baking with beer

Mirin Stout Glazed Roast Chicken with Maple Sweet Potatoes topped with Caramelized Shallots and Balsamic Glaze

26.04.2013 20 Comments

When I first got into food blogging I had this idea that I would just take pictures of my dinner and post the recipe online. Somewhere between installing Google Analytics and starting an LLC, I realized that I was cooking in order to develop content rather than just posting what I was eating.

I guess that’s inevitable when I started to earn an income and see my website as a small business. I also realized that although I often stray from who I am as a cook in order to cultivate blog hits, I love cooking, I love food and I got in this business because of those things. When the recipes you love get ignored and the ones you don’t have strong feelings about go viral, it’s hard not to just continue to post those Pandering to the Masses recipes that go viral, but I know that I am the most happy when I cook the food I want to cook and hope that you love it, too.

I loved the way this came out, even though I know it wont go viral. It’s how I like to eat, and how I like to spend my time in the kitchen, hope you don’t mind too much.

Mirin Stout Glazed Roast Chicken with Maple Sweet Potatoes topped with Caramelized Shallots and Balsamic Glaze

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Ingredients

For the Brine:

2 cups water
3 tbs kosher salt
12 ounces brown ale
2 cups ice
4 chicken leg quarters or 1 whole roasting chicken, cut into quarters

For the Glaze:

1 cup stout
2/3 cup mirin
¼ cup soy sauce
½ tsp chili powder
1 tbs cornstarch
3 tbs honey

For the Sweet Potatoes:

2 large shallots sliced (2/3 cup)
2 tbs butter plus 4 tbs divided
1 tbs oil
3 large sweet potatoes peeled and sliced
2 tbs real maple syrup
2 tbs heavy cream
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ salt
1/4 cup chopped pecans
3 tbs balsamic gaze

Instructions

In a pot over medium high heat, add the water and the salt. Stir until salt has dissolved, remove from heat, add the beer and ice. Stir until ice has dissolved and brine is at room temperature or below.
Add the chicken quarters to a large bowl. Pour the brine over the chicken, cover loosely with plastic wrap, refrigerate for 3 hours and up to 24 hours.
Preheat oven to 425F.
Add the stout, mirin, soy, chili powder, cornstarch and honey, whisk to combine. Add sauce pan to high heat, allow to boil until slightly reduced and thickened, about 5 minutes.
Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil, place a wire rack over the foil lined baking sheet.
Remove chicken from brine, discard the brine. Rinse the chicken well and pat dry. Place chicken on the wire rack.
Brush liberally with the glaze.
Roast at 425F for 45 to 55 minutes, brush with glaze every 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven when the internal temperature reaches 175F.
While the chicken is cooking make the sweet potatoes. In a saucepan, melt the butter with the oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook over medium-low heat until caramelized, about 20 minutes.
Boil the potatoes in a pot of lightly salted water until fork tender, about 12-15 minutes. Drain, return sweet potatoes to the dry pot. Add 4 tbs butter, cream, maple syrup, salt, and nutmeg, mash with a potato masher until well combined and potatoes are well mashed, transfer to a serving dish. Top with caramelized shallots, chopped pecans and drizzle with balsamic glaze.

Notes

Balsamic glaze can be bought at the store, often by the balsamic vinegar, or you can make it by reducing 1 cup balsamic and 1 tbs white sugar or honey in a saucepan until reduced and thickened.

Chocolate Stout Cheesecake Fudgesicle

19.04.2013 52 Comments

Chocolate stout cheesecake Fudgesicle

Would you judge me if I tell you that I’m not a huge fan of ice cream? Clearly, I like it just fine I have several ice cream recipes on this blog, but it’s never my first choice.

Of course, I’ll eat it, although I do tend to prefer it in the winter (probably more of that inherent rebellion I told you about earlier), but there are just so many other desserts I’d rather run five miles to work off. Like, cheesecake. Or doughnuts. Or cheesecake doughnuts.

I love cheesecake. So this cheesecake version of ice cream, in pre-portioned sizes (this addresses my serious portion control issues) is just about the most perfect way to consume a frozen dessert.

And because the recipe only calls for 1/3 cup, you are going to have some stout left over that you’re going to have to figure out what to do with.

I apologize for the dilemma this creates.

Chocolate Stout Cheesecake Fudgesicle

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Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese softened
¼ cup sour cream
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tbs whole milk
1/3 cup stout
½ cup dark chocolate chips
6 standard sized graham crackers
2 tbs melted butter

Instructions

In a bowl (or a food processor) mix together the cream cheese, sour cream and powdered sugar until well combined.
Add the milk and stout, stir to combine.
Add the chocolate chips to a microwave safe bowl, microwave on high for 30 seconds, stir and repeat until melted. Pour the chocolate into the cream cheese mixture, stir until combined.
Pour mixture into popsicle molds, leaving about 1 inch of the top empty for the crust (if you don’t have popsicle molds, use small paper cups and popsicle sticks) tap the molds gently on the counter to remove air bubbles.
In a food processor add the graham crackers, process until only crumbs remain.
While food processor is running, add the melted butter in a slow stream until the mixture resembles wet sand.
Divide the crust evenly between the popsicles, press down gently to compact. Insert popsicle sticks, freeze for at least 6 hours and up to 3 days.

