Beef Stock - Untested

https://www.reddit.com/r/Cooking/comments/1oi9qn/beef_fat_trimmings_suggestions_on_what_to_do_with/ccs7kfw/

https://kalynskitchen.com/how-to-make-beef-stock/

https://goodcheapeats.com/how-to-make-beef-stock/

https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/20390/why-skim-scum-from-the-surface-of-a-simmering-stock#:~:text=The%20scum%20is%20denatured%20protein,leaving%20it%20grayish%20and%20cloudy.

3-4 lbs beef trimmings, cut into small chunks
1 onion thickly sliced
1/2 cup red wine
10 cup water
2 carrots
1 rib celery
2 clove garlic
2 bay leaf
5 peppercorns
3 whole cloves
sprig fresh rosemary
sprig fresh thyme
1 tsp salt. 

1. Roast the scraps in a 400F oven until nice and brown. This could take up to an hour.
2. Bring the water and wine to a gentle boil and add the roasted scraps, the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, herbs and salt.
3. Bring back to a boil, the turn down and simmer for 3-4 hours. If you want to broth to be clear, remove any foam that develops on the surface. This foam is just denatured protein a bit like egg white. If you don't remove it, it will eventually break back down into the liquid and will make it cloudy. 
4. Allow to cool, then refrigerate to remove the layer of fat floating on top (which can be used for cooking).
5. Strain to remove the scraps, vegetables and herbs, then return the liquor to a simmer and reduce as you see fit (could I do this in a slow cooker?)

Blackberry Almond Buckle - Testing

 https://www.countryliving.com/food-drinks/recipes/a43559/blackberry-almond-buckle-recipe/

1 - Very nice! Best when completely cooled. The blackberry can be pushed all the way to the edge - the batter thickens and pushes the fruit towards the center as it cooks, I think. I also want to try using brown sugar for the streusel instead of white. My other recipes using streusel ask for more butter, so I'll try  that, too. Also, I didn't have crème fraîche, and used greek yoghurt instead, and it worked a treat.

OR, would it be better to use the streusel recipe for the Blackberry Crumble? I could substitute the same amount of almond flour for the white flour.

Streusel

½ cup (104g) brown sugar

½ cup  flour, spooned and leveled

½ cup (42g) almond meal

½ tsp. salt

4 Tbsp. (1/2 stick) ½ cup (4oz/114gr) butter, cut up

Cake

½ cup (4oz/114gr) butter, at room temperature, plus more for pan

1 cup (4¼oz/120g) flour, spooned and leveled

¾ cup (63g) almond meal

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. baking soda

1 cup (200g) sugar

2 large eggs

½ cup crème fraîche or Greek yogurt

10 oz. (about 2½ c.) fresh or frozen blackberries 

1. For the streusel: Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk together sugar, flour, almond meal, and salt in a bowl. Work in butter until mixture is crumbly. Refrigerate until ready to use.
2. For the cake: Butter a 9 by 2-inch deep cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
3. Whisk together flour, almond meal, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating to incorporate after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour mixture and crème fraîche alternately, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, just until flour is incorporated.
4. Transfer batter to prepared pan. Top with blackberries followed by the streusel. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 60 to 70 minutes. Let cool slightly.

Hot Cross Buns for Ostara - Test 2

https://www.thespruceeats.com/easy-traditional-hot-cross-bun-recipe-435194 

https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/hot-cross-buns/

https://natashaskitchen.com/hot-cross-buns-recipe/#jump-to-recipe

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/7073/hot-cross-buns-i/

1 - Very good. I made some changes, and they appear to have worked. My first attempt at the crosses following the instructions on the Spruce Eats recipe was a bit of a gong show, so I've added my own idea of how it could be done. I also saw elsewhere the pressing in fruit in the shape of a cross on top causes the bread to fold over it while baking, creating a cross in the bun. That could be interesting to try, too, but with currants that have not been soaked.

