Spicy Beer Shrimp with Smokey Creamy Saison Polenta and Lime Crema

I’m still in shock.

A few days ago I was given word that I’m a finalist for a Saveur award for BEST Original Recipes. Best on the entire internet and in the entire world. Out of the millions of food blogs out there and out of the 30,000 they considered, they chose The Beeroness as one of the six best.

I’d love to tell you that I feel justified, or vindicated. But really, I feel humbled. I feel honored. I even feel a little overwhelmed.

I want you to like what I’m doing. I want you to make my recipes for your family, I want them to become your recipes, for these recipes to be a great excuse to explore craft beer. But I never really needed it to be more than that, more than just me and you making some beer food and sharing it over a few pints.

And the Saveur goes and makes me want this too. I want to win it, for us, for the love of beer food.

So take a second and vote for The Beeroness for the Best Original Recipes.

Because beer food really is the best.

Spicy Beer Shrimp with Smokey Creamy Saison Polenta and Lime Crema

Ingredients

For the Polenta:

2 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1 cup Saison beer
1 cup dry polenta (corn grits)
3 tbs butter
3 wt oz smoked gouda, shredded
Salt and pepper

For the Shrimp:

1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
½ tsp red chili flake
½ tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp salt
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tbs butter
3 clives garlic, minced
½ cup saison beer

For the Crema:

½ cup Mexican crema
2 tbs fresh lime juice
1 avocado, sliced

Directions

Heat the chicken broth, water and beer in a pot over medium heat. Add the polenta and cook over a low simmer, stirring occasionally, until creamy. About 30 minutes. Stir in the butter and cheese, add salt and pepper to taste.
While the polenta is cooking, make the shrimp.
In a small bowl stir together the chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, red chili flavors, smoked paprika and salt, set aside.
Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the beer.
Add the shrimp, sprinkle with seasonings.
Cook the shrimp until pink, remove from heat.
In a small bowl stir together the crema and lime.
Plate the polenta, top with shrimp and avocado slices, drizzle with crema.

http://thebeeroness.com/2014/04/04/spicy-beer-shrimp-smokey-creamy-saison-polenta-lime-crema/

I use Bob’s Red Mill Polenta (affiliate link), it’s non-GMO, organic, very consistent and really high quality.

Hello Seattle + Spicy Steamed Mussels in Beer

Photos in this post were taken in Seattle with vintage Polaroid cameras by my incredibly talented sister Kim van Groos

Check out her Flickr, it’s very impressive.

I told you last week that I’m in the process of saying goodbye to Los Angeles. A process made easier by the fact that it will end with a move to Seattle, a city that I’ve loved for years. A city with a vibrant love for food, people who are aware and grateful, plus a craft beer scene that is one of the best in the world.

I’ll get to discover a new city, fall in love with the local beer, cook with the incredible produce. I’ll also be near my sister who took all these photos, as well as my other sister who almost died with me in Morocco. I’ll be around the world’s best hops and the country’s best seafood. The idea of wandering around a new city, losing myself in the streets and the strangers is incredibly exciting. Especially a city like Seattle that has so much to offer.

I’m not limiting my explorations to Seattle. The entire Pacific Northwest, from Medford to Bellingham, has an incredible craft beer scene that I can’t wait to explore. The beer, the people, the pubs and the events, I plan to jump in with both feet, grab a pint, and become a part of what’s happening up North.

I want to share it all with you. Not just on the blog, but also on Instagram and Twitter. I want you to see the beer I find, the salmon I catch, the people I meet, the butcher shops, the breweries, the farmers markets, the coast and everything else that’s waiting for me up there.

As I pack the boxes and say goodbye to Los Angeles, I wanted to make something that has a bit of Seattle in it, a reminder of what I have to look forward to.

Seafood and beer it is. Can’t wait to dig in.

I start my trek North in two weeks. Join me, it’s going to be a big move and a big adventure. I’d love to have you along for the ride.

Instagram – Facebook – Twitter

Spicy Steamed Mussels in Beer

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Yield: 2 entre portions, or 4 appetizer portions

Ingredients

4 strips thick cut bacon
1 cup diced white onion
4 tbs unsalted butter
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 lbs diced tomatoes (about 2 large)
1 jalapeno, sliced
1 tbs red pepper flakes
½ cup pale ale
1 lime, juiced
1 ½ lbs black mussels, cleaned and de-bearded
¼ cup green onions, diced
Bread for serving

