1 large tomato, cubed

1. Start by roasting the squash. Heat the oven to 400F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Toss the squash with some oil and salt. Pop in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes, or until browned, occasionally shaking things up to avoid burning the bottoms.
4. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat the 1⁄4 cup olive oil until it starts to shimmer. Shallow fry the sausages, rosemary, garlic and the chilli for one minute.
5. Add the squash and fry for a further three minutes or until the sausage has browned.
6. Remove the sausage and cut into thirds or quarters.
7. Add the beans and bay leaf and season with salt.
8. Add the liquid and tomato, cover with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes.
9. Increase the heat for a rapid simmer and uncover to cook another 10 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken.
10. Serve with fresh buttered crusty bread.

Ribollita - Test 1

http://latavolamarche.blogspot.ca/2011/05/summer-soup-ribollita.html

1 - It worked well. I made changes on the fly, but it all seems to work. Something I quite like is to cook down the tomato until it discorporates into the broth.

2 - I increased the amount of beans by a half cup. I tried using ground chia seeds instead of bread for a gluten-free version but, at least, I didn't add enough because there was no real change in the consistency of the broth.

1 cup of dry beans of your choice, soaked over night, drained or fresh

1 bay leaf

2 cups vegetable stock

2 Tbsps olive oil

2 carrots, diced

1 stalk of celery, diced or a small pinch of celery seed
1 onion, diced

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

3 tomatoes, chopped

couple cloves of garlic

a good pinch of chilli flakes

5-7 cups of chicken stock
OPTIONAL: 1/2 cup of peas (if available); small bunch of asparagus (if available)
1 bunch greens of your choice, washed well & chopped into manageable pieces (kale, chard, etc)
2 handfuls of the inside (guts) of stale bread, broken into pieces, crust removed (NOTE tried to substitute with 6 tsps of ground chia seeds with no real noticeable impact)
good extra virgin olive oil

Parmesan, shaved

1. In a pot, add beans, bay leaf, and vegetable stock.
2. Bring to a boil, lower to simmer for 30-40 minutes until tender (time varies depending on your beans).  Strain beans, saving the cooking water for later.  
3. Next in a soup pot, heat the olive oil and add carrots, celery, onion. Slowly sautéed for 10-15 minutes.
4. Season with salt & pepper.
5. Add the tomatoes, garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook until the tomato sauces or falls apart.  Add stock with some of the bean water. Bring up to a simmer. Add greens to your pot, wilting into the soup. Cook for 5-10 minutes, depending the toughness of your greens.
6. Once greens are soft, add in your beans & bread, one handful at a time.
7. Season with salt & pepper. Bread should dissolve, creating a velvety texture. Not a thick bread soup. Allow to cook for another 5-10 minutes. Taste check & adjust your seasonings.
8. TO SERVE: Serve with a healthy drizzle of the best extra virgin olive oil you have and a ribbon of parmesan.

Untested - Fermented Basil & Garlic Tomatoes

http://thecrushingcancerkitchen.com/fermented/fermented-basil-garlic-tomatoes/

Tomatoes (enough to fill your jar of choice, leaving 2 inches or more at the top)
Fresh Basil, left whole (1 sprig with several leaves per cup of tomatoes)
Garlic, roughly chopped or sliced (1 clover per cup of tomatoes)
Brine:
1 Tbsp + 2 tsp Sea Salt
2 c Water

1. For the Tomatoes:
2. Wash the tomatoes
3. Poke each tomato with a skewer (1-2 for cherry tomatoes, 2-4 for bigger ones)
4. Layer the tomatoes with the garlic and basil in a jar, ending on tomatoes (to avoid garlic or basil floaters)
5. Put something on top to weigh them down (non-metal). I have mason jar-sized weights but you can also use a clean glass jar filled with water, a clean rock, a cabbage leaf that wraps around the top, or maybe if you're using bigger tomatoes you can wedge them in well enough so that they stay in place.
6. Pour the brine over the top so that it covers the tomatoes by 1-2 inches.
7. Cover with a lid, a tea clean towel and elastic or a fermenting lid.
8. Leave somewhere dark-ish for 5-7 days.
9. Check on them daily to make sure nothing has floated above the surface (if it has, poke it back down and secure it).
10. Taste them at day 4 -they should be sweet and a little acidic and slightly fizzy.
11. Store in the fridge in their brine.
12. Use the tomatoes, basil and garlic in cooler recipes, cooking them will destroy their beneficial bacteria.
13. Purée them into hummus (use the brine too, in place of water!), top off your avo toast with them, add them to salad, put them out as appetizers mixed with some olives, put them out on a vegan cheese platter, roughly chop them up to make salsa, eat them right out of the fridge.

1. For the Brine:
2. Whisk the salt and water together to dissolve the salt.
3. OR bring a small amount of the water and all of the salt to a simmer and then turn off. It will dissolve faster this way. Transfer to a cooler container and cool it down further with the rest of the water. Make sure it is closer to room temp before you pour it over the tomatoes.

Testing - Cumin Rice Pilaf

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/cumin-herb-rice-pilaf-231511

1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 large bunch scallions, white part thinly sliced (1/4 cup) and enough greens finely chopped to measure 1/3 cup
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/4 cups long-grain white rice
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup water
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1. Cook cumin seeds and white part of scallions in 1 tablespoon oil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until scallions are softened, 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Add rice and cook, stirring frequently, 1 minute. Stir in broth, water, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil over high heat.
3. Cover pan, then reduce heat to low and cook until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Remove pan from heat and let stand, covered, 5 minutes.
4. Fluff rice with a fork and toss with scallion greens, parsley, and remaining tablespoon oil.

Untested - Polish Braised Red Cabbage

http://easteuropeanfood.about.com/od/vegetables/r/redcabbage.htm

1 (3-pound) head red cabbage, shredded
1 medium onion, shredded
2 tablespoons butter or canola oil
1 cup water
4 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt

1. In large pot, cook cabbage and onion in butter or oil until it collapses, about 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, mix together water, vinegar, brown sugar, pepper and salt until sugar is dissolved. Add to cabbage mixture. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low.
3. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is tender, about 15 minutes. Refrigerate overnight to improve flavor. Freezes well.

Test 3 - Borlotti Pottage

http://www.bonappetit.com/columns/cooking-without-recipes/slideshow/shelling-beans

This is pretty much made-up, using the fabulous guide provided by Bon Appetit. I'm sure I'll have to adjust the quantities.
3 - I'm rethinking this recipe - I've decided to no longer grow the borlotti bean - they are very firm and dry and I haven't really been enjoying them (if any borlotti bean lovers out there want to share your fave recipes with me, I'll gladly give them a go). I'll replace them with another bean.

I am increasing the ratio by 1/3 and trying canned tomatoes.

1½ cup (280gr) dry Cranberry/Borlotti beans
3 Tbsps olive oil
3 to 4 cloves garlic, crushed (not chopped)
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs oregano, minced
Salt and pepper, to taste
1lb 8oz (3 cups) tomatoes, diced
3 cups chicken broth (to start)

OPTIONAL: 4 to 6 oz julienned greens
Fruit vinegar (either, red wine, white wine, plum, apple cider, raspberry, etc)
Parmesan

1. Soak beans overnight but do not cook!
2. Next day, sauté garlic in the oil, add oregano and bay leaf, stir in for about a minute more.
3. Add the beans, season with salt and pepper.
4. Add tomatoes and chicken stock. Bring to a boil. 
5. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 1 to 2 hours, replenishing the stock if necessary. Stir occasionally.
6. When beans are cooked, leave uncovered and cook at a rapid simmer until most of the broth has evaporated. It is at the beginning of this rapid boil that you can add the optional greens.
7. Add the fruit vinegar, serve on plates and sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan, fresh ground pepper and chopped fresh oregano. Accompanies well with crusty bread.