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Asparagus Pale Ale Soup

16.04.2013 17 Comments

Lately, I’ve been struggling with a creative plateau I can’t seem to push myself past. A dissatisfaction with everything I make. The recipes that just don’t seem creative enough, the photos that I can only see as average, and the sub-par writing. I’ve been trudging through this phase, trying to push myself, and the things I create, closer the level I want to be on.

A few days ago I came across this quote from Ira Glass that reminded me that although I’m not where I want to be, I just might be on the right path.

Because maybe discontentment is the only common thread of successful people. Maybe it’s dissatisfaction that pushes anyone towards the best self they can ever achieve, and maybe complacency is an anchor into mediocrity.

Maybe.

I don’t know if I have more talent to unearth in myself, or if I’ve squeeze every bit out of an average ability, but Ira Glass did give me hope that the struggle is part of the journey. And it’s a normal part.

I see this struggle in brewers, too. The ones that make the jump from homebrewer to successful brewery owner share that same dissatisfaction, the push to be better, learn more, create great beer, and master the simplicity of classic styles. The biggest leaps in potential comes from feeling self-dissapointment in the middle of your own celebrations. When everyone else is cheering your accomplishments, you are taking inventory of your short falls.

Seasonal and special release beers are brewers pushing the levels of their own creativity. A way for the rest of us to thoroughly enjoy the fight these talented, creative, souls are engaged in to push themselves higher in their own climb.

Hop Cuvee is a newly released pale ale from Bison Brewing. It’s a beer that has an accessible, balanced, hoppiness that uses three different types of hop as a celebration of the best hop crops of the years. It’s crisp and citrusy with notes of pine, it’s a great choice for summer. Dan Del Grande, Bison’s fearless leader says, “My hop blend in Hop Cuvée will change every year, like a vintage, to reflect the best crops that our organic hop farmers have to offer.” Bison is a great brewery to get to know, they have a love of great beer, and have figured out how to give it to us in a way that’s organic, eco-friendly, and aims for a lower carbon footprint every year.

This is a beer that celebrates seasonal crops, making it perfect for the asparagus that just came into season. It finishes the soup to give it a bit of an earthier taste. I prefer this soup warm, but it can also be served as a chilled soup when the weather jumps into the triple digits.

Asparagus Pale Ale Soup

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Ingredients

3 tbs unsalted butter
1 large sweet white onion chopped
2 pounds asparagus trimmed
5 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/3 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup pale ale

Instructions

In a large pot or Dutch oven heat the butter over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the asparagus and cook until slightly darkened, about 3 minutes.
Add the broth and cook until asparagus has softened, about 10 minutes, remove from heat.
Using a blender, food processor or immersion blender, puree until very smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in cream and return to heat, brining to a gentle simmer. Remove from heat, stir in beer.

Homemade Garlic Beer Pita Bread

12.04.2013 26 Comments

Do you remember when I told you that once I discovered that homemade corn tortillas where so good it made me realize that I didn’t actually hate corn tortillas, I just hated those sad cardboard disks they sell at the store?

Pita bread is an even bigger revelation. It’s not as quick as those 10-minute homemade tortillas, but it’s so soft and addictingly amazing, it’s worth the time. It’s about 15 minutes of active time and another 45 to 60 minutes of rising time. About an hour all in. An hour well spent. Pita bread was the first yeast bread I ever made which helped me to conquer my fear of yeast and made me wonder what I was so scared of.

For this, and for most bread recipes, I like a wheat beer, especially an unfiltered wheat beer. The bready notes and the yeast in the beer give a great texture with a hint of beer on the back end.

So, what do you do with this beautiful bread once you’ve decided to make it? If you can resist eating it right out of the pan, it makes amazing wraps and sandwiches, but don’t be afraid to make mini pizzas or even large chicken tacos with this too. Or just eat it right out of the pan with some melted butter. And a cold beer.

Homemade Garlic Beer Pita Bread

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Ingredients

2 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 envelope rapid rise yeast
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 cup beer
1 tsp salt

Instructions

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, add the flour, yeast and garlic powder. Mix until combined.
In a microwave safe bowl add the beer. Microwave on high for 20 seconds, test temperature with a cooking thermometer and repeat until temperature reaches between 120 and 125 degrees Fahrenheit.
Add the beer to the stand mixer and mix on medium speed. Once most of the dough has been moistened, sprinkle with the salt while the mixer is still running.
Turn speed to high and beat until dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl, tightly wrap with plastic wrap. Allow to sit in a warm room until doubled in size, about 45 to 60 minutes.
Remove from bowl and add to a lightly floured surface. Knead several times, cut into 8 equal sized pieces.
One at a time roll the dough into 6 inch circles.
Lightly oil a cast iron skillet and heat over high heat until very hot. Add one dough circle to the pan, cook until the underside has browned and the top starts to bubble, about 2 minutes, flip and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes or until the pita bread is cooked through. Adjust the heat if the pan becomes too hot and the bread burns too quickly.

Beerscotti: Chocolate Beer Biscotti, Made with Beer for Beer

03.04.2013 22 Comments

Something about this just isn’t right, it’s a cookie made to dunk in your beer. Who does that? Maybe I’m trying to start a beer cookie revolution that ends with crumbs at the bottom of your pint glass. Maybe I just liked the alliteration, or maybe this just ends up working. You’ll have to judge for yourself.