Directions

In a large pot or deep skillet cook the bacon over medium high heat. Remove the bacon from pot, chop and set aside. Pour off about half of the bacon grease, leaving about 1 tablespoon still in the pan.
Add the butter and cook until melted.
Add the onions, cook until slightly browned.
Stir in the garlic, then add the tomatoes, jalapenos, red pepper flakes, beer, lime juice and chopped bacon. Bring to a low simmer.
Add the mussels, cover and allow to cook until mussels have opened, about 5 minutes.
Discard any that didn’t open. Sprinkle the green onions over the pan.
Serve with crusty bread.

http://thebeeroness.com/2014/02/10/hello-seattle-spicy-steamed-mussels-beer/

Adapted from Epicurious

IPA Ceviche Lettuce Wraps

We tend to feminize or masculinize food. Beer is man food, as is bacon, grilled red meat and bourbon. While tea, lavender, scones and blueberries tend to been feminine. Chocolate seems to be neutral go-between, grabbing it’s gender label once the final product is presented. Chocolate Stout Cake with Maple Bacon Frosting: Man Cake. Chocolate Strawberry Mousse: Girly.

Although I don’t ascribe gender to my food, I can clearly see the lines drawn in the sanding sugar. These daintly looking no-cook treats will fool you like the little vixens they are. One look at these mango and shellfish filled lettuce cups and you firmly place these in the Chick Food category. But with a sharp bite of beer and a punch of spicy heat, they would beg to differ.

Along the lines of my I think now is a really good time to tell everyone minor motorcycle crash story, It’s past time to tell you that alcohol intensifies heat. While there is no way to tell the precise Scoville Units in any given jalapeno pepper, I can tell you that number will be dramatically increase after those suckers have spent an hour soaking in a high ABV IPA. So if you don’t want to turn on the oven, and don’t mind a little capsasin abuse to the mouth, this is a great meal.

If you’re man enough.

IPA Ceviche Lettuce Wraps

Yield: Serves 4

Ingredients

1 lb raw shrimp, diced
½ cup lemon juice
½ cup lime juice
1 manila mango, peeled and diced
1 tomato, diced
½ red onion, diced
1 jalapeno, diced, seeds removed
¼ cup lime juice
¼ cup lemon juice
1 tsp sriracha
2/3 cup IPA beer
4 heads endive
1 head radicchio

Directions

Place the shrimp in a small bowl. Cover with ½ cup lime juice and ½ cup lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate until the shrimp have turned pink, about 2 hours.
In a separate bowl combine the remaining ingredients (except the radicchio and the endive), allow to marinate for at least one hour.
Just prior to serving, drain the shrimp, add to the mango bowl and toss to combine.
Scoop a few tablespoons of the ceviche into the leaves of the endive and the radicchio, serve chilled

Notes

For a lower heat level, reduce Sriracha to 1/4 or 1/2 tsp.

http://thebeeroness.com/2013/07/18/ipa-ceviche-lettuce-wraps/

Smokey Hot Beer Shrimp

None of us really know what we’re getting into when we launch that very first blog post, that Hello World! salute that enters us into the abyss of Blogland. We start these little cubbyholes in the internet Universe out of curiosity, desperation, boredom or just the hope that maybe our lives will take a dramatic tilt. We see the Holy Trinity of blog talent, the online mistress Trifecta we have to master when it comes to blog success: Food, Photos & Writing.

This by itself is a huge undertaking, the hope to be really fantastically,mind-blowingly amazing at three really specific careers, wrapped up in one title, delivered to you at our chosen URL. But that, unfortunately is just the perfectly placed cherry on top of the seasonally appropriate Sundae. Beneath that homemade cardamom whipped cream and strategically placed sprinkles melts an amalgamation of skills that we don’t just need to attempt, we need to master.

Of course we need to be a skillful recipe developer, photographer, food stylist, culinary-guru and engaging author. But that’s not all, your plate isn’t nearly full enough, pull yourself up to the buffet of online careers and load your platter. You will also need to add to the aforementioned list: SEO expert, web designer, social media darling, PR pro, marketing expert, branding aficionado, and business manager. After all, if you hired someone for each of those positions you’d be in the hole for over 200K.

But who else is going to register the LLC, build the website, apply for a trademark, get a PO box, take those gorgeous photos, not to mention edit them, write the posts, send DMCA take down notice, answer the emails, write the recipes, cook the food, do the interviews, fix that broken code, install the right plugin, promote the content, network with the right people and ohmygodican’tdoitall!

We need to give ourselves a break. These are ten really difficult jobs, ten careers for which colleges all over the land offer 4 year degrees. We can’t be good at them all and we can’t really afford to hire them all out.

We need to learn to make peace with it the things that aren’t were we want them to be. It’s a triage in a way, the biggest blood loss goes to the front, the rest can wait. In the midst of these panics, we need to remember the list of thing we are really good at is longer than the list of things we shame ourselves for. Because, odds are, there is someone out there wishing to be as good as you are at something.