2 - Yup, made it again, and again this year Ben said he didn't see the point of hot cross buns until he ate one of these and then was sold. A good recipe, and passes the test, again. Oh, and my revised cross idea worked pretty well but it still isn't very pretty. I found something on the second link (thank you Sally) that might work better than the butter and flour mixture. Oh, and I made this batch using blackberry jelly to glaze, which was not a good idea (LOL, picture below). Therefore, the colour of the jelly is important. I will graduate this to Test 2 given that the buns themselves are quite good.

500 g  strong white bread all purpose flour
55 g brown sugar
1 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

55 g butter, cold and cut into small pieces
150 g mixed dried fruits, pref. currants, chop small if fruit pieces are bigger than currant sized
25 g candied lemon and/or orange peel, chopped
1 Tbsp. active dry yeast
300 mL milk warmed to 125-130F, max
For the Crosses:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

6-8 Tbsps water
1 1/2 oz. / 35 g butter, cold and cut into small pieces
For the Glaze:
1 1/2 Tbsp. apricot jam 

1. Put the currants (and/or dried fruit) in a bowl and pour over boiling water to cover. Let sit about 10 minutes to rehydrate.
2. Meanwhile, mix together the flour, sugar, salt and spices in a large bowl.
3. Add the butter pieces and rub the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse sand.
4. Thoroughly drain the soaking fruit.  Add to the flour mix along with the dried peels.
5. Sprinkle the yeast over the mixture and pour in the warm milk. Mix gently with a spatula until a soft, sticky dough is formed.
6. Tip the dough onto a floured surface and knead for no less than 10 minutes or until a silky smooth dough is formed. Keep flouring the surface and your hands if the dough starts to stick too much.
7. Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in size; depending on how warm it is, from 1 to 2 hours.
8. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
9. Tip the dough onto a floured surface, knock all the air from the dough and knead again for 2 minutes.
10. Divide the dough into 12 and form each into a bun shape. Place the buns on the oiled baking sheet. With a sharp knife, cut a shallow cross the width of the bun into the top.
11. Cover the buns with a damp tea towel and leave to rise again for approximately 45 minutes or until well-risen.
12. While the dough is rising, make the dough to make the crosses by rubbing the remaining butter into the flour. Add a little cold water, approximately 1/2 Tbsp., and stir to make a slightly thick dough. Add a tsp. of water at a time if the dough is too dry, until you get a firm yet smooth, pliable dough.
13. Roll this dough into a ball and place in the fridge for at least 15-30 minutes.
14. Preheat the oven to 425 F. 
15. Roll out the dough to 1/4" and cut thin long strips to make the cross arm with. Probably one long strip and two shorter, or maybe 2 long strips overlapping in the middle of the bun? To test. 
16. Lightly wet the strips of dough (and maybe the cuts on the buns?) and gently place over the cut stripes on the buns. Don't press or do very gently, to avoid knocking out any air from the bun dough. 
17. While the dough is rising whisk the cross ingredients together, starting with 6 Tbsps of water. You want a thick paste that will pipe easily. Add remaining water if needed. Pipe a line down the center of each row of buns, then repeat in the other direction to create crosses.
18. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until the buns have risen and are golden brown.
19. Remove from the oven and brush the buns with the jam (if the jam is a bit tough, warm it on the oven).
20. Place the buns onto a wire rack and leave to cool.

Figues rôties au jambon (Roasted Figs and Ham) - Untested

 https://www.easy-french-food.com/fresh-fig-recipes.html

8 fresh figs

3 Tbsps honey

2 Tbsps parmesan cheese

2 Tbsps butter

4 slices of bayon ham, or other raw, cured ham

1. Wash the figs and cut them in two. Place them peel side down in a baking dish. Pour a little honey on top of each half, then sprinkle with the parmesan, and finish by placing a small amount of butter on each. Bake in a 400° F oven for about 10 minutes.
2. Place four fig halves on four salad plates along with the ham, which you can roll into a log for an attractive presentation.
3. Serve warm.

