Beer Ricotta Raviolo with Egg and Herb Butter Sauce

Beer Ricotta Raviolo with Egg and Herb Butter Sauce, time to get fancy!

Plus a book giveaway!

It’s somewhere North of 3 am and we’re walking the winding back country roads of Big Bear, California. Thin dresses swishing in the cool August air as we try to walk back into town from the wedding Linda and I are in the mountains for.

Giggly and drunk on wine and still love-high from the touching vows we’d witnesses, we realize that we’re only “sort of” lost as we try to navigate the dusty walk back, void of any sidewalks or street lamps. Our ride had left hours before we did, and since this isn’t the sort of place that Uber inhabits, we decide that walking back down the mountain is our only option.

Grateful that one of the grooms insisted we wear flats—the more appropriate footwear choice for a mountain wedding over the heels we both reluctantly left in the hotel—we realize that running may be necessary when the only vehicle we’ve seen so far suddenly takes notice of us.

As the semi-truck pulls to a stop near us the driver climbs out of his cab to make his way towards us, and we bolt. In unison, we run towards town and around the bend in the road. Like a desert oasis, we see the hotel. Sprinting towards the doors, we finally stop to catch our breath once inside. We look at each other and burst out laughing. Not sure if we were in any real danger, or if the wine had turned a guy just checking on a flat tire into a sure-threat, we don’t care. We’re safe, slightly drunk, and happy.

Since that day Linda has steadily become one of the most important people in my life. Helping me in ways she can’t even understand through two of the most difficult points in my adult life. From frantic texts at midnight to long talks over bottles of wine, she’s the sort you always want to find solace in when the storm hits, or celebrate alongside when the moments are perfect. Although meeting her, years before the Big Bear wedding, I was immediately intimidated.

At a food conference in Los Angeles, she seemed to just appear in front of me. Tall, beautiful, wickedly smart, and incomprehensibly talented, she’s the sort you should be intimidated of. With a rapidly growing following and several TV shows and appearances under her belt, she’s the type that can pull of being pretentious and snobby. She could even get away with it, if she wanted. But the thing about her, possibly the most endearing part, is that there isn’t a trace of that in her, not one bit. She has a heart of gold, a passion for social justice, and she connects with damn near everyone. She won’t just remember you, she’ll remember the story you told her three years ago about your mom being in the hospital and she’ll ask you about it. She is just so likable. She’s also charmingly inappropriate, and wildly unpredictable. Which just makes you like her more.

She’s spent the better part of the past two years pouring herself and her immense knowledge of pasta into her new book, Pasta, Pretty Please, and it’s beautiful. If you don’t follow her on Instagram, you’re missing out, it’s the most impressive feed you’ll see.

I’m giving away a signed copy of the books that won’t just teach you how to make pasta, it will make you fall in love with it. You can enter on Instagram. Don’t have an Instagram? Share this post on Facebook (make sure it’s public so that I can see!) and post a link to your Facebook post in the comments below.

Linda has offered to sign the book for you, or Linda has also offered the option for her to sign your boobs, or both if you’re up for it.

Yum

Beer Ricotta Raviolo with Egg and Herb Butter Sauce

Yield: 6 servings

Adapted from Pasta, Pretty Please by Linda Miller Nicholson

Ingredients

For the Green Dough*:

1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 punch flat leaf parsley
2 large eggs
2 ¼ cups “00” pasta flour

For the Red-Orange Dough:

2 large eggs
2 ¼ cups “00” pasta flour
¼ cup tomato paste

For the Ricotta:

3 cups whole milk (do not use Ultra-Pasterized, it won’t work)
1 cup heavy cream
½ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup Saison beer, Plus 2 tablespoons divided
3 tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar (you can also use lemon juice, or a combination of the two)

For the Filling:

6 large egg yolks

For the Sauce:

½ cup unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large leaves sage, minced
Leaves from 1 sprig rosemary, chopped
½ cup chicken or vegetable broth
Salt to taste (the amount of salt you need will be dependent on the broth you use)
¼ cup fresh grated parmesan

Instructions

Make the ricotta:

In a pot over medium high heat (do not use an aluminum pan) add the milk, cream, salt and 1/3 cup beer.
Clip a cooking thermometer onto the side of the pan.
Bring the liquid to 190°F degrees, stirring occasionally to prevent the bottom from scorching. Keep a close eye on it, the liquid reaches and passes 190 very quickly and you don’t want it rising above 200.
Remove from heat, add the 2 tablespoons beer and then the vinegar (or lemon juice) and stir gently once or twice. It should curdle immediately. Allow to sit undisturbed for about 5 minutes.
Line a large strainer with 1 or 2 layers of cheesecloth; place the strainer in the sink over a large bowl.
Pour the ricotta into the strainer and allow to drain for 15 to 30 minutes and up to an hour (the longer it drains, the firmer the consistency)
Place in an air-tight container and store in the fridge, can be made up to 3 days in advance.

Make the green dough (skip if you aren't making the decorations):

In a large saucepan over high heat, bring the salt, baking soda and 8 cups water to a boil. Add the parsley and boil it for 15 seconds, remove it and place in a strainer, run under cold water to blanche. Drain and press out the water.
Add the parsley to a blender along with the eggs, blend first on low speed, then increase the speed and green liquid until smooth.
Strain the puree with a fine mesh strainer, reserving the green liquid and discarding the pulp.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the flour and puree. Mix on low speed until a ball of dough forms. Raise the speed to medium and continue to knead for 3 minutes (or by hand for 6-8 minutes) until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover the ball of dough with plastic wrap and allow to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes (you can also refrigerate the well-wrapped dough for up to three days).

Make the red-orange dough:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the flour, eggs and tomato paste. Mix on low speed until a ball of dough forms. Raise the speed to medium and continue to knead for 3 minutes (or by hand for 6-8 minutes) until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover the ball of dough with plastic wrap and allow to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes (you can also refrigerate the well-wrapped dough for up to three days).
*(skip to step 17 if you aren’t making a decoration) Cut the green dough into four equal sized pieces. Roll one piece out several times to make it thin enough to pass through your dough roller (wrap up the remaining pieces so they don’t dry out).
Pass through your dough roller on the widest setting, then again. Close the dough roller one more stop to make it thinner (one away from the widest setting), pass the dough through twice. Fold into thirds, like a letter going into an envelope. Pass through your dough roller again with the folded ends on the sides (this will make the sides of the dough sheet straight rather than jagged).
Continue to pass through the dough roller stopping down to a thinner setting every two passes until you reach halfway between the thinnest and thickest setting.
Using a cookie cutter, cut out 6 of your desired decoration shapes, set aside while you work on the rest of the Raviolo.
Cut the red-orange dough into four equal sized pieces. Roll one piece out several times to make it thin enough to pass through your dough roller (wrap up the remaining pieces so they don’t dry out).
Pass through your dough roller on the widest setting, then again. Close the dough roller one more stop to make it thinner (one away from the widest setting), pass the dough through twice. Fold into thirds, like a letter going into an envelope. Pass through your dough roller again with the folded ends on the sides (this will make the sides of the dough sheet straight rather than jagged).
Continue to pass through the dough roller stopping down to a thinner setting every two passes until you reach two stops away from the thinnest setting.
Repeat for one more piece of red-orange dough.