For this I wanted a big beer, with lots of roasted chocolate malt. Drakes Drakonic Imperial Stout works great, it’s a malty beast, as they say, and has those dry cocoa notes that work with the cocoa nibs and hazelnuts in the Beerscotti. It’s a sippin' stout, made for lingering and conversation, it’s not a beer that wants to be ignored.

But who can ignore the guy dunking a cookie in his beer? Not me.

Chocolate Beer Biscotti

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Ingredients

¾ cup white sugar
4 tbs butter
2 large eggs plus 1 yolk
¼ cup stout beer
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp almond extract
2 ¼ cup all purpose flour
½ cup cocoa powder
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp espresso powder
¼ tsp salt
½ cup hazelnuts
1/3 cup coca nibs

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the sugar and butter. Beat on medium high speed until well creamed.
Add the eggs and yolk, mix until mixture is pale and fluffy.
Add the stout, vanilla and almond, mix until well combined.
In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, corn starch, espresso powder and salt.
Sprinkle the dry ingredients over the butter mixture, mix on low until just incorporated. Stir in the hazelnuts and cocoa nibs.
Scoop half of the dough onto a baking sheet that has been covered with a Silpat or parchment paper that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
Shape into a log that is about 8 inches long and 2 inches wide. Repeat with the other half of the dough.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until slightly firm to the touch. Cool for about 5 minutes. Cut diagonally into ¾ inch slices. Return to the baking sheet, cut side up.
Bake until slightly crispy, about ten minutes.
Cool on a wire rack.
Biscotti can be made up to three days ahead of time and taste the best 24 hours after baking. Store in an air tight container.

Hawaiian IPA Pineapple Pulled Pork Sliders

02.04.2013 28 Comments

I finally made friends with my slow cooker again. It took awhile, we haven’t been on speaking terms since that guy ruined several attempts at vegetarian chili earlier in the year. But he likes meat, that slow cooker, and so do I. I think this is the common ground that we’ll share. Slow and low is the best way to cook pork shoulder, making it a perfect slow cooker job. Although I loved the way this turned out, I do still vastly prefer my Le Creuset Dutch Oven, although that guy is much higher maintenance, he can’t be left alone like Slow Cooker can.

Speaking of IPA’s, I’ve been on the hunt for Schlafly’s American IPA, out of Missouri. I’m incredibly fortunate to live on the West Coat of these United States, a hot bed of fantastic IPA’s. I really don’t ever need to wander far to find incredible beer, but sometimes I just want to see what the rest of the USA has to offer. I’ve heard great things about this special release IPA and I want to get one in my pint glasses. If you can sneak me one, let me know, I’ll be forever grateful.

Hawaiian IPA Pulled Pork Sliders

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Ingredients

4 cloves of garlic rough chopped
¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
2 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tsp sriracha
2 tbs brown sugar
2 cup chopped pineapple
3.5 lb pork shoulder
salt and pepper
12 ounces IPA
24 Hawaiian rolls split

Yield: 24 sliders

Instructions

In a food processor or blender add the garlic, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, sriracha, brown sugar and pineapple. Process until well combined.
Place the pork shoulder inside a slow cooker, salt and pepper all sides liberally.
Pour the pineapple mixture and the IPA beer over the pork.
Cook on low for 8 hours.
Using two forks, shred while still in the slow cooker, discarding any large pieces of fat.
Allow to marinate in the juices for about ten minutes, drain well. Serve inside split Hawaiian rolls.

Beer Candied Pecans

27.03.2013 38 Comments

last September I was able to visit Bear Republic. I was able to jump behind the bar, chat with brewers and sample everything from the Peter Brown Tribute to the Grand Am, right from the source. Solid beers that are becoming easier to find across the US as their distribution expands.

Maybe it was the gorgeous Northern California setting, or the charming bar managers, or the fantastically solid beer, but I became a fan of what this growing team is doing up North. And then they go and make a Black IPA, one of my favorite new styles.

Black IPA’s are becoming more common, a great trend that craft breweries are embracing all over the US. Maybe as a way to satisfy people like me, stout lovers who also adore an IPA. A hoppy beer, with a roasted malt that adds a smooth, balanced, nearly stout like flavor. The Black Racer IPA is a great example of this growing beer phenomenon.

Black Racer is just as hoppy as you want an IPA to be, but with a smoother, rounded malty finish. It has a leaning towards a traditional IPA, with high notes like citrus and pine as well as a fairly high carbonation, but with some dark beer flavors of malt and coffee.

Black IPA’s are both a great example of how the creativity of brewers are blurring the lines of beer styles, as well as another great, endless craft beer debate we all love to partake in from time to time. How do you differentiate between a hoppy stout and a dark IPA? Brewers discretion?

When it’s this good, they can call it what they want and the brewers will always have my full support.

Beer Candied Pecans

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Ingredients

1/2 cup black IPA
1 cup golden brown sugar packed
½ tsp salt
1 tbs butter
2 cups pecan halves

Instructions

Preheat oven to 250.
In a pot 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 235 degrees, remove from heat.
Add the butter, stir until combined.
Add 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 250 for 15 minutes, stir and bake for an additional 15 minutes (if the pecans look foamy, stir until the bubbles have dissolved).
Allow to cool to room temperature, break apart.

