Loneliness, Trepidation, and Fun Prizes: A Recipe Contest

[wombat]

The shy and reclusive Wombat, somewhat overwhelmed with the awesome responsibility entrusted to her, and feeling sad and rejected that no one is posting here,

Hereupon attempts to bribe everyone to be her friend by proposing a Contest.

The prize, if you are willing to reveal your mailing address to me, is a year's subscription to Cook's Illustrated, the official cooking magazine of Achewood Manor http://www.achewood.com/index.php?date=02082002

Your mission is to propose more recipes appropriate to Achewood characters, like in the cookbook.  I will judge mostly on literary merit - whether the recipe seems like something that character would make - but reserve the right to do a taste test.  Extra credit for pictures.

In my first totally arbitrary and capricious act, I limit this contest to food recipes only.  Maybe we'll do drinks later.

It is cheating to enter my own contest, but I'll post what would have been my entry if someone else had proposed it.

[wombat]

These are some Pains au Chocolat that I am sure are an old family recipe of Philippe's.  Because they are French, and they are simple.  

And because if you do it right they are kind of otter shaped.  They should be longer and thinner than they look in this picture http://www.rebsig.com/kogepan/choc3.jpg

1 1/2 c flour
1/2 t salt
1 tsp yeast
1/3 c water
1/3 milk
about 4 oz good dark chocolate cut in 8 longish pieces

Mix flour and salt
Dissolve yeast in water
Mix that stuff, and the milk
Let rise till doubled
Cut into 8 pieces.  Wrap each piece around a piece of chocolate.
Brush with whole milk (lower fat milk won't help them brown)
Place on a cookie sheet and let rise till doubled.  You have to cover them somehow while you do this, I use a very large plastic container upside-down.
Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes

These are best when still warm, but are also OK leftover if heated.  Elizabeth David, whose recipe this is, says the chocolate inside MUST be just melting.  This is her original proportions - I like more bread to chocolate and use this to make more like 6 rolls with 3 oz chocolate.

[slink]

Not a stunning recipe or anything, but well worth it for snack value, and it is excellent and easy...

Mingus Nightlife's Onion Tart ('cause when life is awesome you need some classy munchies)

Roll out some puff pastry, to about the size of some A4 paper (maybe two sheets... fairly thin anyway), (slightly wider than legal since I don't know US paper size formats), or alternatively some prerolled.
Lay on a baking tray, and score a rectangle into it about 1-2 inches from the edge, all the way around, then prick the center area liberally with a fork to stop it rising.
Chop 3 or 4 medium to large onions into quarters, and then seperate the layers. Fry on a low heat in some oil, and butter, until they go soft and brown (kind of like hot dog onions).
When done, put the onions in the center section of the pastry and even out .
Sprinkle some thyme over it, and chop some cheese (Tellagio preferrably, but you can substitute for most other cheeses) into small chunks and sprinkle over too.
Then put in a pre-heated oven at about 150-190degrees celsius (300-400 fahrenheit) until the pastry is cooked round the edge, and the cheese has melted and hopefully browned very slightly.
Works as well cold as hot.