Make the Raviolo:

Lay the pasta sheets on a flat surface lightly dusted with flour.
If using a decoration, brush the top of one sheet of pasta with water. Brush the bottom side of the green pasta decoration with water. Place the decorations evenly spaced every 6-8 inches on the sheet of dough. Gently roll with a rolling pin to press together and adhere.
Add the ricotta to a piping bag or a Ziplock bag with the corner cut off.
Make circles of ricotta (a ricotta “nest”) on the blank pasta sheet evenly spaced every 6-8 inches. Nests should be about 3 inches across with a well big enough to just nestle an egg yolk into.
Place one unbroken yolk into each nest. Brush the pasta with water around each nest.
Carefully move the sheet of pasta with the green decorations on top of the sheet with the ricotta nests. Line the sheet up so that the green decorations are directly above the egg yolks.
Press firmly to adhere the top sheet of pasta to the bottom, taking care to remove all the air and seal the dough together.
Cut each Raviolo between each nest making 6 individual Raviolo. Allow to dry for about 15 minutes, flip over and allow the bottom to dry for about another 10 minutes.
Prepare a large pot of salted boiling water.
In a large saucepan melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, sage and rosemary, cook for about 5 minutes.
Stir in the broth, cooking until warmed, salt to taste. Allow the sauce to simmer gently but not boil.
One at a time gently add the Raviolo to the boiling water, boil for 2 minutes. Using a large slotted spoon or a Spider, gently remove and allow all the water to drain off. Add to the sauce, cooking for an additional 3 minutes in the sauce while gently spooning the hot butter on top of the Raviolo.
Add to a plate with a spoonful of sauce, top with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, serve immediately.

Notes

The green pasta decoration is optional. I used a hop flower cookie cutter, but any cookie cutter will do. Feel free to skip this step, it's mostly asthetic and skipping it will not diminish the overall flavor of the dish.

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Beer Eggnog Ice Cream

Beer Eggnog Ice Cream

I’m here to change your mind, to flip your vote. I know, I know, eggnog is gross, right? Yeah, I thought so too. Then I realized that it’s not. It’s actually quite amazing, it’s basically boozy, drinkable ice cream. IF you make it right.

Most importantly: back off the nutmeg. Because the difference between a teaspoon of “fresh grated nutmeg,” with its big, fluffy, air-filled piles, it’s about one quarter the amount you’d use if you just scoop it out of the McCormick bottle (jar? tin? container? What the heck do you call those things, anyway?)

Tl;DR: if a recipe calls for “fresh grated nutmeg” and you pssshhh all over that because you just want to scoop it out of the pre-ground tub (is that the word?), use 1/4 of what it calls for or you’ll wreck your dish.

Now that we’ve discovered why you didn’t like that one batch of nutmeg juice your aunt used to make, we can all agree that eggnog is amazing. Oh, and so is ice cream, and beer, obviously.

What beer should you use? Great question! I’m so glad you asked, let’s talk about that. Malty. Always a malty beer (back away from the IPA’s). I’ve done this a few times, this beer-ed up nog situation (I know, you’re shocked by this news, I’ll give you a second to recover).

Here are the undisputed reigning champs of beer-nog: Winter Ales (as long as it isn’t one of those winter IPAs), and Barleywines. Both are heavy on the malt, and full of those clove, cinnamon, spice notes that go so well in our boozy ice cream.

Sure, you can use a pre-made version. Or a leftover eggnog from your last nog endeavor. For an ice cream base, it’s completely fine. Want my scratch beer-nog recipe? Here it is: Pub Nog.

Just use a beer you love, a beer with high ABV and tons of malt. You’ll love it.

Yum

Beer Eggnog Ice Cream

Serving Size: 2 quarts

Ingredients

3 cups (730g) prepared eggnog (homemade or store bought)
1 cup (240g) heavy cream
½ cup (100g) brown sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup (6oz) winter ale beer or Barleywine

Instructions

Stir together all ingredients.
Churn in ice cream maker according to manufactures specifications until it reaches a soft serve consistency. This can take up to 20 minutes; the ice cream base should more than double in size (of all the ice cream recipes I make, this one takes the longest to reach this stage. Just keep allowing the ice cream to churn until it’s more than doubled in size).
Place in an airtight container, freeze until set, about 3 hours.

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IPA Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars with Beer Candied Pecans

IPA Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars with Beer Candied Pecans

I know, I get it. You’re already sick of pumpkin things and the season hardly started. I hear you, for me fall is all about hops. Spending last week running around the hop fields of Yakima, my love for hops has never been stronger (I’ll tell you all about that trip soon).

But it occurred to me, as I’m pints deep in hops, that although pumpkin isn’t the reason for the season when it comes to a true craft beer devotee, it’s a flavor that goes remarkably well with hops.

I’ve spent years meh-ing pumpkin beers when really I’m just averse to a boring, overly malted pumpkin ale. Once you brighten it up with hops, clean malts, bright flavors and minus the hell out of the overly cinnamon spice mixtures, you can get yourself a really lovely beer.

I understand if you want to walk out the fall squash door and never look back, but maybe you just want a brighter, cleaner beer. Pumpkin or not, this IPA Pumpkin Cheesecake Bar recipe is great to try your hand at baking with an IPA, a feat much more difficult than it appears. Hops are fussy and aggressive and can be a bit too much at times. But the sugar and dairy give them a nice balance, this is a recipe that can take a punch.

I used Stone Vengeful Spirit, if you want to look for some yourself they have a handy Stone beer locator on their site.

Yum

IPA Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars with Beer Candied Pecans

Yield: 24 squares

Ingredients

For the beer candied pecans:

1/2 cup Stone Vengeful Spirit IPA
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups pecan pieces

For the cheesecake:

9 standard sized graham crackers
2 tablespoon brown sugar
4 tablespoon melted butter
¾ cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
16 oz cream cheese (softened)
4 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (15oz) can pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup Stone Vengeful Spirit IPA
1/4 cup flour

Instructions

Make the pecans:

Preheat oven to 250F.
In a large pot (it will bubble up furiously) over high heat add the beer and brown sugar. Stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Clip a candy thermometer on the side of the pan. Bring liquid to 235F degrees, remove from heat.
Add the butter, stir until combined.
Add ½ teaspoon salt and pecans; stir until the pecans have all been coated.
Pour pecans on to a baking sheet that has been covered with a silicon baking mat (or parchment paper that has been sprayed with cooking spray).
Spread pecans evenly over the sheet.
Bake at 250F for 15 minutes, stir and bake for an additional 15 minutes (if the pecans look foamy, stir until the bubbles have dissolved) remove from oven and sprinkle with the remaining salt.
Allow to cool to room temperature, break apart. (Can be made up to 4 days in advance, store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place).

Make the cheesecake:

Lower the oven temp to 300F
In a food processor add the graham crackers and brown sugar, process until only crumbs are left. While the food processor is still running, add the melted butter and process until it resembles wet sand.
Line a 9X13 pan with parchment paper making sure the parchment comes up and over the sides of the pan. Press crust into the bottom until well compacted.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the brown sugar, white sugar and cream cheese. Mix until well combined. One at a time, add the eggs and vanilla, mixing until well combined, scraping the bottom, before adding more.
Add the pumpkin puree, cinnamon nutmeg and salt, mix until very well combined.
Add the beer and stir until combined.
Sprinkle the flour over the bowl, stir on medium speed until just combined.
Pour over the crust.
Bake at 300F for about one hour or until the center no longer sloshes when gently shaken but just slightly jiggles (The secret to a great cheesecake is not to over bake it, it's better to slightly under bake it for a smooth mousse like texture).
Chill until set, about 3 hours.
Remove from pan using the parchment paper. Cut into squares, top with pecans.