Zuppa di pasta e fagioli - PUBLISHED

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/cranberry-bean-pasta-fagioli-recipe.html

0 - I have made this once and it made a lot, and it was good, but I know I have notes, I just can't find them! It is very hearty, closer to a stew than a soup.

1 - Used dry Mexican Red beans and canned tomato, and it was good! I will make some changes to recommend, if not using the soup right away, to make without the pasta and then cook the pasta in the amount of the soup you'll be eating to avoid having soggy pasta. But the pasta is essential, since the starch in it thickens the soup. Also, it is a seasonal soup, since the dry beans and canned tomato make it a winter soup, while fresh beans and fresh tomatoes would make it a good summer soup.

2 - Made with Pinto beans and fresh tomato. The beans were too dense I find, but fine. The fresh tomato was lovely. I'm letting my little rosemary plants grow so I used an equal amount of the dried, and it wasn't enough, to my taste. Everything else was good. Oh, I used a small fresh cayenne pepper and it could be spicier.

3 - The amount of bacon isn't right. It could actually be a much meatier stew. So maybe more bacon or smoked hock or another kind of meat? Ben also suggested just a beef broth. The interesting thing was that the more we ate it the more we enjoyed it.

4 - Adding the beef broth was a good idea, but I think the real difference is actually cooking the pasta in with the soup. The starch from the pasta greatly improves the texture.

5 - On with the testing! Substituted the kale for chard and it worked.

For 7 people (for 2 cups serving as main dish per person)

1 + 2 Tbsps. olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 to 3 slices bacon (24 to 36gr), cut into lardons NOTE I used 42 gr because less doesn't look right
5 cloves garlic, smashed
1 small onion, roughly chopped
¼ tsp red pepper flakes, or more to taste
1 sprig finely chopped fresh rosemary
5 fresh plum tomatoes (10oz/285mg) or ½ can  

1 lb beans: dried, soaked or 3 pounds fresh, shelled, preferably cranberry/borlotti beans

6 cups water 

6 cups beef broth
2 bay leaves
1 piece parmesan cheese rind

½ cup (1oz/128g) grated parmesan, and more for topping
1 tsp salt, to taste
8 oz small pasta such as shells or ditalini (SEE COOKING INSTRUCTIONS)
1 bunch (8oz) kale, stems and ribs sliced thin, leaves chopped (can subst. with other greens)
¼ cup roughly chopped fresh parsley
Lots of freshly ground pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large pot (this makes lots of soup) and render the bacon until it's crispy.
2. Add the garlic, onion, red pepper flakes and rosemary. Cook until the onions soften.
3. Stir in the tomatoes and cook until they start to release their juices. 
4. Add the beans, water, broth, bay leaves and parmesan rind and kale stems. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until the beans are tender, 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours.
5. Return the soup to a boil. Add the kale leaves and the pasta and cook until the pasta is al dente.  
6. The soup should be thick and creamy; if too thick, thin with water until you get the consistency you want.
7. Remove the bay leaves and parmesan rind; add the salt, the grated parmesan, parsley and remaining 2 Tbsps. olive oil. Adjust seasoning to taste. Top with more olive oil and parmesan and a few grinds of black pepper.

Untested - Mead

http://www.growforagecookferment.com/how-to-make-a-gallon-of-mead/

0 - Makes one gallon - can be increased. NOTE: Fruit can be added to create a mead-based drink called melomel.
Also possible to mix it with maple syrup:
https://meadcrafter.com/recipe/daves-simple-maple-acerglyn-mead/

2-3 pounds of honey, depending on how sweet you want to end product to be.
Berries or fruit of any kind, fresh or frozen, about a cup
One orange
About 10 raisins
Champagne yeast
EQUIPMENT
1 gallon jar or jug (you can reuse one that you bought for making hard cider) with its lid
Airlock with rubber stopper that fits into your jar
Big metal spoon
Funnel
A large pot
Brewing sanitizer

1. Start by sanitize everything: jug, airlock, big pot, spoon and funnel.  Just follow the directions for your sanitizer and don’t throw it out until you’re totally done.
2. Then heat 1/2 gallon of water the pot.  Once it’s warm, but not boiling, add the honey and stir it so it all dissolves. Do not boil.
3. Turn the heat off.  It may be a little foamy, that’s ok, just don’t boil it.
4. In the meantime, put your berries (or any fruit of your liking), orange slices (skin and all) and raisins into your jug.
5. Then use your funnel and carefully pour the honey water mixture (technically called “must”) into the jar.
6. Top off the jar with cold water, leaving at least 2 inches of head space on top.
7. Cap the jar and gently mix everything around a bit.  
8. Once the honey and water mixture is luke-warm (less than 90F, add the yeast (too hot and the yeast will die, to cold and it won't activate properly). One yeast package will make up to 5 gallons of mead, so if you’re doing 2 gallons you can just split one between the 2 jars.
9. Cap again tightly and shake the jar for several minutes.  
10. Put a little water in the airlock to the line, then put the rubber stopper into your jug.  In a few hours, or at least by the next morning, you should see bubbles in your jar and in your airlock.
11. The whole top might get a little foamy at first, but things will settle down. 
12. Keep it in a cool (not cold) dark place.  Mead takes longer to ferment than cider or beer, depending on the temperature it will take anywhere from 4-6 weeks.  I usually give it 6 weeks to be on the safe side for bottling as you don’t want any explosions!  I’ve definitely had some very champagne like mead before.  You want to wait until you don’t see any bubbles and your airlock is still.
13. Bottling one or two gallons of mead is pretty much the same process as bottling cider.  You may want to wait awhile to drink your mead as it definitely gets better with age, but I often drink it “green” (young) as I enjoy it either way.  It is fun to save a couple of bottles for several months, or even a year, just to see how the taste changes with age.
14. If you make one gallon of mead, chances are you will soon want to make more!  

Untested - Winter Squash Cheesecake

http://homestead-honey.com/2015/10/19/winter-squash-cheesecake-recipe/

CRUST

2 1/2 cups gingersnap cookies or graham crackers
2-3 TBSP butter or coconut oil, melted

FILLING

2 cups winter squash puree
2 cups soft cow cheese (like a fromage blanc, or sub in chevre, or half ricotta and half cream cheese)
3/4 cup honey sorghum (or your sweetener of choice. If using honey, start with 2/3 cups and taste for sweetness)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground clove
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
3 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 300F.
2. Crush gingersnap cookies (you can use a food processor or a paper bag and rolling pin)
3. Combine with butter, and press firmly into the bottom of a 9″ springform pan.
4. Blend all filling ingredients (except the eggs) until smooth and creamy in consistency. Taste the filling and adjust the sweet and spiciness.
5. Add the eggs and blend until the entire mixture is uniform and creamy.
6. Pour filling mixture into the springform pan.
7. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until set.
8. Remove from oven, place on a cooling rack and let cool completely for at least 4 hours.

Untested - Irish Cream Liquor

http://afarmgirlinthemaking.com/2015/11/homemade-irish-cream-liquor/

0 - I need a recipe to make condensed milk, and I need to make the Chocolate Syrup recipe, and refine it so I can replace the corn syrup with something else.

1 2/3 cup of Whiskey
1 cup of heavy cream
14 oz can of condensed milk
2 tablespoons of Chocolate syrup
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 tablespoons of COLD coffee

1. Use an immersion blender to mix all ingredients together.  Do not blend it to long, you do not want any foam, you simply want to MIX the ingredients together.
2. Pour the mixture into jars of your choice. 
3. Store in the refrigerator. It will keep for roughly 2 months. Shake well before serving.