Notes

To increase the beer flavor, reduce 1 cup of beer down to 1/2 cup needed for this recipe.

Chocolate Stout Muffin Bread

22.03.2013 44 Comments

Let’s talk about chocolate stouts for a minute.

If you aren’t aquatinted with these Dark Knights, you might be under the impression that your beer will be like a tall glass of malty chocolate milk. For the most part, that isn’t the case. While I was at Hanger 24, those awesome guys let me taste some of the grains they use in their Chocolate Porter.

(By the way, neither of those hands are mine, I’m taking the photo)

It tastes, even pre-brew, more along the lines of unadulterated raw cocoa rather than a giant slice of cake. For me, this is great news. The flavors of cocoa (before the butter, cream and sugar are added) are dry and even bitter, making a great addition to the flavors of a stout. If you’re afraid of a beer flavored Yoo-Hoo, you’re in luck. For the most part, chocolate stouts grab those great dry flavors of that cocoa bean without that cloying sweetness of a dessert that you don’t really need in your pint glass.

Here are some of my favorite chocolate stouts and porters, please let me know if you have a favorite of your one:

Bison Chocolate Stout

Rogue Chocolate Stout

Hanger 24 Chocolate Porter

Ken Schmidt / Iron Fist / Stone Chocolate Mint Stout

Souther Tier Choklat (I have yet to get my hands on this on the West Coast, but it’s on my Must Drink list)

Chocolate Stout Muffin Bread

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Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup coca powder
1 cup white sugar
1 tbs baking powder
1 tbs cornstarch
2/3 cup chocolate chips
10 ounces stout
2 tbs vegetable oil
¼ cup melted butter divided in half

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350.
Add the flour, salt, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, cornstarch, and chocolate chips stir to combine.
Pour in the stout, oil and 2 tbs of the melted butter, stir until just combined, some lumps are expected.
Pour into a loaf pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Pour the remaining butter over the top.
Bake at 350 for 40 to 45 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs on it. Allow to cool before slicing.

IPA Lemon Bars

19.03.2013 42 Comments

Before I get to the lemon bars that were more than a year in the making, I need to talk about these beer glasses.

These glasses are more than just vessels of craft beer glory, they are a indicator of the thread of craft beer weaving itself through the mainstream.

Crate and Barrel, a mecca for the upwardly mobile, midwestern tract homeowners, and suburban housewives is carrying an entire line of glassware devoted to the service of well-made beer. (I need to stop to note that none of the previous descriptors were meant to be derogatory, merely an illustration of the mainstreamness of the giant housewares retail store.)

This is proof that craft beer is moving forward, growing in respect and popularity in the minds of Americans and capitalist marketers. I couldn’t be happier. I pillaged the entire line, necessitating a new shelf just for beer glasses.

The lemon bars I made for you have been in the works for over a year. There have been other recipes in the past that haven’t lives up to my expectations. The filling wasn’t creamy enough, or the crust and filling weren’t distinct layers, or other assorted issues. This recipe finally gave me the results I wanted.

A great crust with a slight flakey crispness, not too sweet, and lemony with the right touch of beer flavor.

The beer I used is from Eagle Rock Brewery, a brewery that is just down the road from me, a little over a mile in fact. It would be walking distance if it wasn’t for the hill I live on and the nasty walk home that would create.

Populist is what I think of as a gateway IPA. It’s an accessible beer with more malt that an IPA usually gives you, and a balanced hop flavor. This isn’t the palate wrecking, massively hopped flavor that most American IPA’s give you, it’s more subtle.

I love a high hoped beer, and I also love a malty balanced pale ale, the amazing thing about this mainstream-craft-beer-glass-world we live in is that there is room for both types of IPA’s. If you aren’t an IPA fan, this might convert you, it shows you hops without punching you in the mouth with them. It might even lead you to further IPA exploration.

Or maybe just some lemon flavored baked goods.

IPA Lemon Bars

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Ingredients

Crust:

1 cup flour
1/3 cup powdered sugar
6 tbs unsalted butter
pinch salt

Filling:

3 large eggs
1 ½ cups sugar
¼ cup flour
2 tbs corn starch
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
¼ cup IPA beer
Powdered sugar for dusting
Yield: 10 to 12 cookies

Instructions

In a food processor add the flour, powdered sugar, butter and salt. Process until well combined.
Press into the bottom of a greased 8X8 pan (for a 9x13 pan, double the entire recipe).Chill for 15 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350.
Bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool to about room temperature, about 15 minutes (this will help the crust and the filling to stay in two distinct layers.)
In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, sugar, flour and corn starch. Add in the lemon juice and beer, stir until combined. Pour the filling over the cooled crust. Bake until the center has set, about 20 to 25 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before refrigerating. Chill for 2 to 3 hours before cutting. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Crust adapted from Shockingly Delicious

Smoky Chocolate Porter Ice Cream with Beer Candied Bacon

14.03.2013 19 Comments

Yesterday I was a guest on KCRW’s St. Patricks day episode of Good Food. The host was Evan Kleiman, a chef, author and Los Angeles food scene legend. She called my recipes, "smart," which if you are a home cook, sitting in front of an accomplished chef, is the best word you can hear.