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Crab Tarts with Saison Béarnaise Sauce

Crab Tarts with Saison Béarnaise Sauce

This is because I don’t care. I don’t care that “blogging is dead,” so says everyone who spikes higher on SEO than I do. I don’t care that this is not a very googleable recipe, therefore it won’t earn me much incoming search engine traffic.

Your capacity to care about all the things is limited (also known as: how many fucks you have to give), so I really have to limit what I care about to the things that matter most, and let the rest lie like Chowder Jones in the sunlit patch of my living room.

I do, however, care about you. I care that you like what I’m doing, probably far more than I’d ever let on. I care that you make my recipe, post them on Instagram and tag me.

Honestly, it makes my day (unless your setting are set to private and I can’t see it). I care that you drink beer that you like, and I care a LOT when that beer does heart-melty things like give a portion of the profits from ALL of their beer to nonprofit organizations like The Chicago Women’s Health Center.

Middle Brow, a brewery out of Chicago does this. The remarkable thing, if you don’t know much about beer, is how hard this is.

Craft beer has a remarkably low-profit margin, some newer craft breweries hardly break even. It’s hard enough when you just have to worry about your own bills, but then to factor in giving some of that small margin away; it’s truly philanthropic. They’ve been doing it for years, so clearly they have somethings figured out.

When making these tarts—and freeing myself from all the things I don’t care about—it was easy to focus on the things I do. I did, after all, spend my first few years post-college as a social worker for gang kids.

Once you’re immersed in the world of non-profit-helping-people-organizations, it’s stick with you. And so does this beer. Chicago, you’re lucky to call this place a local spot.

Yum

Crab Tarts with Saison Béarnaise Sauce

Ingredients

For the tarts:

1 sheet puff pastry
2 tablespoons olive oil
8 oz lump crabmeat
1 ear of corn, grilled or roasted, kernels cut off
½ of 1 large red bell pepper, small chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced green onions (plus additional for garnish)
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper

For the sauce:

¼ cup minced shallots
¼ cup white wine vinegar
¼ cup pilsner or wheat beer
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
3 large egg yolks
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ cup unsalted butter

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Roll the puff pastry out on a lightly floured surface. Cut into 12 circles, each about 3 inches across.
Add to a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Brush with olive oil, pierce all over with a fork.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven. While still warm, use the back of a small, round, spoon (like a tablespoon) to press the center in to create a hole.
In a bowl stir together the crab, bell pepper, corn kernels, lemon juice, green onions, salt and pepper.
Plate the tart crusts, fill with the crab mixture.
In a small pot stir together the shallots, vinegar, beer, and tarragon. Bring to a boil, cooking until reduced by half, about 8 minutes, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
In small food processor or blender, add the yolks, salt, and pepper. While the processor is running, slowly add the vinegar reduction and melted butter, process until thickened (if you’re having a hard time getting the sauce to thicken, add to a sauce pan, heat slightly until thickened).
Drizzle the tarts with Bearnaise sauce, sprinkle with green onions, serve.

Notes

*To make ahead: make the tart crust, store in an airtight container. Make filing, store in a separate container. Make the sauce, store in an airtight container. To serve: reheat the sauce in the top of a double boiler, add 1 tablespoon beer, whisk until warmed. Plate the tarts, fill with crab mixture, top with sauce and serve!

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Fiery Thai Kettle Chips and Sweet Potato Burgers with Beer Sweet Chili Cream Sauce

Fiery Thai Kettle Chips and Sweet Potato Burgers with Beer Sweet Chili Cream Sauce

I was a vegetarian for 3 years. Mostly because I grew up on a farm, and I saw how the sausage was made. It didn’t stick, but what did stick is my true and complete love for non-meat burgers (and yes, I still love burgers of the meat-based variety, I just see them as two different things).

The flavors you can get from a patty made with a bowl full of produce is rather staggering, and this burger is easily my favorite.

I’d love to take credit for the depth of flavors, but it’s due in no small part to these chips. Even when turned into crumbs and buried in a ton of other bold flavors, you can taste the heat and the lemongrass from the Kettle Brand Fiery Thai potato chips!

The burger also just so happens to pair beautifully with a winter ale. The malt and spices of a good winter ale will taste fantastic with the flavors of sweet potatoes, smoked paprika, and lemongrass.

I’m not going to lie to you, you can always see right through me. I ate these burgers for three meals in a row. I even put an egg on a patty, added some avocado and sweet chili sauce and ate it for breakfast. And I’m not even sorry about it.

Yum

Fiery Thai Kettle Brand Chips and Sweet Potato Burgers with Beer Sweet Chili Cream Sauce

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

For the Burgers

1 lbs sweet potatoes
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided (plus more as needed)
1 (4.2 oz) bag of Kettle Brand Fiery Thai Potato Chips
¼ cup rolled oats
1 cup quinoa (red or black), cooked (1/3 cup pre-cooking volume)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons cilantro, minced
2 tablespoons green onions, minced
1 teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
3 tablespoons beer (winter ale, rye, Bock)
6 hamburger buns
1 large avocado, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
Additional potato chips for garnish, if desired

For the Sauce:

1 cup sour cream
¼ cup Thai sweet chili sauce
1 tablespoon beer (winter ale, rye, Bock)
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375° F.
Peel the sweet potatoes, then cut into cubes. Add to a baking sheet, drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Roast until the potatoes are fork tender, about 20 minutes (boiling the potatoes will add too much moisture to the filling).
Add the potato chips and the oats to a food processor, process until just crumbs remain.
In a large mixing bowl add the chip crumbs, sweet potato cubes, cooked quinoa, black beans, cilantro, onions, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and beer. Mix until well combined. Form into 6 large patties, about ¾ inch tall.
Heat remaining olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat, cook the patties until golden brown on each side, adding more olive oil to the pan when it starts to dry.
In a small bowl stir together the sour cream, chili sauce, cayenne, salt and garlic powder.
Plate burgers in the buns topped with avocado slices, tomato, sauce and potato chips (if using), serve immediately.
To make in advance, make the burger patty mixture, add to an air tight container, chill for up to three days before using.

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Salt Roasted Mini Potatoes with Garlic Sage Beer Butter

Salt Roasted Mini Potatoes with Garlic Sage Beer Butter. The most delicious appetizer you can make with just ten minutes prep!

I have a confession to make.

Or possibly more of a reminder.

It occurred to me, when I was posting this on instagram, that if you just stumbled upon this weird life that I decided to curate, that it may appear to you that it’s always looked like this.

To you maybe I’ve always existed in this space, always been given money in exchange for taking photos and writing down words and recipe. So, my friend, I’m here to show you the origins. The beginning of the journey to give you context.

This is the first food photo I ever took. I took it, and posted it on the internet for humans with eyes to actually see:

That’s the place I started. I’m telling you this so that you know that you have a shot. At whatever you want, at the dream you keep ignoring. The girl who took the above photo now gets paid to take photos for real life magazines, if that’s possible, you aren’t too far away from what you want.