Test 2 - Baked Beans

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/maple-baked-beans-350993
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/maple-baked-beans-10104
http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/slow_cooked_boston_baked_beans/
http://www.averiecooks.com/2013/05/bourbon-maple-slow-cooker-baked-beans.html

1 - Although I did not have bourbon on hand, I made it anyway, and it was very good. It cooked quite nicely within 6 hours, but I think it would have been better for another couple of hours. NOTE: I think cooking longer will encourage the beans to start to thicken the sauce. If not, ADD to the instructions that 1/4 of the beans should be mashed before adding to the layering as I fill the cooking pot.
* I messed up my second attempt. I will not count it here. However, I did use the Mama's Cannelini beans we grew, and compared to the Norwegian Brown, their skin was a bit tough; both Ben and I had the same opinion, but it was still good.
2 - Added apple cider vinegar. My mom makes delicious baked beans but uses store-bought ketchup, which I'd like to avoid. Given that I have plenty of sweet, I've decided on the cider vinegar to add the tartness that the ketchup brings. I hope 1/4 cup isn't too much.
3 - A little too much dijon at 4 Tbsps, re-reducing it to 2-3 Tbsps. Reducing maple syrup to 1/4 cup.

1 lb dry beans (6 cups reconstituted) (Norwegian Brown, Neabel's)
2 Tbsps 1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsps salt
1/4 tsp black pepper powder
2 3-4 Tbsps spicy brown Dijon mustard
2 Tbsps 1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup Bourbon brandy
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 (1/2 lb) thick strips bacon
Pinch clove powder
3 cups boiling water (to start, + more during baking)
1 package salt porc, diced
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced

1. Soak beans overnight. Next day, simmer for 45 minutes.
2. For a 6:00 pm dinner, start beans at least by 10:00 am.
3. Preheat the oven to a mere 300F.
4. Mix together the sugar, salt, pepper, mustard, molasses, bourbon, syrup and clove powder. When you've got a good slurry going, add the hot water and dilute everything.
5. Layer half the porc on the bottom of a oven-ready cooking pot (I've got a lovely hand-made stoneware pot I use). Over this put half the beans, then all the onion and garlic, then the second half of the beans, and topped with the second half of the salt porc.
6. Cook in the oven for 6-8 hours. Every few hours, check the liquid - I usually add 1 cup of boiling water at least twice during the baking. No need to stir.
7. Serve with good, hearty buttered bread.

White Bean Soup - Testing

http://www.theclevercarrot.com/2014/10/tuscan-white-bean-soup-2-ways/

1 - A good, hearty soup. I'd like to try doubling the greens. 

1-2 3 slices of bacon (90g), chopped (add olive oil more oil of any type if you want more fat)

1 lb. white beans such as cannellini or great northern beans, dried
1 bay leaf
1 onion (6oz/170g), diced rough chop
1 celery stalk, diced rough chop
2 cloves of garlic, minced
4 sage leaves, chopped

2 Tbsps white wine
3-4 8oz leafy green (chard or kale or mustard etc), stemmed and cut into thin strips
4 cups (+ up to another 4 cups for thinning) chicken stock
2 Tbsps fresh parsley
3/4 tsp salt 

1/4 tsp pepper
Garnish
garlic croutons
shaved parmesan cheese
crusty sourdough bread

1. If using dry beans, the night before, bring the beans to a boil, take them off the heat source and let soak the beans in a bowl large enough for them to expand into, and fill the bowl to the brim. Soak overnight.
2. Next day, In a soup pot, cook the bacon until the fat renders and the bacon is lightly browned in a soup pot.
3. Add the onion, celery, garlic, and sage leaves. Saute until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5-7 minutes. Add the white wine and cook until it completely evaporates.
4. Drain the beans and add to the pot, along with the bay leaf.
5. Cover with 4 cups of chicken stock and bring to a boil before reduce the heat to a simmer, cooking until the beans are tender, about 1- 1½ hours. Season with salt and pepper.
6. At this point you can pulverise half of the soup in a blender before reintroducing it to the soup pot, or use an immersion blender OR:  or leave au-naturel (so-to-speak) and chunky. Add the parsley.
7. In either case, adjust Adjust the amount of liquid with hot chicken broth, to your desired consistency, seasoning as you add.
8. Garnish with parmesan cheese and croutons.
9. For the chunky version, adjust with salt and pepper to taste, and more stock if needed.
10. Serve warm with crusty sourdough bread.

Tilt the pot, and remove most of the residual oil with a spoon.

Mexican Beans - PUBLISHED

http://www.cakeandedith.com/2010/10/mexican-whole-beans.html

1 - Used borlotti beans and, cooked for this much time, mushed up quite nicely. The skin is a bit tougher than Tiger Eye beans.
2 - tried Cassoulet beans, but the texture was not quite right. Note that I did not cook the beans with bay leaf or broth.
3 - Used Tiger Eye beans again and delicious again.

1 pound dried beans (pinto-like, such as Tiger Eye) beans, soaked overnight in a large bowl with water to cover by 2-inches, and drained*

1 bay leaf

4 cups of broth

1/2 cup bacon fat (or lard or butter or olive oil or any combination of these)

1 large onion, chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp chilli powder

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

Mild white cheese to serve

1. Bring to a boil the beans, bay leaf, and enough broth to cover by about one inch (about 4 cups). Lower the heat and simmer the beans for about an hour. Uncover and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until the beans are very tender, about (1/2 to 1 hour more?), adding more broth or water as necessary to keep the beans always covered. When the beans are soft, remove pot from heat (beans should be cooked when you take one out and blow on it and the skin splits).
2. In a large, heavy skillet, melt the bacon fat (or whatever combination of fat you choose to use - if going vegetarian, add a few dashes of soy sauce for depth of flavour) and gently fry the onions until soft (with this much fat, it is more of a poaching of the onion). Add the garlic, spices, and salt, and, stirring constantly, cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Remove the bay leaf from the beans. Pour the onion-garlic mixture into the beans and stir to combine. Cook on low, stirring occasionally, until the flavors combine and the mixture thickens, about 5 to 10 minutes. If needed, add a tablespoon of water at a time to keep the beans from getting dry. 

*A soaking shortcut is to cover the beans with water, bring to boil, boil for 2 minutes, turn off the burner, cover, and let them soak for 2 hours. Drain, rinse, and then start recipe.

Testing - Sweet Chestnut Paste

http://www.chefeddy.com/2009/12/chestnut-paste/
https://food52.com/blog/16144-a-not-nutella-french-spread-for-oatmeal-toasts-yogurt-etc-etc-etc

1 - Success! However, I've rewritten the instructions to make them clearer for myself - for example, I did not remove the inner membrane. I also forgot to add any vanilla (I was just going to use extract). Otherwise, I'm quite pleased with my first attempt!