We chatted about stouts, one of my favorite beer topics. Forget about pale lagers and green food dye, stouts are the life blood of St. Patrick’s day. In preparation for our stout conversation, I asked my Facebook readers what their favorite stouts are, and the response was amazing. My non-scientific poll concluded the most popular stouts among those who have clicked "like" on The Beeroness Facebook page are: Old Rasputin, Souther Tier Choklat, Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout and Founders Breakfast Stout. All of which would be amazing in this recipes, but I used Alaskan Brewing Smoked Porter. Just goes to show how many amazing dark craft beers there are in this nation. If you have a stout or porter that you love, let me know about it. I’m always up for a tall glass of dark beer.

Whatever you use, don’t forget to make it a chocolate bacon beer float.

Beer Candied Bacon

Print Recipe

Ingredients

1 cup brown sugar packed
3 tbs stout
pinch cayenne
12 thick cut strips of bacon

Instructions

Combine the brown sugar, stout and cayenne until thick and syrupy.
Lay bacon on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet.
Brush bacon with beer syrup on both sides.
Cook at 350 for ten minutes, flip and re-brush with beer syrup.
Cook for 8 to 10 more minutes or until the bacon is an amber color.
Remove from oven and allow to cool. Bacon will harden as it cools.

Beer Candied Bacon

Print Recipe

Ingredients

1 cup brown sugar packed
3 tbs stout
pinch cayenne
12 thick cut strips of bacon

Instructions

Combine the brown sugar, stout and cayenne until thick and syrupy.
Lay bacon on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet.
Brush bacon with beer syrup on both sides.
Cook at 350 for ten minutes, flip and re-brush with beer syrup.
Cook for 8 to 10 more minutes or until the bacon is an amber color.
Remove from oven and allow to cool. Bacon will harden as it cools.

Beer Candied Bacon Adapted from Oskar Blues via Tide and Thyme.

Chocolate Stout Waffle Sundae with Chocolate Stout Fudge Sauce

20.02.2013 33 Comments

In my world, this is dessert.

But that being said, I ate it at 3 in the afternoon (mostly because I wanted to make it for you, and I refuse to photograph using artificial light, necessitating a mid-day desert for picture taking purposes).

Breakfast in my land, is savory. Although I occasionally indulge in sugar loaded calorie bomb in the morning hours only because for some reason it’s socially acceptable, but if we step back and look at it objectively, this is dessert.

Since I put beer in your breakfast on multiple occasions (Like this, and this and don’t forget about this), I would never judge you for eating this pre-noon. BUT, it’s dessert. And it needs to be served with a stout that’s almost warm. Maybe a sipin' stout that’s been aged in a bourbon barrel, or a smokey porter.

But it’s definitely dessert. Even if you eat it in the middle of the day.

Chocolate Stout Waffle Sundae with Chocolate Stout Fudge Sauce

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Ingredients

For The Sauce

3 tbs butter
½ cup stout
2 tbs corn syrup
1 cup dark chocolate chips

For the Waffles

1 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1/3 cup milk
2/3 cup stout
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs divided
1/3 cup sugar
Ice Cream for serving

Instructions

Add the butter, 1/2 cup stout and corn syrup to a sauce pan. Cook over medium high heat until butter has melted and the mixture has just started to boil.
Turn off heat and stir in 1 cup chocolate chips until completely melted. Allow to cool slightly before using.
Preheat waffle iron according to manufacturers specifications.
In a large bowl add the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, and salt, stir.
In a microwave safe bowl, add the chocolate chips and milk. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir and repeat until melted. Stir in the beer, vegetable oil, vanilla and only the yolks of the two eggs.
Add the whites to separate bowl, along with the sugar. Whip with a hand mixer until soft peaks form, about 5 minutes.
Make a well in the dry ingredients, add the chocolate milk mixture and stir until just combined. Gently fold into the egg whites until just incorporated.
Cook in waffle iron according to manufacturers specifications, using butter flavored cooking spray if indicated.
Plate waffles, top with desired amount of ice cream, drizzle with chocolate sauce. Serve with a malty stout.

Stout French Dip

13.02.2013 31 Comments

When you write, reading isn’t important, it’s essential. Unfortunately, my days are packed too full and reading has become a rare luxury. All due in no small part to the fact that I’m not only writing a cookbook (due to my publisher at the beginning of next month) I’ve also started writing for a print magazine as well as two other websites. Once I can, at least, check "cookbook" off my to-do list, I can get back to being a normal human and indulging in reading, and sleep, and all those sorts of activities that I’m currently ignoring.

I’m making a list, I thought I’d share. About a month ago, I posted on The Beeroness Facebook page asking for suggestions for beer books. Since you all are so amazing, the list has been growing.