I’m probably not more talented than you, or smarter, or more organized (definitely not more organized), my life wasn’t more amenable to a career shift, but I didn’t stop. I worked what was essentially two full-time jobs before I was able to make this one work. I clung to the idea like it was the sole thread to pull me away from a life that made me feel like I was drowning. I didn’t hear “no”, I heard “Someday I’ll wish I’d said yes to you.” I didn’t care if no one responded to my emails, or that I was spending more money than I was making. I didn’t know if it was all futile, I didn’t know if it would ever lead me anywhere. I just kept moving.

There are still days I feel like a fraud. Days I wonder why anyone would actually pay me for this. Days when I feel like the box filled with what I don’t know about photography is far bigger than the one full of what I do know. But I’m still moving, still going forward. Still trying to figure out what’s next. Because, like I said last week, the goal isn’t to be perfect, it’s to be better than yesterday.

Yum

Salt Roasted Mini Potatoes with Garlic Sage Beer Butter

Yield: 4 servings

Salt Roasted Mini Potatoes with Garlic Sage Beer Butter. The most delicious appetizer you can make with just ten minutes prep!

Ingredients

1 (3lbs) box Kosher salt
2 lbs mini potatoes
½ cup salted butter (or unsalted butter plus 1/8 tsp salt)
3 cloves peeled garlic
4 fresh sage leaves, chopped
1 tablespoon malty beer (Oktoberfest, Bock, Belgian)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425.
Sprinkle a layer of salt in the bottom of an 8x8 pan. Scrub potatoes, pat dry, and poke a few holes into each, add them to the pan on top of the salt.
Pour the remaining salt over the potatoes until mostly covered.
Roast for 45 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Remove from oven, allow to cool slightly. Break the salt pack, remove the potatoes, add to a serving dish.
Add the butter, garlic and sage to a pot over medium heat until the butter has melted, remove from heat, allow to steep for 10 minutes (this can also be done in the microwave).
Add the melted butter, garlic, and sage to a small bender or food processor along with the beer, blend until well combined. Re-heat the butter if it starts to congeal. Serve potatoes along with melted butter.

Notes

*Add more beer, if desired. If the beer butter is too bitter, add honey a teaspoon at a time to counterbalance the bitterness.

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10-minute Beer Bread Cinnamon Rolls

10-minute Beer Bread Cinnamon Rolls: Takes ten minutes to get these in your oven!

It started years ago, when, for a brief moment, I was trying to be less weird and figure out if “normal” was my bag. For some reason, cinnamon rolls seems like something normal people did on Christmas. I grew up with a weird family, I had a weird job before I started my current weird job that necessitates that I do things like this.

It was during a conversation with my older sister (the one I was with when I almost died in Morocco), in the midst of a life crisis. For some reason, the answer seemed to be cinnamon rolls. It seemed to me, at the time, that normal-people traditions would mend a part of me that I figured was broken. She, being the type of person to love others more than she has ever found a way to love herself, sent me a cinnamon roll pan in the mail along with a “secret ingredient” which turned out to be dry milk powder. The pan broke during a move when I was living in Los Angeles, but the milk powder still finds its way in my traditional yearly cinnamon rolls. In fact, that conversation was the basis for the first recipe in my first cookbook (affiliate link).

I’ve mixed up the recipe for cinnamon rolls a few dozen times, mostly because Christmas and cinnamon rolls feel like home to me. This recipe doesn’t use the milk powder that I reserve for the versions that use a yeast dough, but it doesn’t matter. It’s a quick and easy way to get that fix that brings me an odd comfort. Even though there is no longer a part of me that seeks to change any of my abnormal qualities, I seek out the odd in other people. But it doesn’t matter who you are: cinnamon rolls and beer are just good.

Yum

10-minute Beer Bread Cinnamon Rolls

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Yield: 10-12 rolls

Takes ten minutes to get these in your oven!

Ingredients

Cinnamon rolls:

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (plus additional)
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
12 ounces winter ale (or wheat beer)

For the filling

½ cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar

Icing:

4 tablespoons butter, softened
4 tablespoons cream cheese
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon whole milk

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350.
In a large bowl stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, salt, and beer until a ball of dough forms. Add to a lightly floured surface, (if the dough is excessively sticky, cover with a generous amount of flour, kneading until it's no longer sticky, adding more flour when needed) knead lightly until the ball comes together. Gently roll into a large rectangle.
In a small bowl stir together the butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown and white sugar until a paste forms.
Spread the paste in an even layer on top of the dough rectangle. Roll along the long edge to form a long log.
Cut into 10-12 rings. Place cut side up in a baking dish that has been lightly greased.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.
In a small bowl beat together the butter and cream cheese until well combined. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla and milk, beat until well combined.
Pour the icing over the cinnamon rolls in an even layer, serve immediately.

Notes

*To make ahead: make the cinnamon rolls, place in the pan, cover and refrigerate until ready to bake, up to two days. Do not bake until ready to serve, cinnamon rolls do not keep well. The icing can be made up to three days in advance, keep refrigerated until ready to use.

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Mascarpone Winter Ale Stuffed French Toast

Mascarpone Winter Ale Stuffed French Toast

Winter ushers in a new crop of hard-to-get-your-hands-on beers, and they are just starting to poke their heads out the pumpkin saturated beer crowd.

Winter ales have flown under the main-stream-beer-radar for a while, getting a bit lost as beer drinkers trample from the squash-spice section over to the barrel aged section, but they deserve their time to shine. Every pocket of beer lovers have their own set of winter ales they wait for, counting down the days until the Holiday Ales start to show up in bottle shops. In my circle of beer nerd (based mostly on the distribution zone I’m in), this is what we are waiting for:

Fremont // Winter Ale (and then the BBomb version that’s barrel aged)

Sierra Nevada // Celebration (a classic, and a reminder that hops are invited to the holiday party)

HUB // Abominable (Malty and hoppy, well balanced and full of flavor)

Deschutes // Jubelale (Tastes like Christmas: notes of cocoa, toffee, spices)

Avery // Old Jubilation (A crowd pleaser, warm, malty, with nut and candy notes)

21st Amendment // Fireside Chat (they describe it as: “a kick in the ass and a hug at the same time”)

Widmer // Brrr (robust red ale with candy notes and a nice balance or malt and hops)

The Bruery // 12 Days of Christmas Series

Maritime // Jolly Roger

What are you looking forward to? Any Winter Ales that you’ll pick up that I can’t get my hands on?

Yum

Mascarpone Winter Ale Stuffed French Toast

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

For the Filling:

8 wt ounces mascarpone
½ cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons winter ale
pinch salt

For the French Toast:

1 large loaf French bread, Brioche, or Challah
2 eggs
½ cup cream
½ cup winter ale
1 tsp vanilla
¼ cup sugar
3 tablespoons butter

Instructions

In a medium bowl add the mascarpone, powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons winter ale and salt. Beat with a hand mixer until well combined.
Slice the bread into 3-inch slices (about 8 total).
Using a sharp knife, make a slit in the center of the bread slices, forming a pocket for the filling.
In a medium bowl add the eggs, cream, ½ cup winter ale, vanilla, and sugar, whisk until well combined.
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat.
One at a time spoon the filling into the bread slices. Dip in the egg mixture, making sure to coat well. Remove from the bowl allowing the liquid to drain off the bread.
Place the French toast in the hot pan, cook on each side until golden brown, about 4 minutes per side.
Serve warm.

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Puff Pastry Cake with Maple Ale Pastry Cream

Puff Pastry Cake with Maple Ale Pastry Cream

It’s storming in a way that makes me nervous.