6 cups/(2 lb 8 oz) chestnuts
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup/(8 oz) Water
1 Tbp vanilla extract

1. NOTE: It is best to boil the chestnuts in smaller batches as they will peel much better when being removed fresh out of hot water.
2. Using a knife, cut a X into the flat side of the chestnuts (this hard, don't cut yourself!). 
3. Bring a pot of water to a roiling boil. 
4. Drop in about 15 chestnuts at-a-time and boil for 7-8 minutes; remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl of cool water.
5. Drop in the next 15 chestnuts in the water. Start peeling the soaking nuts of their hard outer shell. 
6. (The following is what I mostly did when I realized that the inner husk could also be removed. It may not need to be this complicated) Keep the chestnuts in a covered container as you peel them. 
7. Once you've peeled the hard husk from all the chestnuts, place the covered container of nuts in the refrigerator. When the chestnuts are completely cool, it should be easier to remove the thin brown membrane wrapped around the soft pale flesh inside.
8. Once peeled of both the outer husk and the inner membrane, place the peeled chestnuts in fresh water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer and cook for 15 minutes or until “al dente”; if left too long, they will start to disintegrate in the hot water.
9. Remove them to a colander and allow them to drain completely.
10. In a small saucepan, combine the sugar with 1 cup of water; stir until it comes to a boil. Clip on a candy thermometre and do not touch or stir anymore. From this point on you are essentially bringing the sugar to a candy-making point by realigning the crystals. Any additional water added during this process has no effect on the final outcome.
11. Grind the chestnuts in a food processor.
12. Continue to boil the sugar syrup WITHOUT stirring until you reach 240°F (116°C). Remove from heat and mix in the chestnut mixture. Stir for 5 minutes on medium heat.  Add the vanilla and combine well.
13. Store in a well-sealed container in the refrigerator or freezer.

Testing - Roasted Beets with Vinaigrette

I have to find a better name for this!

1 - The vinaigrette is very subtle, just meant to lighten the earthiness of the beets. I have not tried making this with the basil leaves, which I will indicate as optional. This way the recipe remains seasonal for a longer period. I'm keeping this in the Testing stage because I'm uncertain about the vinaigrette's value in the dish - is it too subtle?

4 large beets, cut in wedges (you can pre-boil the beets about 20 minutes or until fork-tender)
1 tsp grapeseed oil
Salt and Pepper
3 Tbsps grapeseed oil
2 Tbsps apple cider vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar
1/4 cup goat cheese
Optional: 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, roughly torn, or arugula

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400F.
2. In a bowl, toss the beets with 1 tsp oil, to cover.
3. Arrange the beets in a single layer on a baking sheet and sprinkle over a good pinch of salt, then a generous grinding of black pepper.
4. Roast the beets in the middle of the oven for 20-40 minutes (longer if the beets are raw, shorter if the beets are already boiled).
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool a bit, or completely, your choice.
6. In the same boil you oiled the beets in (to reduce on dishes), whisk together sugar, vinegar and the remaining oil.
7. Dump the beets into the vinaigrette and toss to cover. Remove the beets from the vinaigrette with a slotted spoon to a serving dish (for serving à la Francaise) or on individual plates (for serving à la Russe). NOTE: if using basil or arugula, remove the beets to another bowl (too bad for the dishes!) and toss with the leaves before transferring to a serving dish or plate.
8. Crumble the goat cheese and sprinkle on top and serve.
9. The remaining vinaigrette can be saved for future use.

Test 1 - Apple and Pork Stuffed Roast Chicken

In translating a recipe for stuffing from Dorothy Heartley's fascinating book Food In England, I developed this roast chicken recipe. Its calorie density makes it definitely good for a hard-working farmhouse crew in the cold of winter.

1 whole chicken
2 Tbsps of bacon fat; or 3 slices bacon
A dozen small onions
5-8 boiled potatoes
Salt and Pepper
1 recipe of Pork and Apple Stuffing

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400F.
2. Meanwhile, if you don't have bacon fat on hand, render the baconslices for their fat over medium heat. If you do have bacon fat on hand, melt it gently in a large pan - no cooking is involved, it just needs to be in liquid form.
3. When peeling the onions, cut off only the brown dry bit of the basal plate and then cut them in quarters so that the layers of onion stay together while roasting.
4. Season the chicken well with salt and pepper.
5. Stuff the bird with the Porc and Apple Stuffing, as full as you can, from both ends. There is no need to truss the bird and it's ok if the stuffing spills out a bit, but it should be moist enough to mold itself into the bird.
6. Once the fat from the bacon has been rendered, toss the onion and the potatoes in the fat just to cover them. Remove them from the bacon fat with a slotted spoon and lay at the bottom of a roasting pan. 
7. Lay the chicken on top of the potato and onion mix, breast up.
8. Pour the remaining bacon fat over the chicken.
9. Roast in the oven, covered, for 45 minutes, then uncover and roast an additional 45 minutes, or until a meat thermometre IN THE STUFFING reads 165F (I say in the stuffing because, being in the centre of the bird, it is the last part that reaches the correct internal temperature to kill any harmful bacteria).
10. Once the stuffing and the breast read 165F on a meat thermometre, remove from the oven and let sit for 10-20 minutes before carving to allow the meat to relax and allow the juices to spread evenly throughout.

Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies - PUBLISHED

http://www.canadianliving.com/food/recipe/oatmeal-chocolate-chip-cookies-12

1 - I'm trying out what I find is an easier way of mixing the ingredients.
1.1 - Yep, it worked! I also added walnuts.
2 - Good without walnuts
3 - Still good... too good.

2/3 cup room temperature butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 tsps vanilla
half tsp baking powder
half tsp baking soda
quarter tsp salt
1 +half cup rolled oats
1 +half cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup walnut pieces (optional)
1 cup flour

1. Pre-heat oven to 375F.
2. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Whip in the egg and vanilla, then the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the rolled oats and chocolate chips and mix until well combined.
3. Finally, add the flour, mixing only until combined.
4. Drop a Tablespoon of dough per cookie on a parchment-paper lined cookie sheet and bake 10-12 minutes.
5. Transfer to racks to cool.

Red cabbage recipes

Beet and Red Cabbage Borscht

Red cabbage recipes

Pumpkin Soup with Red Cabbage and Cumin Seeds (Balkabağı Çorbası)
German-Style Sweet & Sour Red Cabbage Soup

Untested - Braised Lamb with Juniper Berries, Fennel and Sage

Braised Lamb with Juniper Berries, Fennel, Sage

1-1/2 cups dry red wine
2 pounds lamb stew meat (or try goat—see Kitchen Notes)
salt and freshly ground black pepper
olive oil
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced (about 2-1/2 to 3 cups)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup finely chopped celery (about 1 rib)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
10 juniper berries, finely crushed with a mortar and pestle
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed with a mortar and pestle
2 tablespoons tomato paste
water
2 bay leaves
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Bring wine to boil in a sauce pan. Reduce heat and simmer until wine is reduced to 3/4 cup, about 7 to 10 minutes (if you overdo the reduction, just add unreduced wine to bring it up to 3/4 cup). Set aside. Meanwhile, pat lamb chunks dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat a Dutch oven or other heavy oven-safe pot over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to pot; when it begins to shimmer, brown lamb chunks on all sides, working in batches. Transfer browned lamb to plate. You may need to drizzle in a little more oil between batches.
2. Reduce heat to medium and sauté onions with a little salt (again, you may need to add a little oil) until just softened, 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic, celery, sage and crushed juniper berries and fennel seeds and cook for another 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Add wine, 3/4 cup of water, tomato paste and bay leaves and stir, scraping up browned bits. Return lamb and any accumulated juices to the pot and bring to boil. If necessary, add a little more water, but don’t make it too soupy. Remove from heat, cover with lid and place in oven. Braise for about 1-1/2 hours, until meat is almost tender.
4. Finish cooking on the stovetop over low heat for about 1/2 hour. If sauce is too liquid, leave the lid slightly ajar so it will reduce. Conversely, if it gets too dry, add water, a little at a time. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice and transfer to individual plates or a serving dish. Top with chopped parsley.