Beer & Food:

The Brewmaster’s Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food, Garrett Oliver
Beer, Food, and Flavor: A Guide to Tasting, Pairing, and the Culture of Craft Beer, Schuyler Schultz
The Craft of Stone Brewing Co.: Liquid Lore, Epic Recipes, and Unabashed Arrogance, Randy Clemens & Steve Wagner & Greg Koch
The Oxford Companion to Beer, Garrett Oliver

Beer Non-fiction:

America Walks into a Bar: A Spirited History of Taverns and Saloons, Speakeasies, Christine Sismondo
Ale, Beer, and Brewsters in England: Women’s Work in a Changing World, Judith M. Bennett
Boozehound: On the Trail of the Rare, the Obscure, and the Overrated in Spirits, Jason Wilson (beer & liquor)
The Search for God and Guinness: A Biography of the Beer that Changed the World, Stephen Mansfield
Bitter Brew: The Rise and Fall of Anheuser-Busch and America’s Kings of Beer, William Knoedelseder

For The Homebrewer:

The Naked Brewer: Fearless Homebrewing Tips, Tricks & Rule-breaking Recipes, Christina Perozzi & Hallie Beaune
For The Love of Hops: The Practical Guide to Aroma, Bitterness and the Culture of Hops, Stan Hieronymus
Brew Like a Monk: Trappist, Abbey, and Strong Belgian Ales, Stan Hieronymus
IPA: Brewing Techniques, Recipes and the Evolution of India Pale Ale, Mitch Steele

Stout French Dip

Print Recipe

Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

1 tbs brown sugar
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp cayenne
¼ tsp smoked paprika
3 lb chuck roast
2 tbs olive oil
12 ounces porter or stout
3 cups beef stock
4 French sandwich rolls

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325.
In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, black pepper, salt, cayenne, and smoked paprika.
Pat the roast dry. Rub with spice mixture.
Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven, or other large oven safe pot, until hot but not smoking. Add the roast, sear on all sides. Pour beer and broth over the meat. Cover and roast in oven at 325 for 3 hours or until very tender. Move meat to a cutting board.
Place Dutch oven back on the stove. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced, about 10 minutes.
Shred meat using two forks. Split rolls, fill with meat. Spoon a bit of sauce over the meat. Serve remaining broth in bowls with sandwiches for dipping.

Beer and Butter Poached Lobster with Saison Risotto

05.02.2013 33 Comments

Lets Get romantic, shall we?

Last year, my Valentines day post earned my quite a bit of hate mail. But, I suppose when you label your post "How Blow Jobs and Shoe Shopping Are Alike," That’s bound to happen.

But the post wasn’t about blow jobs, or shoe shopping, and the hate mail was largely from single women who had never been in a successful long term relationships, and exclusively from people who didn’t read the entire thing.

The post is about figuring out what your partner needs to feel important and giving it to them gladly and frequently. Because although the "Golden Rule" is Treat Others How You Would Like To Be Treated, I think that might be what’s wrong with most relationships.

Because, really, treating someone how YOU would like to be treated is pretty self-involved and arrogant. How about Treat Others How THEY Would Like To Be Treated and maybe we would have a higher marriage success rate as a nation. Because although you might think you’ve done everything you can for your partner, maybe the problem is that you’re asking, "What else can I do?" rather than, "What do they need?"

Can you tell I have a Masters in Psychology? I would have made a terrible therapist, but I make a killer risotto.

So here it is, with some beer and butter poached lobster.

For this recipe I used Saison Rue from The Bruery.

Beer and Butter Poached Lobster with Saison Risotto

Print Recipe

Servings 2 servings

Ingredients

For the Risotto

2 ½ cups chicken broth
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbs chopped shallots
2 cloves of garlic minced
¾ cups arborio rice
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
½ cup Saison Beer plus 2 tbs, divided
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbs heavy cream
½ tsp black pepper
¼ tsp salt
2 tbs chopped chives

For The Lobster:

2 ½ cups unsalted butter
12 ounces 1 1/2 cups Saison beer
2 fresh lobster tails

Instructions

Place the chicken broth in a saucepan and bring to a mild simmer, keeping to warm, but not boiling.
In a separate pot, add the butter and allow to melt over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until softened, but don’t allow to brown. Add the garlic and cook until you can smell them, about 20 seconds
Stir in the rice, (if pan is dry, add the oil) cooking until the rice is completely coated with butter and it smells slightly nutty, don’t allow to brown. About 2 minutes.
Add ½ cup of the beer and cook until the pan begins to dry, stirring frequently. About 6 minutes.
Add about ½ cup of broth into the rice. Stir frequently until the rice is almost dry, and then add another ½ cup and repeat. This process should take about 20 minutes. Don’t leave the risotto while it’s cooking, the rice on the bottom of the pan burns easily. (if you run out of broth, just use hot water the same way you would broth)
Once your risotto is cooked through (taste it to verify that the rice is cooked and not crunchy), turn heat to low and add the cheese, cream, remaining 2 tbs beer and salt and pepper to taste. Risotto should be soft and wet, not dry like typical rice. It should be firm enough to be served as a side on a plate, but soft enough to jiggle when the plate is shaken.
While the risotto is cooking, start working on the lobster. Using a sharp pair of kitchen sheers, cut a straight line down the tail shell, carefully remove the tail meat in one piece.
In a small sauce pan (if the pan is too big, the lobster will not be covered by the butter and beer), melt the butter. Don’t allow to brown or simmer.
Add the beer and clip a cooking thermometer on the side of pan, making sure to maintain a temperature between 160 and 180 degrees. Do not boil or even simmer the poaching liquid.
Once the poaching liquid has reached the proper temperature, add the tails. Cook until the tails have turned red and the meat is just opaque, about 6 to 8 minutes. Don’t overcook or tails will be rubbery.
Divide the risotto between two plates, sprinkle with chives.
Top with lobster tails, serve immediately.