But maybe not in the way you’d expect. I watch the outage map light up all around my town as the lights start to flicker off. I hear the light footsteps of rain on the roof and the cold wind slither through the trees. It’s charming. As much as it can be for a California girl transplanted to the Pacific Northwest.

I worry about not being able to take the photos I had planed for the day, about getting cut off from the Skype call I have this afternoon, and about the fate of the sourdough starter in my fridge.

It also helps me to take a giant step back. All of this is just an inconvenience, a minor disruption that changes my plans of working into fireside book reading. I’m grateful. Breathlessly, disgustingly, grateful that it isn’t more, that the “first world” problem that is making my neighborhood panic and make plans to flee the city isn’t anything more than just sort of uncomfortable.

Sometimes we all just need a little perspective. Just take a step back, pour a beer, eat some cake and tell yourself how lucky you are. Not in the good moments when it’s easy, but in the hard ones when it could be much worse. MUCH, much worse.

Have a safe weekend. Eat some cake. Drink some beer.

Yum

Puff Pastry Cake with Maple Ale Pastry Cream

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

1 cup whole milk
1 cup, plus 2 cups heavy cream, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup, plus 2 tablespoons beer*, divided
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 sheet of puff pastry
½ cup powdered sugar
Berries for garnish

Instructions

In a saucepan off heat whisk together the eggs, sugar, salt and cornstarch until well combined.
Add the milk, 1 cup cream and 1/3 cup beer to a container and warm slightly (not hot, just body temperature).
Whisk the egg mixture continually while slowly poring the warm liquid into the saucepan.
Add the saucepan to medium heat, whisking until thicken. Remove from heat, add to a storage container and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.
Heat the oven to 400F.
Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface. Trim uneven edges and cut into even thirds. Place on a baking sheet, Poke all over with a fork.
Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Allow to cool completely.
In a medium bowl add the remaining 2 cups cream and powdered sugar, beat with a hand mixer on high until soft peaks form. Slowly pour in the remaining 2 tablespoons beer, beating until whipped cream firms.
Add one of the puff pastry sheets to a serving platter. Top with about ½ the pastry cream, then add another puff pastry sheet, and the remaining pastry cream. Top with the final puff pastry sheet (if the stack starts to slide around, chill until set before frosting).
Frost with whipped cream. Refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.
Garnish with berries before slicing and serving (a sharp bread knife works well for slicing).

Notes

I used a Autumn Maple Belgian Ale from The Bruery. If you can't find it, use a malty, sweet beer like a Belgian Quad, a pumpkin ale, a gingerbread ale.

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I used Autumn Maple from The Bruery

Lemon Garlic Beer Butter Cod

Lemon Garlic Beer Butter Cod

You have to jump, sometimes.

When I was in high school I was a lifeguard on a lake in Northern California for a summer doing a steady rotation of pool watch, lake watch, and zip-line duty. The last of which was my least favorite. I was there for the water, not to stand on a platform in the top of a Redwood tree, hooking pre-pubescent campers and their just-slightly-older-than-me counselors up to harnesses and watch them careen towards the lake below.
Occasionally there would be a kid, always a boy, always with a group of other kids who talked him into climbing up the rope ladder to get to the platform, who would freeze. He’d stand there in his harness, shivering in the shade with his still-wet swim trunks clinging to his body, his harness double bolted to the cable, unable to jump. I was always able to get him to let go, to trust, and to jump. Except once.

He wasn’t a camper, he was a tall, very attractive, early-20’s counselor with thick wavy black hair and an ego to match. He was showing off as he climbed to the small wooden space at the top of the tree to stand beside me as I clipped him safely to the cable that would bring him to the sun-warmed lake below. As I finished he turned towards to opening of the wooden tree-house like structure we stood in, and froze. He took a step back, his eyes wide, and muttered, “…I can’t….I can’t”

At first, I tried to calm his fears. Tell him how safe it was, how every kid had gone down safely and there has never been an injury in the history of the camp. It didn’t work. I tried to tease him, letting him know that the 70-pound 12-year-old girl in line behind him had been down three times. It didn’t work. I asked why he was hesitant, he wasn’t sure.

After 20 minutes or prodding, I told him he had to get down, one way or another. That he had to jump off the platform or go back down the rope ladder. He moved closer to the edge, slowly putting one foot over the 30-foot drop, then he slipped. In one motion he was free of the platform and then both of this long arms reaching backward grabbed the railing and pulled himself back towards me on the platform. He couldn’t do it. He scrambled back up next to me, begging me to unhook him. Shaking. He slowly, shamefully, made his way down the rope ladder, past the 12-year-old girl with pity in her eyes.

Sometimes, I think of him. When I’m too scared to move forward with something I feel ill-equipped to manage. How do I do this thing? Where do I start with the thing? What if I can’t do the thing?

Just jump, I think to myself. Don’t be that guy, don’t stay on the platform. I remember thinking, as he made his way down the ladder, that he would regret it. He would wish he’d have jumped and wonder what he was so afraid of. So I tell myself to jump because I have nothing to be afraid of and I’ll regret it if I don’t just do it.

I’m jumping into making videos for some of my recipes. It may sound benign, but it’s a learning process. I’ve spent the past year trying to talk myself into jumping into figuring it out, and it’s daunting. It’s a process. Learning a little at a time, something new for each one, something I hate and will change the next time. But, you can’t stay on the platform forever, you just have to jump. Learning a little each time.

Yum

Lemon Garlic Beer Butter Cod

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

4 cod fillets
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons lemon juice
5 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup beer (wheat beer, summer ale, lower hop pilsner)
2 cups (285g) cherry tomatoes
1 teaspoon minced fresh herbs (such as basil, rosemary, or oregano)
Pasta, couscous, rice or other grain for serving (optional)

Instructions

Melt the butter in a cast iron skillet.
Sprinkle the cod fillets with salt and pepper.
Sear cod on each side, cooking until just cooked through (do not over cook, cod should still be slightly translucent in the center).
Remove the cod from the pan. Add the tomatoes, cooking over high heat until blistered and soft.
Add the garlic, stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Stir in the lemon juice and beer. Cook over medium high heat, breaking up and smashing the tomatoes. Cook until reduced and thickened.
Stir in the herbs and additional salt and pepper to taste.
Plate the cod with the tomato sauce.

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Grilled Apricot Saison Shortcakes with Ginger Mascarpone Whipped Cream

Grilled Apricot Saison Shortcakes with Ginger Mascarpone Whipped Cream

I have to show my cards when the very glaring hole in my beer resume is revealed the moment I am forced to admit that I don’t brew. I’m not a brewer, I’m just here for the beer. I’ll stick to what I’m good at and leave that to the pros. There is enough mediocre beer in the world without my adding to it. But don’t forget that every industry has more jobs that the Rock Star positions that get the focus. Music needs producers, PR people, engineers, designers, writers. So does beer. I’m not sure if I have the patience or disposition for the time, failure, cleaning, and re-working that brewing demands. I’ll contribute in a way that I can, and just spend my days imagining what I’d make if I get another chance to get behind a brew kettle with one of those pros.

I always have a bit of a list of beers that I’d brewed if my imagination was able to take the solid form of a bottled beverage. Right now, I’d brew a Saison. I’d use matcha and peaches. Or apricots and butter. Can you brew a beer with butter? I have no idea. Yogurt, I know that’s possible. But butter? My talents don’t reach those avenues. But if you do brew, and you make a Saison with matcha and peaches, or apricots and butter, please let me know. I’ll want to get my hands on that.