Testing - fårikål: Norwegian Lamb and Cabbage Stew

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/83349/farikal/
http://www.matoppskrift.no/sider/recipe_2118967762.asp#axzz4Lt3aGzoi
http://www.nordicnibbler.com/2010/09/farikal-recipe.html
http://mylittlenorway.com/2008/09/lamb-in-cabbage/

1 - First mistake. I used red cabbage. The colour looked like zombie flesh. Second mistake, I think anyway, is too much water. The flavours were diluted.

1.5 lbs lamb, cubed, with bones in
1/2 of a cabbage head, cut into 8ths
1 tsp black peppercorns
4 juniper berries
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
a generous pinch of salt
Chicken broth (optional)
Potatoes or good crusty bread

1. In a saucepan, layer the ingredients, starting with the lamb, and keep layering until they are all used up.
2. Pour broth or water just until all is covered.
3. Bring to a boil and simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours, or until the meat is meltingly tender.
4. Serve with boiled potatoes or crusty bread.

Fresh Zucchini with Pasta - Testing

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/233454/fresh-zucchini-pasta-sauce/

1 - It is such a simple recipe that a few tweaks made it quite good. With the addition of grated parmesan cheese, the flavor and texture improved very much. A good dish but not necessarily quick since the zucchini needs to sit for an hour. But definitely low effort.

2 - Briefly cooking the garlic worked just fine. I added the cheese in with the zucchini and it made it clump when the mix hit the hot pasta.

2 zucchini, grated
2 to 3 cloves garlic, finely grated
2 Tbsps. olive oil
salt to taste
12 oz spaghettini pasta

1 to 2 oz grated parmesan cheese

1. In a large bowl stir together the zucchini, olive oil and salt. Set aside for flavors to blend, about 1 hour.
2. OPTIONS - you can mix the raw garlic in with the zucchini for the hour if you want a bright garlic flavor OR set the garlic aside and once the pasta is cooked proceed to step 4.
3. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook angel hair in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until al dente. Drain and add to the zucchini mixture. 
4. Toss to combine and slightly cook the zucchini.
5. OR once the pasta has drained, add a little oil to the pot the pasta was cooked in and cook the garlic for about a minute over medium heat or just until the sharp aroma mellows, then immediately remove the pot from the heat and put in the zucchini and pasta to combine.
6. Toss with the cheese until combined and serve immediately with grated black pepper on top.

Pierogi Casserole - PUBLISHED

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/18841/pierogi-casserole/
http://www.mrfood.com/Pastas/Pierogi-Lasagna

1. A tasty dish, but requires some additions. The noodles should be cooked al dente before assembling the casserole; the potatoes should be run through a food mill. What surprised me and worked well was the quantity of milk in the potatoes - it seemed too squishy, but it worked fine.
2 - Served it to one whose cultural heritage includes this food and he admitted he could not stop eating it. Good sign! The one observation I made was that it needed more salt.

3 - Totally amazing and good, but not at all calorie-light.

4 - Very nice indeed, and I may just prefer it with yogurt instead of sour cream.

5 - This got gobbled down real quick by 4 people. True that most were German, so... Made it with bacon. Bacon is good.

4-6 servings

5 potatoes, (40oz) 
½ cup milk
⅓ cup butter (2.7oz/76gr), melted (#1)
½ tsp salt 
½ tsp pepper 

2 Tbsps. (1oz/28gr) butter (#2)
(Optional: ¼ lb bacon, diced)
2 onions (12oz), chopped
9 lasagna noodles 
2 Tbsps. (1oz/28gr) butter (#3)
2 Tbsps. flour
1¼ cups milk
2 cups (8 oz) shredded Cheddar cheese
Sour cream
3 Tbsps. chopped fresh chives

1. Boil the potatoes in lightly salted water for 10-20 minutes, until fork-tender. Drain and mash with milk and ⅓ cup of butter, salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Melt 2 Tbsps.' of butter to sauté the onion (if using, add them at the same time to sauté together), until soft and translucent.
3. Meanwhile, boil the water and cook the noodles until just al dente. They cook some more as the dish bakes.
4. Preheat oven to 350°F.
5. Make the bechamel sauce: melt the butter in a saucepan; add the flour and whisk, until the flour starts to turn golden. Stream in the milk, whisking to avoid lumps.
6. Layer the ingredients in a 9x13 baking dish in the following sequence: 
• a single layer of 3 noodles
• ½ of the mashed potatoes
• ⅓ of the cheese
• a single layer of 3 lasagna noodles
• the whole preparation of bechamel
• ½ of the mashed potatoes
• ⅓ of the cheese
• a single layer of 3 lasagna noodles
• ⅓ of the cheese
• onions (and bacon) on top. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Bake, uncovered, in the hot oven for 30 to 45 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve with sour cream and chopped fresh chives. 

Chicken Curry - PUBLISHED

On La Mouffette Gourmande blog, there is a recipe for chicken curry using skinless, boneless chicken breasts which is quite lovely - easy and flavourful. I thought I'd try it with a whole chicken, cut up. The extra fat and flavour from the bones made for a particularly delicious and unctuous dish.
2 - I had no raisins, but I did have candied ginger. It worked great! I figured that the raisins added a sweetness, and the ginger would, too. I also switched the moment I add the curry powder.
3 - I ended up just replacing the original chicken breast-only recipe on LaMouffetteGourmande with this one.

2 Tbsps. flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 chicken, cut up into 8 pieces
2 Tbsps mild flavoured vegetable oil
1 Tbsp. generic curry powder
1 onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup raisins OR candied ginger
1 1/2 Tbsps tomato paste
garnish - chopped fresh cilantro
garnish - plain yogurt

1. Cut up your chicken into 8 pieces and remove the skin.
2. In a paper or plastic bag, mix together the flour, salt and cayenne pepper. Add the chicken and shake well to coat.
3. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
4. Dump the chicken and any remaining flour into the pan and cook until browned. Remove from the pan and set aside.
5. Add the onion and garlic to the pan, adding a little more oil if necessary, and cook for 2 minutes.  Add the curry powder and toss to coat then add the broth, raisins, and tomato paste (it doesn't matter if the onion is completely cooked). 
6. Return the chicken to the pan and simmer for 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the breast registers 165F or juices run clear.
7. If necessary, remove the chicken and cook down the sauce to the desired thickness.
8. Garnish with cilantro and a dollop of plain yogurt.
9. Serve over the rice.

Test 1 - Tomato, Cucumber and Red Onion Salad

http://www.food.com/recipe/tomato-cucumber-and-red-onion-salad-180329

This is best eaten fresh - although you want the cucumber to absorb the marinade, if you finish it to far in advance, the other vegetables will absorb too much vinegar and be overly tart.

2 large cucumbers, halved lengthwise, seeded and sliced
1⁄3 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 large tomatoes, seeded and coarsely chopped
2⁄3 cup coarsely chopped red onion
1⁄2 cup chopped fresh basil leaf
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

1. In a large bowl, toss together the cucumbers, vinegar, sugar and salt. 
2. Chop the onion and soak it in water to remove some of its bite.
3. Let both stand at room temperature for an hour, stirring occasionally.
4. Drain the onions and a to the cucumbers, along with the tomatoes, basil and oil. Toss to blend. 
5. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Testing - Simple thyme rack of lamb

I've never roasted a rack of lamb before, it looked so complicated. Now that we buy a half of a lamb at a time, part of what we get is the rack, so I've got to figure out how to prepare it. Looking into things, I realize it's a relatively quick thing. At first I was apprehensive about the Frenching of the rib bones, then suspected this may be unnecessary, and found my confirmation, thank to Google from two trusted sources : Serious Eats, and the Seattle Times. No Frenching for this cook, and more lamb!

The recipe below I think has all the basics, but is such a mish-mash of recipes that I didn't bother to save the sources. I'll likely be rewording things to my liking as I experiment with the techniques and the flavouring.