Beer and Buttermilk Fried Chicken

22.01.2013 35 Comments

I’ve been wanting to make you some beer fried chicken for a while now, but it’s a bit intimidating.

The best fried chicken comes from the south, it’s a fact of sorts. As is the fact that, other than a few weeks in Atlanta, I haven’t spent much time in the Southern states. And, let’s be honest, a white girl from Washington State isn’t exactly your go-to when you want the worlds best fried chicken.

But I have some confidence in this recipes because it isn’t really mine. I’ve added a few things, but the heart and soul of it belongs to a woman who’s chicken was so incredible, Ruth Reichl spent weeks, and copious amounts of beer, extracting the recipe from her. Even 40 years after plying Claritha with enough beer to obtain said recpe, Ruth not only remembers it, she writes about it in Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table.

Like any great recipe, it travels. How I hope my recipes become your recipes. My Chocolate Stout Cake becomes your Chocolate Stout Cake, the one your boyfriend begs you to make him for his birthday and tells his friends, "My girl makes the best cake." Because once your hands have cut the butter, stirred the batter and frosted the cake, it’s not my recipe any more, it’s yours. As it should be.

So, from Claritha, to Ruth to Random House to me and finally to you, is the best fried chicken I’ve ever made. I hope it becomes your fried chicken too.

Beer and Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Adapted from Claritha's Fried Chicken, Ruth Reichl, Tender at the Bone

Print Recipe

Ingredients

3 lbs chicken drumsticks
1 to 2 cups kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups blonde ale
1 onion sliced
1 cup flour
2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
2 tsp packed dark brown sugar
1 cup vegetable shortening
1/4 cup butter

Yield: 4servings

Instructions

Place chicken in a wide bowl. Cover with salt, place uncovered in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Remove chicken from the bowl.
Rinse the chicken well and clean the bowl to remove all the salt. Add buttermilk, beer and onion slices to the bowl, stir to combine. Add the chicken back in the bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight, 8 to 20 hours.
Add the flour, salt, cayenne, brown sugar, and pepper to a bag, shake to combine. Drain the chicken. add chicken to the bag, shake until the chicken is well coated. Place chicken on wax paper or parchment paper. Allow to sit at room temperature for 1/2 hour.
In a large skillet melt the vegetable shortening and butter over high heat. Add chicken (working in batches if necessary), cover and lower heat to just above medium. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown, turn and cook on the opposite side for about 8 additional minutes or until cooked through.

Vegan Chipotle Stout Chili with IPA Cashew Cream

16.01.2013 35 Comments

If you’re new to the Craft Beer scene, it might surprise you how many vegetarian and vegans there are here.

While I am a meat eater (clearly, I put bacon in desserts), I did spend three years as a vegetarian. Mostly, this was a response to growing up on a farm and getting up close and personal to the butchering process as well as the jarring realization of knowing the first name of my dinner. It did, however, give me a profound respect for the food I eat and the farms that share that respect.

I still eat vegan quite often, and there are some dishes, like lasagna, that I just think are just better in vegetarian form.

My true and honest feeling about vegan cooking is that regardless of what your typical diet is if you can’t cook a vegan meal that you love, you just aren’t that good of a cook. Produce is amazing, you get to use all the grains, seeds and nuts that you want and by the way, for the most part beer is vegan.

I first heard about Cashew Cream from this guy, and the idea was intriguing, given that I would have a much easier time giving up meat than sour cream and goat cheese. I like the idea of having a creamy element when I want to go non-dairy. This cashew cream was a really beautiful creamy addition to a vegan chili, when sour cream isn’t an option. I wanted to balance the sweetness so I added some acid and some spices, but feel free to experiment. This would also be a great place to add a little chipotle.

Vegan Chipotle Stout Chili with IPA Cashew Cream

Print Recipe

Ingredients

For The Cashew Cream:

2 cups raw cashwes
1 to 1 ½ cups almond milk
Additional 1/3 cup almond milk
2 tbs IPA beer
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
2 tsp white wine vinegar

For The Chili:

3 tbs olive oil
1 white onion chopped
1 red bell pepper chopped
1 cup crimini mushrooms finley diced
2 cloves garlic minced
12 wt ounces Soyrizo
2 cup stout
2 cups veggie broth
¼ cup tomato paste
1 15 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can stewed diced tomatoes, with juice
1 or 2 large chipotle peppers in adoboe minced
½ cup quinoa
1/3 cup bulgur wheat
1 tsp cumin
¼ tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder

Garnishes:

½ cup Cilantro chopped
1 Avocado sliced
Tortilla Chips

Instructions

Add the cashews to a bowl, pour almond milk over cashews until covered. Let stand for 4 hours.
Drain cashews and add to a food processor with 1/3 cup almond milk, IPA, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and vinegar. Process until smooth, about 5 minutes, possibly longer. Add additional almond milk or beer for a thinner consistency.
In a pot over medium high heat, add the olive oil, onions, red peppers and mushrooms. Cook until onions and peppers have softened and the mushrooms have darkened.
Add the garlic and the soyrizo, stir, breaking up the soyrizo.
Add the stout, broth, tomato paste, black beans, kidney beans, tomatoes and chipotle, allow to simmer for about 10 minutes.
Add the quinoa, bulgur, cumin, smoked paprika, salt and garlic powder, simmer until the quinoa has cooked, about 15 minutes. The longer chili simmers, the thicker it will be.
Plate on top of tortilla chips, if desired, top with cilantro, avocado, and cashew cream.