Yum

Grilled Apricot Saison Shortcakes with Ginger Mascarpone Whipped Cream

Yield: 8-10 shortcakes

Ingredients

For the Shortcakes

3 ½ (420g) cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon (4g) baking powder
1 teaspoon (6g) baking soda
½ teaspoon (3g) salt
¼ cup (65g) granulated sugar
8 tablespoons unsalted cold butter, cut into cubes
¾ cup (187mL) Saison beer
1/3 cup (74g) buttermilk

For the Filling:

12-16 ripe, fresh apricots
1 tablespoon (16g) brown sugar, packed
8 wt oz mascarpone cheese
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon ginger, finely grated with a microplane

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425.
In a processor add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.
Pulse to combine. Add the cold butter, process until well combined.
Add the beer and buttermilk, process until just combined.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop about ¼ cup balls of dough onto the parchment, evenly spaced.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly golden brown and cooked through.
Cut the apricots in half, remove the pits. Add to a preheated grill, grilling until grill marks appear, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat, slice, add to a bowl and sprinkle with brown sugar, toss to coat.
Add the mascarpone to a bowl, beat until light and fluffy. Add the heavy cream, beat on high until soft peaks form. Add in the powdered sugar, vanilla and ginger, stir until combined.
Split the shortcakes, fill with mascarpone whipped cream and apricots.

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Chili Beer Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa + Best Summer Beer Tub Beers

20 minute dinner: Chili Beer Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

Stocking a beer tub for a summer party is as important as planning the food. Beer sets a tone and fuels conversation. It’s as much about offering your friends their favorites as it is about introducing them to new ones.

When planning the brew menu keep in mind the types of drinkers you’ve invited as well as how far you want to push their palates. Offer your guests safe choices, slight pushes in new directions, and a few more extravegant options for the fearless few who want to try something new.

Keep in mind that while you may be drawn to the bold punch of a triple IPA, don’t forget that long summer parties pair better with lower alcohol session ales to keep your guests (or yourself) from becoming a cautionary tale or a viral YouTube video. Keep most of your offerings below 6% ABV to help your guests stay in control.

Wheat beer: This is an important addition to your beer tub. The low hop profile is perfect for the “craft beer is too bitter” guy. Most wheat beer is very low on the bitterness scale and a common gateway for those new to craft beer. Wheat beer is also insanely drinkable and pairs easily with a wide array of foods.

Pilsners: Pilsners are having a moment in the craft beer scene right now. Pilsners are about balance, no one ingredient takes center stage. They are hoppy but aren’t the hop bombing IPA’s or the malt saturated Belgians on the other end of the spectrum. Pilsners are a crisp, drinkable introduction to hops with a nice carbonation for summer drinking and burger eating. They are also the perfect way to show Macro Beer Guy that he might actually love a crisp refreshing beer that has a kick of flavor to it.

Session IPA’s. Given that you’ll be the host for a mass beer consumption, you should be mindful of ABV. While many-a guest might scoff at the 4% brew, and feel a manly surge of testosterone when he cracks open a 12 % beast, you know he needs to get home in tact. Session beer (beer that has less than 5% ABV) have so much flavor no one will miss the alcohol, or the obnoxious behavior as a result.

Classic Pale Ales. These are the standards, the beers that got us into craft beer. The ones that makes us nostalgic and are easy to share. It’s hard to fill a tub without a few of these in the mix.

Sour & Wild Ales. Love ’em or hate ’em, sours are part of the conversation and a rapidly growing style in todays craft beer market. Grab a few for your guests, you’ll never know who is going to love them, maybe even you.

Want to know the best way to cut a pineapple? Check this out

Yum

Chili Beer Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup (36g) chopped white onion
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 teaspoon (6g) salt
2 teaspoons (6g) chili powder
1 teaspoon (3g) garlic powder
1 teaspoon (3g) onion powder
½ teaspoon (3g) cumin
½ teaspoon (1g) smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon (0.5g) cayenne powder
12 ounces wheat beer, or summer ale (not too hoppy)
1 cup chopped pineapple
¼ cup chopped red onion
1 jalapeno, chopped
¼ cup chopped cilantro
pinch salt
½ tsp red chili sauce
juice from ½ lime
12 Good quality corn tortillas

Instructions

Add the olive oil to a pan over medium high heat. Cook the onions until starting to brown.
Sprinkle the chicken breast on all sides with salt. Add to the pan, cook on both sides until seared. Sprinkle chicken chili powder, onion powder, cumin, and cayenne. Add the beer, bring to a simmer, reduce heat to maintain a simmer (do not boil). Cover with a lid, allow to simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 8 minutes.
Remove chicken from the pan, shred using two forks. Return the chicken to the pan, allow to simmer for 3 minutes. Remove from pan, add to a serving platter.
In a serving bowl add the pineapple, jalapenos, cilantro, salt, chili sauce and lime juice, stir to combine.
Serve the chicken in the tortillas, topped with the salsa.

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Holiday Ale Candy Cane Truffle Fudge

Holiday Ale Candy Cane Truffle Fudge. Only takes 10 minutes, and it’s crazy good.

Winter ales make me glad it’s December. The frozen roads, crowded stores, jam-packed schedules are the price of admission to the best month of beer all year long. We still have some fresh hop beers from hop harvest that happened a few months ago, barrel aged beers are hitting the bottle shops in full force, and winter ales have showed up to join the party.

So…what is a winter ale? Glad you asked, and the answer is both really simple and completely complicated. Basically a winter ale is a beer released in November or December that has a higher than average ABV (about 7% or higher), often maltier and sweeter than your average beer, and features spices often found in holiday meals such as cloves, cinnamon, orange, and nutmeg. Of course there are hundreds of exceptions and many people consider barrel aged stouts (that really don’t fit that definition) to fall under the category of “winter ales.” People call these “winter ales,” “winter warmers,” “holiday ales,” or “christmas ales.” They make excellent sharing beers due to mostly being sold in the large bomber style bottles and having a generous dose of booze for your pint. The flavors go incredibly well with holiday food, especially if you decide to serve duck or goose as your holiday feast.

Want to try a few? Here are some to look out for, in no particular order:

Freemont Brewing // Bourbon Barrel Abominable

Highland Brewing // Cold mountain Winter Ale

Ninkasi Brewing // Sleigh’r

Widmer Brothers Brewing // Brrr Winter Ale

Hopworks Brewery // Abominable Winter Ale

Sierra Nevada Brewing // Celebration Fresh Hop Winter IPA

Maritime Pacific Brewing // Jolly Roger Christmas Ale

Tröegs Independent Brewing // Mad Elf

Southern Tier Brewing // Old Man Winter

Great Divide // Hibernation Ale

Black Raven Brewing // Festivus Winter Ale

Yum

Holiday Ale Candy Cane Truffle Fudge

Yield: 18-24 pieces (depending on size cut)

Ingredients

16 wt oz dark or semi-sweet chocolate (chips or bar form)
1/3 cup (102g) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
¼ tsp (.5g) vanilla extract
1/3 cup winter ale, plus 2 tbs, divided
2 standard sized candy canes, crushed

Instructions

Line an 8x8 baking pan with wax paper; set aside.
In the top of a double boiler over gently simmering water add the chocolate, 1/3 cup beer, and sweetened condensed milk. Stir until well combined and chocolate is melted.
Stir in the vanilla extract and remaining 2 tablespoons beer.
Pour into prepared pan. Top with crushed candy canes.
Chill until set, about 3 hours.