1 - Hmmm, I may not be posh enough to appreciate rack of lamb. I did not enjoy eating it. Perhaps I should have it in a restaurant to see if I may understand it better, then.

1 rack of lamb (about 2lbs) (Frenching optional)
15 to 20 fingerling potatoes
3 Tbsps olive oil
A few sprigs of thyme, leaved and minced.
Salt and pepper

1. Heat the oven to 425°F and arrange a rack in the bottom third. Meanwhile, let the lamb sit at room temperature.
2. Generously season the racks all over with salt and pepper. 
3. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. 
4. Place the lamb rack fat-side down in the pan and sear until golden brown, rotating the rack to brown as much of the fat as possible (you’re just trying to brown the fat, so don’t worry about flipping the rack over), about 3 to 4 minutes total. 
5. Transfer the rack to a rimmed baking sheet, fat side up with the bones facing the same direction. Sprinkle with half of the minced thyme.
6. Toss potatoes with 2 tablespoons of oil, and season with the remaining thyme, salt and pepper. Arrange potatoes around lamb.
7. Roast, rotating the pan halfway through the cooking time, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the centre registers 125°F to 130°F for rare, about 25 to 35 minutes. Transfer the rack to a cutting board and let it rest uncovered for about 15 minutes.
8. Return potatoes to oven. Roast until tender, about 15 minutes more (the time it takes to let the rack rest)
9. Carve the rack into 4 (2-bone) chops and arrange them on a platter. (Some of the coating may fall off—just sprinkle it back on the lamb.) Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Test 3 - Indian-inspired Omelette

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/omelet-turmeric-tomato-onions

1 - This was good, but I wonder if I can combine the refinement of Laura's omelette with the lovely flavours of this one.
2 - I've made it a few times with onion and the flavors are still very good.
3 - March 22, 2018: Tonight it didn't work out, because I didn't read the recipe. It's because I doubled the recipe, so I cooked the onion and tomato, set aside, then added the spices, along with the salt, instead of beating the eggs and salt together as is instructed in the recipe. No change in the testing status.
4 - April 5 2019: made it with spring chives and tomatoes I'd frozen (keeps the fresh taste you lose when it's been canned). Delicious!

5 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon oil
1/4 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
2 green onions, or 14 chive stems, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh tomato
Dash of black pepper

1. Whisk together eggs and salt.
2. Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet. Add mustard seeds and turmeric; cook until the mustard seeds start to pop. 
3. Add onions; cook until soft, then add tomato and cook until very soft, stirring frequently.
4. Pour the egg mixture into the pan and tilt it to evenly spread the liquid egg. Cook until the edges begin to set. Then, gently lift the edges, first on one side then the other, tilting the pan to allow some of the uncooked egg to seep underneath and cook. 
5. Once the top is set but still glistening, loosen the omelette and fold it over before sliding it onto a platter. Sprinkle with black pepper.

PUBLISHED - Pasta with creamy pear sauce

1 - this was a hit! My one mistake was not toasting the walnuts. And I believe I'd rather sprinkle them on just before adding the parmesan garnish at the end.
2 - I made this for a group of 14 people, and they loved it. I served it with toasted pine nuts for lack of walnuts.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/linguine-with-pears-and-gorgonzola-cheese-4297

1/4 cup butter
4 pears (2 lbs), peeled, cored,sliced 1/3 inch thick
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
4 oz Cambozola cheese, cubed
1/2 + 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 pound pasta, freshly cooked
OPTIONAL 1/3 cup chopped walnuts or pinenuts, toasted

1. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pears and sauté until tender and beginning to brown but not soft, about 8 minutes. Set aside.
2. Add rosemary to the skillet and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the broth, Cambozola cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and cream. Simmer until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of spoon, about 6 minutes. Return the pears and any accumulated juices to the sauce. 
3. Bring a pot of salted water to a rapid boil and cook the pasta.
4. Meanwhile, toast the walnuts in a skillet, over medium-high heat.
5. When pasta is cooked, turn on the heat under the sauce, dump the pasta into the sauce and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 
6. Before serving, garnish with the walnuts and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

Loire Valley Pear and Chocolate Tart - PUBLISHED

1 - Tried leaving the pears whole, but the baked custard is not so attractive to my eye. I think the whole pear works fine, it's just the expanse of custard. NEXT - how else could I cut the pear to have it look nice and avoid the thin slicing hell with super ripe pears?
2 - I think this one graduates to La Mouffette. I've made it multiple times, all to good reviews. I've resolved the slicing of the pears and I'm happy with the result.

Part 1 - the pie crust

1 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 cup butter, cut into pieces

1 egg yolk

1 Tbsp. + cold water

1. Follow the instructions for the Cookie Pie Crust, but substitute the vanilla for 1 egg yolk and be careful about the amount of water you add to avoid having a wet dough. 
2. Put the crust to chill for at least 15 minutes.

Part 2 - the filling

4 oz 70% dark chocolate, chopped fine

3-4 pears cut in half, peeled and cored

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1/2 heavy cream

1 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. After chilling the crust, sprinkle in the chopped chocolate, and arrange the pear halves, cut-side down, to fill the crust as completely as possible, most easily accomplished if arranged in an attractive flower pattern.
3. In a small bowl whisk together the egg, yolk, cream and vanilla to make a simple custard.
4. Pour the custard over the pears so that the have all been touched by the custard - this will help them brown nicely. This is most easily accomplished if you use a spoon to ladle the custard over the pear halves.
5. Bake for 10 minutes, then turn down the heat to 350F and cook an additional 25-30 minutes.
6. If the pears have not caramelized, put under the broiler until they do.

Testing - Potatoes au gratin

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/149261/gruyere-potato-gratin/

1 - I decided to mix together the wine and cream since I've done this in cream sauces before and they've worked... have I just jinxed myself?!? The original had you mix water and wine together and cook until potatoes are tender, then add cream and cook 15 min. until thickened.
2 - Mixing the cream and wine was no problemo. But there wasn't enough sauce or cheese!
3 - Floury vs. waxy potatoes is very important! I used super fresh potatoes and it took longer to cook, and none of the liquid got soaked up by the potatoes. The flavour was excellent, but we got none of the creaminess.

4 - The sauce is to die for!!! But it does take a very long time for the onion and the potato to cook enough, so try not to skimp on time. I simplified the steps by removing the 'tossing onions and potatoes with salt and pepper and thyme' thing and it worked very well, but there seemed to be less sauce.

TIMING: 2hrs

The poor sauce may have been because of a typo. Try this:
2 Tbsps. softened butter
1 1/2 lb. floury, old potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
2 1 large onion (10oz/285gr), chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp minced fresh thyme OR a pinch of nutmeg
(1 cup) 2 oz shredded Gruyere cheese
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup cup white wine

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. 
2. Grease a baking dish with the butter. Spread 1/3 of the onion (approx. 85g) into the bottom. 
3. Layer with 1/3 of the potato (approx. 245g).
4. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the minced thyme and a healthy pinch of salt and a good grind of pepper.
5. Sprinkle half of the Gruyere cheese over the potatoes, then add another layer of the mixture, repeating steps 2 to 4. 
6. Sprinkle on the remaining cheese followed by the remaining potatoes and onion, repeating steps 2 to 4. 
7. Mix together the wine and cream and pour over the potatoes.
8. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake in the preheated oven until the potatoes are tender, about 1 hour 15 minutes. 
9. Once tender, bake uncovered for an additional 15 minutes to brown the top and thicken the cream.