Salade Chevre Figue (Cheese and Fig Salad) - Untested

https://www.easy-french-food.com/fresh-fig-recipes.html

4 figs

4 cups mixed baby greens

4 ounces creamy goat cheese, or you could try feta cheese as well

8 walnuts, chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon walnut oil

1 tablespoon vinegar (champagne vinegar works well)

salt and pepper

1. Wash the figs. For an attractive presentation, cut the fig in four without cutting through the stem, and allow the fruit to fan open.
2. Garnish four salad plates with the greens and the figs. Place one ounce of cheese alongside the fig, and sprinkle with walnuts.
3. Prepare a vinaigrette with the olive oil, walnut oil, vinegar and salt and pepper. Pour on top and serve.

Chocolate Paté - Untested

 https://www.canadianliving.com/food/recipe/chocolate-pate-with-fig-topping

8 oz bittersweet chocolate chopped

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup icing sugar

4 egg yolks

1/2 cup whipping cream

Fig Topping:

3/4 cups granulated sugar

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup orange liqueur

3 Tbsps orange juice concentrate

4 fresh green figs quartered

1 1/2 tsp lemon juice

16 fresh raspberries

1. Line 5-3/4-x 3-1/4-inch (625 mL) loaf pan with plastic wrap; set aside.
2. In saucepan, melt together chocolate, butter and sugar over medium-low heat until smooth. Whisk in egg yolks, one at a time; cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes or until thickened and glossy. Transfer to large bowl; let cool to room temperature.
3. In separate bowl, whip cream; fold one-quarter into chocolate. Fold in remaining whipped cream. Spoon into prepared loaf pan. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or until firm. (Make-ahead: Refrigerate for up to 2 days.) To unmould, gently pull on plastic wrap to loosen top edge of pate from pan; unmould onto cutting board. Cut into 8 slices.
4. Fig Topping: Meanwhile, in saucepan, bring sugar, water, orange liqueur and orange juice concentrate to boil; boil for 5 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes to cool slightly. Stir in figs and lemon juice. Spoon onto 8 dessert plates; top with slice of pate. Sprinkle plate with raspberries.

Plain Old Vanilla Cake - Testing

https://sugarspunrun.com/the-best-white-cake-recipe/

https://lamouffettegourmande.blogspot.com/2011/02/home-made-chocolate-cake-store-bought.html

1 - It turned out quite well. The icing I used is a new whipped cream icing recipe, which was perfect. The sponge itself was perhaps a bit tough, so next time I may see if I can be more gentle after the flour has been mixed in. It may also be that all purpose flour has too much protein. All in all, everyone seemed to like it.

2 - I reduced the quantity of sugar to 300g, and it worked out just fine! I will try to reduce again by 100g next time. I also tried a new recipe for a yogurt-based icing (well, it's sugar based of course because that's the majority of the ingredients) which was reminiscent of a cream cheese icing, but lighter.

6 Tbsps butter, room temperature (85g)
? cup sugar (300g) (try 200g)

⅔ cup mild vegetable oil (160ml)

1 cup milk, room temperature (235ml)
2 tsps vanilla extract
2 ⅔ cup + 2 Tbsps flour (345g) 
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
6 large egg whites, room temperature

1. Set oven to 350°F. (TRY 325)
2. Generously grease two 8 inch cake rounds. The batter does tend to stick, so you may elect to cut out some parchment paper circles to lay at the bottom of your pan (grease the pan first, lay the parchment paper over the surface and press to make it stick - this will prevent batter from leaking under the parchment paper.).
3. Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. 
4. Beat in the oil, milk and vanilla.
5. Combine in a separate bowl the flour, baking powder and salt. 
6. Put the dry stuff in the bowl with the butter mixture. With a wooden spoon, gently combine just until everything is evenly distributed.
7. Whisk egg whites into stiff peaks. 
8. Using a spatula, take a bit of the egg white and mix into the butter/flour/sugar mixture. 
9. Take this mixture and add it to the egg white bowl and gently fold the egg whites into the batter. Take care to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so that ingredients are well-combined, and take care not to over-mix to preserve the air bubbles in the egg whites.
10. Pour into the prepared baking pan.
11. Bake for about 35 to 40 minutes or until cake tests done.