Notes

Note: weight ounces and fluid ounces are not the same. Weigh the chocolate on a kitchen scale to get an accurate measurement, or refer to the weight ounces listed on the chocolate package.

Note: If you don’t own a double boiler, place a metal or heat safe glass bowl over a pot of water. Make sure that the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Bring the water to a gentle simmer; do not boil.

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Coconut Pumpkin Ale Overnight French Toast Bake

Coconut Pumpkin Ale Overnight French Toast Bake

Every interview, radio and TV, that’ve done the past two months has involved answering questions about pumpkin beer.

I told you about the harvest question incident already, and the problem with pumpkin beer. Beer people, for the most part, see this time of year as hop harvest season more than pumpkin season. Fourth quarter has some of the most incredible beer. We have wet hop, barrel aged beer, winter warmers, holiday ales, barley wines. There is so much to explore when it comes to beer. Pumpkin beer can be fantastic but the truth is if pumpkin beer disappeared tomorrow—never to be seen again—I’d hardly notice.

Pumpkin fanaticism this time of year grows to such a fevered pitch it’s hard not to be irritated but the fascination points to a growing trend: in-season produce. That’s good news. Although the obsession gets derailed by the a spice blend that contains no actual hint of the produce other than the name, the idea is still solid. We should do this more. We should lose our minds of blood oranges in January, infusing our beer and lattes as much as possible. We should freak out over apricots in June. We should await peach harvest every summer like a kid on Christmas morning. I’m hopeful these obsessions will continue, pushing us to focus more on the produce that just came out of the ground. Pumpkin, I’m hoping, is just the start of the produce loving snowball rolling down hill.

Pumpkin beer is a great cooking beer. Especially for those who would rather drink something else. Of course it’s strange to add beer to your breakfast, but you make this the night before when finishing the remaining beer from the bottle you open is a lot less strange. The yeast and carbonation give this a slight leavening effect, they way a beer cheese dip can have a soufflé texture out of the oven. The center will puff slightly and the bread will turn slightly puffy and creamy.

And you can pair this with coffee, pumpkin spiced or not.

Yum

Coconut Pumpkin Ale Overnight French Toast Bake

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

1 loaf (1 lbs) Challah or Brioche bread, cut into cubes
5 large eggs
1 can (400 mL) full fat coconut milk
1 cup (226g) pumpkin ale, brown ale, or winter ale
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup (122g) pumpkin puree
¼ cup (55g) brown sugar
3/4 cup (150g) white sugar
1 ½ tsp (6g) pumpkin pie spice*
½ tsp (3g) salt
(maple syrup or whipped cream for serving, optional)

Instructions

Add the bread cubes to an 9x13 baking dish.
In a large bowl whisk together the remaining ingredients. Pour over the bread.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 350. Bake until the top is lightly springy and appears to have puffed in the center, about 35-45 minutes.
Slice and serve warm with whipped cream or maple syrup.

Notes

(*For homemade pumpkin pie spice 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground allspice)

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Pumpkin Ale Cornbread

Pumpkin Ale Cornbread

There is a moment in the year that every food becomes both necessary and then irrelevant.

Ice cream becomes a necessity, and absolute brilliant idea, sometime around mid-May when the weather spikes up past 80 degrees for the first time in months. When the sweaters get shed like downy feathers, and scarves feel more like a noose than a comfort, a cold bowl of sweet creamy dessert feels like salvation. And then the tide turns. A few months later, a season and a half has past, and that shed outerwear becomes vital to survival and desserts become warmer and crispier.

Then there are those foods that never turn. There is no pendulum swing. They are always welcomed, always have a place on the plate.

This is cornbread. There are summer barbecues and paper plates sagging under the weight of sticky-messy ribs and baked beans, begging for the crumbly square of cornbread to take up the space in the corner. When the summer gives way to the fall you have steaming pots of chili. There are spicy, rich, beans-or-no-beans pots of fight-over-the-right-way-to-make-it bowls that are perfect for everything from football viewing to lazy Sunday suppers.

Cornbread is as season-less as beer. It’s always a good idea.

Yum

Pumpkin Ale Cornbread

Ingredients

1 ½ (242g) cups cornmeal
½ cup (60g) all-purpose flour
2 tsp (8g) baking powder
1 tsp (6g) baking soda
1 (3g) teaspoon salt
1/3 cup (75g) brown sugar
2 tsp (6g) pumpkin pie spice
1 cup (244g) pumpkin purée
¼ cup (66g) heavy cream
¾ cup (184g) brown or pumpkin ale
3 tbs (38g) olive oil
2 eggs
2 tbs unsalted butter

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 with a cast iron skillet in the oven.
In a large bowl stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice.
In a small bowl stir together the pumpkin puree, heavy cream, beer, olive oil, and eggs.
Make a well in the dry ingredients, pour in the wet ingredients and stir until just combined.
Carefully remove the hot pan from the oven, add the butter. Swirl around the pan until the butter is melted and the pan is well coated. Pour the excess butter into a small bowl.
Pour the batter into the pan in an even layer, pour the excess melted butter on the top.
Bake until the top springs back when lightly touched, 16-18 minutes.
Remove from oven, slice, serve warm.

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Pumpkin Beer Bread French Toast and The Problem with Pumpkin Beer

I’ll give you a quick and easy way to tell if your favorite pumpkin beer was made with fresh pumpkins or the canned version.

Release date.

It takes weeks to brew a beer, and pumpkins reach full maturity, ready to harvest and roast for brewing, sometimes around late August. Making those beers released in July nearly impossible to brew with fresh pumpkins.

Canned pumpkin isn’t even the issue. Several breweries successfully make very complex, well-balanced beer with canned pumpkin every year. The issue is more about the impact that the early release dates have on breweries that want to use fresh. The arc of pumpkin season starts so soon, due to the canned-pumpkin beers, that by the time the fresh-pumpkin-using-breweries releases their beer, the moment has passed when it really should just be starting. A fresh brewed pumpkin beer will arrive on store shelves, at earliest, in mid-September. A much more appropriate time for a pumpkin flavored beer to be consumed. Unfortunately, at this point pumpkin beer coverage has been going on for months, making the release of fresh pumpkin beers seem like old news.

Pumpkin beer also ages well. For this I used a bottle of Rogue Pumpkin Patch ale from last year, made with pumpkins they grow on their farms, and it was even better this year than last. The flavors round out and have a deeper, more complex flavor. You can save this years pumpkin beers for next year, if you really jones for a mid-summer squash ales.

Maybe this doesn’t bother you, maybe you don’t mind a 100 degree, mid-July pumpkin porter. Or maybe you hate it. What can you do if this does, in fact, bother you? Make a bigger deal out of fresh brewed pumpkin beer, don’t buy any before middle September, don’t post anything on social until fresh pumpkin beers have been released, and thank the hard working brewers that not only brewed you a pumpkin beer, they also grew, harvested and roasted those pumpkins.