Stout Soaked Cherry Cheesecake with Pretzel Crust

08.01.2013 27 Comments

I need your help.

I’m somewhere around halfway done with this cookbook, and I need some feedback. I have about 50 recipes ready to go, but they have never been cooked outside of my kitchen.

I want to know if they work for you, if you like them (or didn’t), if the directions make sense. This part is important to me, it increases the chances that we can catch some of the flaws, some of the directions that may be misleading, or some factor I might have overlooked.

This book means so much to me, and the recipes working for as many people as possible is a high priority.

And I can’t do this on my own. If you are willing to make one (or more) of the Top Secret recipes I have in the works, keep it secret until the book goes to print, and give me your honest opinion, I need that.

If you’re at all interested, Please, check out my Book Page for more info. Please.

Stout Soaked Cherry Cheesecake with Pretzel Crust

Print Recipe

Ingredients

8 oz sweetened dried cherries about 1 ½ cups
2 cups stout
3 cups mini pretzels twists lightly crushed (about 1 ½ cups once processed)
2 tbs brown sugar
½ cup melted butter
24 ounces cream cheese
½ cup sour cream
pinch salt
2 tbs flour
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
½ tsp vanilla

Instructions

Place dried cherries in a bowl or tall glass. Pour stout over cherries until fully submerged. Allow to sit at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours. Drain, reserving ¼ cup of the soaking liquid.
Preheat oven to 400.
In a food processor, add the pretzels and brown sugar, process until only crumbs remain, about 3 to 5 minutes. Slowly add the melted butter while the processor is running. Pour into the bottom of a 9 X 13 inch baking pan. Use the flat bottom of a heavy glass, measuring cup or mug to press the crust really well into a flat even layer.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the cream cheese, beat on high until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the sour cream and beat until well combined. Add the salt, flour and sugar, mix until well incorporated. Add the eggs and vanilla, one at a time, mixing well between additions. Add ¼ of the stout used to soak the cherries, mixing until just incorporated. Stir in the cherries.
Pour cream cheese mixture over the crust, smooth out into an even layer.
Place in the oven and reduce oven temp to 350. Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes or until the cheesecake has puffed slightly and center no longer jiggles when you shake the rack it sits on. Don’t over bake, it will firm up once it chills. Remove from oven (allow to stand at room temp until slightly cooled, about 10 minutes) refrigerate until chilled and set, at least 4 hours and up to 24. Cut into squares for serving

Buffalo Chicken Beer Cheese Dip

03.01.2013 83 Comments

This needs to be made with an IPA. The buffalo sauce (which has to be Franks, let’s just get that out of the way) needs a big kick to the face. The only beer up for that job is an IPA. read more

Chipotle Stout and Chorizo Chili Topped with Pork Rinds

04.12.2012 30 Comments

I’m so glad I can share this recipe with you. I’ve been working like a crazy person to develop and test recipes that I fall in love with but I can’t share them with you because I need to save them for the cookbook.

And, of course, I’m putting a tremendous amount of pressure on myself to make each recipe a home run.

Because once you buy the book, and actually pay for the recipes, I want them all to be amazing. This, my friend, is a huge amount of pressure on me and the limits of my culinary creativity.

But then I get these crazy ideas, like putting crushed Chicharrones on top of chili and I can’t even wait to share it. I have to post it as soon as possible, even pushing back a more "seasonally appropriate" post because I want to show you this.

And Chorizo, with its spice and fatty goodness, is perfect in chili. In fact, I pretty much raided the "C" section of my local Mexican food market (there isn’t a "C" section, by the way, but there should be) to bring you a dish with chipotle, chorizo, chicharrones, cilantro, cheddar and cumin.

And then I ate three bowls before I could even share it with anyone.

If I was planning on tailgating anytime soon, I would make this in huge vats.

And if you are a "beans in your chili" kind of guy, go ahead and throw some in, I won’t mind.

Or add some sour cream, if that’s your thing.

Chipotle Stout and Chorizo Chili Topped with Pork Rinds

Print Recipe

Ingredients

2 tbs olive oil
½ white onion chopped (about 1 cup)
1 red bell pepper chopped, stem and seeds removed
6 oz chorizo raw, removed from casing
1 lb ground beef chuck 80/20 lean to fat
4 cloves garlic minced
1 cup Chipotle Stout
14 oz stewed diced tomatoes canned is fine
1 chipotle pepper in adobo from can, minced plus more if desired
1 tsp adobo sauce
½ tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp cumin
2 tbs Worcestershire sauce

Toppings:

1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
½ cup cilantro chopped
2 cups Chicharrones pork rinds, lightly crushed
Makes 4-6 servings

Instructions

In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook until onion softens but isn’t browned, about 5 minutes.
Add the chorizo and beef, cook until meat starts to brown. Add the garlic and stir.
Add the beer, diced tomatoes, one chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, smoked paprika, pepper, cumin and Worcestershire sauce. Allow to simmer for about 30 minutes, until thickened. Add additional chipotle peppers as desired to raise heat level.
Pour into bowls, top with cilantro, cheddar and Chicharrones.