Testing - Spicy zucchini and tomato sauce

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/capellini-with-spicy-zucchini-tomato-sauce-recipe.html

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 28 -ounce can whole San Marzano tomatoes
Kosher salt
1 medium zucchini, cut into small chunks
1/2 pound capellini spaghetti
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Grated parmesan cheese, for topping

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. 
2. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until the garlic is just golden, about 1 minute. 
3. Add the zucchini and cook until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. 
4. Crush the tomatoes into the skillet with your hands and add the juice. 
5. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Season with salt.
6. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the capellini and cook as the label directs. Drain and add to the sauce along with the basil; toss to coat. 
7. Top with parmesan.

Testing - Chicken in fresh plum sauce

http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/food-recipes/a6933/skillet-chicken-plum-balsamic-ghk0907/

1 - While interesting and a tasty way to use fresh plums without the bother of making a plum sauce, I felt it lacked a little pizzazz. In parenthesis I've added some more ingredients to add that pizzazz, taken from http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/spicy-plum-chicken-thighs-recipe.html)

4 medium skinless, boneless chicken-breast halves
1 whole chicken cut in 6-8 pieces
1 pinch salt and pepper
1 tbsp. olive oil
½ medium red 1 small onion
(2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 tsps fresh ginger, coarsely chopped
1 small fresh hot chille, coarsely chopped
pinch ground cinnamon
pinch ground cloves)
3 5 small plums
½ cup . reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 Tbsps balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. honey
1/4 tsp salt

1. Place chicken-breast halves between 2 sheets of plastic wrap. With meat mallet or rolling pin, pound breasts to an even 1/2-inch thickness; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper.
2. In nonstick 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat until hot. Add breasts and cook 6 to 7 minutes or until browned on both sides and chicken loses its pink color throughout, turning over once. Transfer breasts to platter; cover with foil to keep warm.
3. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a sauté pan and, working in batches, brown the meat on all sides, 5-8 minutes per side. Remove and set aside.
4. Lower the heat. Drain off all but a tablespoon of oil from the pan.
5. Cut plums in half and remove the stone while the pan's temperature reduces. 
6. Add the onion and cook until it starts to soften. Add the garlic, ginger and chille and cook another 2-3 minutes. Add the cinnamon and clove and stir just until fragrant.
7. Add the plums and cook 3 minutes or until lightly browned on each side. The mixture should start to brown. This is not for presentation but for flavour, so it doesn't matter if the plums look weird.
8. To skillet, Add red onion and cook over medium heat 3 minutes or until softened, stirring frequently. 
9. Increase heat to medium-high; stir in chicken broth, vinegar, honey, 1/4 tsp. salt, and bring to a rapid simmer. Put chicken back in and any juices from chicken on collecting on the platter. 
10. Cover the pan, and cook, turning the meat occasionally, until tender, about 20-30 minutes or until breasts register 170F.
11. Remove the chicken, and C cook 2 to 3 minutes more to reduce sauce slightly, stirring occasionally. or until the desired thickness of sauce is achieved.

Untested - Alsatian fruit and custard tart

From Anne Willan's The Country Cooking of France

1 - There appears to be an unnecessary complication in the dough recipe. Instead of putting all the butter in at the same time as the dough is being mixed, adding it after the first rise makes for a real mess! It looks terrible when you start, and it all comes together in the end, but it just seems like most other recipes for the same kind of dough have reduced the number of steps by just adding the butter in at the beginning, often with the butter completely melted.

Dough
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsps salt
1 1/2 Tbsps sugar
1/2 cup lukewarm milk
1 Tbsp dry yeast
1 egg
6 Tbsps butter, room temperature

Filling
2 lbs fresh soft fruit
2 Tbsps dry bread crumbs
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup crème fraîche or heavy cream
5 Tbsps sugar

Dough

1. Sift the flour, salt and sugar onto a work surface and make a well in the centre.
2. Pour the milk into the well and sprinkle the yeast over it, and leave for five minutes or until the yeast has dissolved.
3. Add the egg and 1 Tbsp butter (see Note 1, above) to the milk and start working it from the centre, gradually drawing in the flour from the sides.
4. Once all the flour is incorporated, if it's still sticking to your hands, add a Tbsp at a time until it becomes a soft, floppy dough.
5. Flour the work surface and knead the dough until it's very elastic and peels away from the surface in one piece, about 5 minutes.
6. (You can also do this using a mixer with a dough hook, but what's the fun in that?)
7. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and turn the dough so that it is covered in oil. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and leave to rise in a warm place until it has double in bulk; about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Filling

1. While the dough is rising, prepare the fruit (halve the stone fruit and discard the stones; clean berries; pit cherries or leave whole).
2. Preheat the oven to 425F, set the rack in the lower 1/4 of the oven and put a cookie sheet on to warm up.
3. When the dough has risen, knead it just enough to knock out the air bubbles.
4. Pat the dough flat and spread the soft butter on top; knead to incorporate the butter, about 2-3 minutes.
5. Roll out the dough to 3/8 or 6mm thickness and line a tart pan with a removable bottom.
6. Sprinkle the bread crumbs in the tart shell and arrange the fruit over this, cut side up (if applicable), packing it closely.
7. Bake the tart on the hot baking sheet until the dough starts to become golden, about 10 minutes.
8. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, cream and sugar together.
9. Pour this over the fruit and lower the oven temperature to 350F and replace the tart in the oven.
10. Continue baking until browned and the fruit is tendre and the custard has set, about 40-50 minutes longer.

DO NOT overbake or the custard will curdle.
Eat while still warm.
OPTIONAL: just before serving, sprinkle with confectioner's sugar and/or cinnamon.

Testing - Fruit Vinegar

http://www.organicauthority.com/eco-chic-table/homemade-fruit-vinegar-recipe.html

For troubleshooting, also see:
http://www.rural-revolution.com/2013/07/making-fruit-scrap-vinegar.html
http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/51590/mold-on-vinegar-batch

2 cups any part of fruit including leftover peelings and cores (apple or pear peels and cores / any type of berry / tomato skins and seeds / plum, peach, apricot or nectarine skins any part of these fruits will work)
4 cups water
1 teaspoon organic white or brown sugar (optional for speeding up the fermentation process – will add extra flavor!)

1. Place your fruit scraps into a large (at least ½ gallon size), wide mouth mason or regular glass jar or a stone crock. Add the water and optional white or brown sugar. Cover the container with a muslin cloth to prevent dust, bugs or anything else falling into your vinegar solution. Place the container in a place where it can ferment undisturbed, preferably out of direct sunlight.
2. Let the fruit scraps and water sit for about 8 weeks, during which time a thick layer of goopy scum will form on the top. This scum, also known as the ‘mother’, is cellulose produced by acetic acid bacteria, which is ubiquitous in nature and present in all fermented, unpasteurized foods. The bacteria becomes present whenever ethanol is produced, which is what is happening when wild, airborne yeasts are feeding on the sugar in your fruit scraps.  Fruit flies carry acetic acid bacteria in their bodies, and so are actually an effective way to expedite vinegar making. If you want to allow fruit flies to help ferment your fruit scraps, keep your vinegar solution uncovered for about a day after beginning the process, check to see if any flies have landed, and cover the container with a cloth.
3. After the 8-week period, strain the liquid into a glass bottle through several layers of cheesecloth, a mesh bag or a fine mesh strainer, and cover with a metal cap or a cork stopper. After another 4 weeks, strain the liquid again through a clean cloth about the thickness of muslin into the bottle you want to store the vinegar in. Cap it, label it and you’ll have the fantastically fruity and tasty addition to your kitchen ingredients!