Yum

Pumpkin Beer Bread French Toast and The Problem with Pumpkin Beer

Serving Size: 4 servings

Ingredients

For the Pumpkin Beer Bread

3 cups (360) all purpose flour
1 tsp (4g) baking powder
2 tsp (12g) baking soda
1 cup (150g) brown sugar
2 ½ tsp (4g) pumpkin pie spice (see note)
¾ cup (225g) pumpkin puree
8 ounces (226g) pumpkin ale (or brown ale)

For the French Toast:

1 cup whole milk
3 eggs
½ cup pumpkin puree
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp vanilla extact
½ cup brown sugar
¼ tsp salt
Butter
Maple syrup for serving
1/2 cup pecan pieces (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350.
In a large bowl stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and sugar. Add the pumpkin puree and beer, stir until just combined.
Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray. Pour that batter into the pan in an even layer.
Bake for 40 minutes or until cooked through. Remove from oven, allow to cool completely before slicing, chill if necessary (beer bread can be made a day ahead of time, cover and chill until ready to use).
Slice into 1-inch thick slices.
In a wide, shallow bowl whisk together the milk, eggs, pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, brown sugar and salt.
Add the slices, a few at a time, allowing to soak for one to three minutes.
Preheat a skillet or griddle to medium high; melt a pat of butter to coat the surface (continue adding butter between batches when the pan looks dry).
Remove the slices from the batter and allow excess to drain off.
Cook in the hot pan until golden brown on each side, about 3 minutes per side.
Serve topped with maple syrup and pecan pieces.

Notes

Homemade Pumpkin Pie Spice: 2 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon nutmeg, ½ teaspoon ground cloves, ½ teaspoon ground allspice, ½ teaspoon ground ginger

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Blackberry Beer Cheesecake Tart

I’m sitting at a bar in Bogota, Colombia, communicating the best I can through broken Spanish. Laughing with several kitchen’s worth of chef’s, trying to convince them that, even though I nearly passed out from the altitude, and I’m in fact, not pregnant. They motion with their hands to create invisible fake bellies, then laugh. They point at my beer, “No, no! No good for baby!” we all laugh.

I’d spent most of the week with them, redoing the menus at the Bogota Brewing Company’s pubs. A trip that I can’t wait to tell you more about, a trip that was nothing short of life changing. I’m sitting at the bar, finishing a Champinero Porter, one of the best porters I’ve had in a long time and I think about the choices I’ve made that lead me down this rabbit hole. I must have done something right. I’ve made strange choices in my life, some terrible, some mediocre, some harmful, but I must have done something right. Grateful isn’t a strong enough word. I can’t find the right way to express how I’m feeling, not in English, certainly not in Spanish. So I finish my beer, laugh at the implication that I’m pregnant, hug them all and thank them. It’s been an incredible trip, an unforgettable country, and outstanding people.

Yum

Blackberry Beer Cheesecake Tart

Ingredients

For the cheesecake tart:

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
24 ounces cream cheese
1 ½ cups sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbs flour
2 tbs corn starch
1 tsp salt
½ cup saison beer (or wheat beer)

For the blackberry layer:

3 cups (12 wt oz) blackberries
1 cup saison (or wheat beer)
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tbs cornstarch
1 tsp salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 300.
Add the blackberries, saison, powdered sugar, cornstarch and salt to a pot over medium high heat. Bring to a low boil, stirring frequently until thickened, about ten minutes. Set aside.
Roll out puff pastry on a lightly floured surface. Line a 9-inch spring form pan, letting the less hang over the sides. .
Beat the cream cheese in a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add the sugar, egg and vanilla, beating until well combined. Add the flour, cornstarch, salt and beer, stir on low speed until well combined.
Add to the spring form pan in an even layer.
Pour the blackberry sauce evenly over the cheesecake layer. Fold the excess puff pastry over the top of the tart.
Bake at 300 for 1 hour or until the puff pastry is golden brown. Allow to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours and up to over night.

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Strawberry Jalapeno Beer Popsicles + A Craft Beer Whitewater Adventure

I’m in the middle of class 4 rapids, the yellow raft I’m in is pinned on the right side to a giant boulder, the impossibly fast current is rushing over the left side of the boat and the raft is quickly submerged. Seven of us are waist deep in cold water, trying desperately to free ourselves, knowing if the boat flips, or if any of us are tossed out, it could be fatal.

“LEFT SIDE! BACK! BACK!” Our guide, known only to us as Iowa, is screaming directions at us. As the man in charge of getting us safety down the Tuolumne River, we do everything he says without thinking, hoping it works.

Jake, the fire fighter from Ventura, jumps to the back of the boat, at the same time pushing hard against the boulder in an attempt to free the submerged raft. It works. With a sickening scrape we feel the raft free itself. We slide backwards down the rapids, pinging off several boulders before finding calm water and we all start to breathe again.

“Awesome job team, awesome job!” The smile has returned to Iowa’s face. “You guys are awesome.”

One mile down, seventeen to go. Let’s do this.

8 miles and dozens of rapids later we stop to set up camp on a remote river beach tucked away in the woods of Northern California, a short distance from Yosemite. I’m joined on this two day adventure by two guys from Sierra Nevada brewing, a mother and her two children on a memorial trip to honor the Patriarch of the family who passed away exactly one year earlier, a bachelor party of 7 guys up from Ventura California and two chefs from one of Northern California’s hidden gems, The Arnold Pantry. In so many ways, the perfect mix of people. Friendly, laid back, and all with their own story to tell. The ice chest with cold beer is opened up and two of the four kegs packed onto the gear boat by the Sierra Nevada crew are tapped and we all start to loosen up. It’s beer that has been hard-earned and tastes fantastic.

I jump in the make-shift kitchen, set up with a little more than a camp stove under the trees, to give Chip and Jeff a hand. While I’m immersed in cooking tasks, slicing bacon Chip spent three months making and peeling black garlic, the guides have set up a beautiful dinner scene, complete with candles and tablecloth covered portable camp tables. It’s gorgeous. The sunset is throwing silvery shards of light down a calm stretch of river bent around the beach we’ve claimed as camp for the night. After the appetizer of house-cured bacon, black garlic and yellow tomato jam on turmeric avocado toast, our dinner is served to us by raft guides turned wait staff. Crispy pork belly over risotto and pickled asparagus, with a side salad of compressed watermelon and cucumber with feta and candied pecans. For dessert there is a biscuit bread pudding with hand whipped cream and sweet pickled cherries. Even if you were expecting more than hotdogs and store-bought marshmallows, you’d have been blown away. Even if you hadn’t spent an adrenaline packed day dodging boulders and trying to stay afloat, it still would be one of the best meals you’ve had all year. Add in the events of the day, the keg of beer just a few feet away, the gorgeous moonlight and the sound of the river, and it becomes magical. That’s the word for it: magical. We spent the rest of the night by the campfire, trading stories and failing in our attempt to drain the kegs.

By the time daylight rose over the mountains and we were served French toast with orange cream sauce, fresh berries and hot coffee, we felt like a small gang. Ready to tackle what the river had to serve us. Ready for another day of thrills, rapids and laughing. And when that day finally came to an end, it felt too soon. It felt like we needed another keg, more spectacular food and more conversation.

I’m ready to go back.

For more information about the craft beer rafting trips, contact OARS. I highly recommend it.

Yum

Strawberry Jalapeno Beer Popsicles

Ingredients

1.5 lbs strawberries
1 large (or two small) jalapenos, sliced
¼ cup sugar
12 ounces pale, summer ale or IPA (I used Sierra Nevada Summerfest)

Instructions

Add all ingredients to a blender, blend until smooth, allow the mixture to settle until the bubbles go down, about 15 minutes.
Pour into popsicle molds. Freeze until set, about 3 hours.

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I was not compensated for this post, I was given a free trip without expectation or obligation. All opinions are my own.