NOTE: A mother may re-develop in your finished vinegar, which will look a floating, gelatinous mass at the bottom of your bottle. Don’t throw this away! Much like a sourdough bread starter, it will kick-start future vinegar making processes, so save it in a small jar once you get to the end of your bottle.

Testing - Spicy Pickled Green Beans for Cesars

http://www.canadianliving.com/food/recipe/spicy-dilled-beans
http://www.popsugar.com/food/Spicy-Pickled-Green-Beans-26204484

For four 500mL jars.

2 lb beans
4 hot red peppers OR 8 tsps dry hot pepper flakes
4 flowering dill  heads
4 cloves garlic
4 tsps mustard seeds
3 tsps black peppercorns
1 tsp whole allspice berries
2 tsps whole coriander
4 bay leaves
2 1/2 cups water
2 1/2 cups white vinegar
2 Tbsps pickling salt

1. If the beans are too long to comfortably fit in the jars, cut green and yellow beans from the stem end to 3-1/2-inch (9 cm) lengths, fit in the jar. Cut slit lengthwise in hot peppers. Set aside.
2. Into each of four 2-cup (500 mL) canning jars, pack 1 head dill, 1 clove garlic, 1 tsp (5 mL) mustard seeds, 1 hot red pepper, 3/4 tsp peppercorn, 1/4 tsp allspice berry, 1/2 tsp coriander. Tightly pack in beans, cut side up. 
3. In saucepan, bring water, vinegar and salt to boil; reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes. Pour into each jar, leaving 1/2-inch (1 cm) headspace. 
4. Cover with prepared lids. Screw on bands until resistance is met; increase to fingertip tight. Boil in boiling water canner for 10 minutes.

Testing - Spicy Lacto-fermented Fresh Beans

4 cups water
1.5 oz salt
2 garlic cloves per jar, lightly crushed
1-2 flowering dill heads per jar
1-4 tsp hot pepper flakes (or 1 fresh hot pepper per jar) per jar
1/4 tsp black pepper corns per jar
? How many beans fill a jar?
? How many jars did you make?

1. Heat the water just until the salt dissolves. Cool to room temperature.
2. Trim the stem ends from the beans. 
3. Place a clean glass quart jar on its side (it is not necessary to sterilize the jar for this recipe; just make sure it is very clean). It's easier to get the green beans to line up straight if you start out with the jar on its side rather than loading the beans in from above.
4. Cover with the brine. Weigh the beans down and place the jars in a relatively dark place at room temperature. The jars should be covered, but not tightly sealed, so that gases produced during fermentation can escape. If using a crock without a lid, cover it with a plate or board and drape with a clean dish towel. If using jars, screw lids on loosely or remove the rubber seal, depending on the style of jar you're using. 
5. Bubbles will appear in 4 or 5 days. Skim any floating scum off the surface daily. (It's supposed to be there; don't let it worry you.) Taste occasionally. The beans should be fully pickled in about 2 weeks. Once they are ready, just refrigerate the beans in the brine. They will continue to ferment in the fridge, but at a much slower rate. Eat within a couple of months.

Penne with Roasted Plum and Herbed Blue Cheese Sauce - PUBLISHED

http://www.tastedefined.com/2013/05/plum-pasta-salad-with-blue-cheese.html

1 - Delicious, with several changes, and it isn't so much a pasta salad as a hot pasta dish, so that's changing!
2 - Still delicious - a rich meal because of the fatty cheese; more plums was recommended since the freshness of the fruit helps balance the oil. Also, a sprinkle of toasted nuts, of course, goes well with blue cheese.

3 cups Penne pasta
18 Italian Prune plums, smallish, quartered
pinch of cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp honey
1 Tbsp light oil
1 small onion, finely minced
2 to 3 garlic cloves, pressed
1/4 cup chives + basil + parsley (finely chopped)
3 oz Cambozola cheese, diced (for easy melting)
1/4 tsp black pepper powder (coarsely ground)
salt to taste
2 Tbsps toasted nuts (walnuts or pine nuts or pecans)
Optional: lettuce leaves and 5 to 6 tsps extra virgin olive oil

1. Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
2. Set the pasta water to boil.
3. Arrange the quartered plums on a cookie sheet, sprinkle with the cinnamon drizzle a thin stream of honey on each one, not too much! Roast for about 5-7 minutes at 350F.
4. Cook the pasta until al dente. Reserve about 1/4 cup of the pasta water.
5. In a fry pan cook the onion in the Tbsp of oil until completely soft but not browned.
6. Add the minced garlic and sauté for 1 minute more.
7. To the onions add the herbs, cheese and pepper. Once the cheese has melted, add the pasta and toss, cooking, adding a few Tbsps of the pasta water. The pasta water will reduce and help create a creamy, more consistent sauce, combining oils with the starch in the water from the pasta. This will only take a couple of minutes. Taste and season with salt
8. Add half the roasted plums and toss.
9. If serving as a cold salad, arrange over lettuce leaves, aesthetically place the remaining plums on top and drizzle with the remaining olive oil. 
10. If serving as a hot dish, arrange remaining plums on top and serve immediately.

Untested - Fruit Preserved in Syrup and Whiskey

http://www.wellpreserved.ca/pear-slices-preserved-in-a-light-syrup-and-whisky/

Pears – cleaned and quartered, core removed.  If you’re worried about them browning, toss the cut pieces in a bit of lemon juice (I tend to work fast and skip the lemon).  6 pounds will make about 5 pints.
Light Syrup (dissolve 3/4 cups of sugar in 6.5 cups of water – or 10% by weight).  This will make enough for approximately 9 pints of pears; I tend to make a bit extra in case I’ve measured my pears wrong.
1 tablespoon of whisky per jar (this will be added at the end so none will be wasted)

1. Bring simple syrup to a boil.
2. Carefully place pear slices in the boiling solution.  Wait 5 minutes.
3. While still hot, add pears to clean, sterile pint jars.  Top with syrup and gently move jar to release any air bubbles (I use oven mitts).
4. Add 1 tablespoon of Whisky per jar.
5. Add liquid to leave a 1/2 inch headspace.
6. Process pints for 20 minutes in a hot-water bath.

Untested - Sausage and Italian Prune Plums Braised in Wine

https://food52.com/recipes/1984-sausage-and-italian-prune-plums-braised-in-wine-with-polenta

1 pound ripe Italian prune plums
3 pounds sweet Italian sausage (with or without fennel seeds)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh sage
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Pinch of sugar, if needed
2/3 cup good, light, fruity dry wine such as Beaujolais or Pinot Noir

1. Slice plums in half and discard pits. Set aside. 
2. Prick sausages 4 or 5 times with a sharp paring knife. 
3. Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat and add sausages. Turn frequently and cook until a brown crust has formed on each side (about 10-12 minutes). Remove from the pan and place on a plate. 
4. Depending on how fatty the sausage, pour off some (but not all) of the fat. 
5. Reheat pan to medium. 
6. Add minced shallot and saute for about 1 minute. 
7. Add garlic and sage and stir. 
8. Add plums and juices. 
9. Season with salt and pepper and add a pinch of sugar if plums are very tart. 
10. Stir and saute until the juices begin to sizzle, about 3 minutes. 
11. Pour in wine, increase heat, and simmer for about 5 minutes. 
12. Place sausages back into the pan, cover and reduce heat to a gentle simmer. 
13. Braise for about 30 minutes, occasionally turning sausages. 
14. Make polenta while the sausages cooks. 
15. To finish: transfer sausages to a platter, lift the plums from the pan with a slotted spoon and arrange around the sausages. 
16. Return the braising liquid to the stove and reduce liquid by about half. Taste for salt and pepper. Pour over the sausages and plums. 
17. Serve with polenta, rice, and/or thick crusty bread.