Don’t forget that when you start to panic about creating a newsletter or figuring out copyright laws. You are really good at more that you are really bad at, the ship will float, it just takes time.

Smokey Hot Beer Shrimp

Ingredients

2 tsp smoked paprika
5 cloves garlic, grated with a microplane (or minced)
1 tsp cayenne
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp red chili flake
3 tbs tomato paste
1/3 cup wheat beer
4 tbs butter, cut into cubes
1 tbs honey
½ tsp black pepper
pinch salt
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tbs olive oil

Directions

In a saucepan over medium high heat stir together the smoked paprika, garlic, cayenne, chili powder, red chili flake, tomato paste, beer, honey, pepper and salt. Add the butter and bring to a strong simmer, stirring frequently until reduced and thickened, about 5 minutes.
In a separate pan heat the olive oil until hot but not smoking. Add the shrimp and cook until ust starting to turn pink, about 2 minutes. Pour the sauce into the shrimp pan, cook until the sauce thickens and shrimp are cooked through.

http://thebeeroness.com/2013/07/05/smokey-hot-beer-shrimp/

IPA Ceviche

As summer nears it’s inevitable end, it’s not the weather that I’ll miss the most. In fact the leather boots and chunky sweaters of colder days are starting to beckon. The produce, back yard grills, the smell of life and food floating on a late afternoon breeze will be lost in the dawning of fall.

This isn’t a recipe about avoiding the oven, or grumbles of triple digit heat, it’s about enjoying August produce, paired with those Summer release beers and spending as much time as you can in the open air before we’re all forced to head inside, cook with squash, and drink stouts. Which I am already looking forward to.

IPA Ceviche

Ingredients

1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
1 1/2 lb raw shrimp, shell & tail removed, chopped
1/2 cup IPA Beer
1 yellow onion diced
3 cups tomatoes, diced
1 large jalapeno, diced, stem and seeds removed
1/2 cup cilantro
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp red pepper sauce (such as Sriracha)

Directions

Add the lemon/lime juice and raw shrimp to a small bowl. (Shrimp will "cook" in the juice as it marinates.)
Mix beer, onion, tomato, and jalapeño in a large bowl, allow to marinate in the fridge for at least one hour.
Drain the vegetables and return to large bowl.
Once the shrimp have "cooked," drain and add them to the large bowl along with the salt and pepper sauce, toss to combine.
Serve cold with corn chips.

http://thebeeroness.com/2012/08/21/ipa-ceviche/

Maple and Bourbon Beer Glazed Salmon

Let’s talk.

If you are new to the Beer Scene you might not know about bourbon barrel aged beer. It’s exactly what it sounds like. Beer that has been aged in bourbon barrels giving it flavors of that remnant bourbon that once took up residence in that same barrel. Because bourbon is aged for years, and sometimes several decades, the flavors soak into the wood leaving their distinct flavor signature behind. When you use that same barrel to age beer, those beautiful hand-me-down flavors give an incredible depth to it’s new alcoholic vessel.

If you haven’t had a bourbon barrel aged beer, add it to your list of beers to try. You may love it. You may loath it. Either way, it’s an experience that needs to be added to your beer exploits.

Bourbon barrel aged beers aren’t the type you reach for after a long hot day of yard work. These are beers for chilly nights and dark chocolate desserts. Fireside chats and long conversations.

Among my favortites is the Barrel Aged Old Rasputin form North Coast.

For this recipe I used Angels Share by Lost Abby. An intense bourbon flavor that goes very well with this recipe.

Maple & Bourbon Beer Glazed Salmon

Ingredients

1/4 cup ponzu sauce
3/4 cup bourbon barrel aged beer
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbs brown sugar
1 tbs maple syrup
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp chili powder
1 tbs lime juice (about 1 large lime, juiced)
4 salmon fillets (about 4 to 6 oz each)

Directions

In a bowl, add all ingredients (other than the salmon) stir until well combined. Add to a large zip top freezer bag. Add the salmon and remove as much air as possible before sealing. Place in the fridge, allowing to marinate for one to two hours, rotating at least once.
Preheat broiler.
Remove the salmon from the bag and place on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
Place the marinade in a pot over medium high heat. Boil until reduced and thickened, stirring frequently, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Brush the salmon with the marinade glaze.
Place under broiler and cook until salmon flakes easily, about 6 minutes. Brush salmon with glaze several times during cooking.
Serve over rice or pasta.

http://thebeeroness.com/2012/07/30/maple-beer-glazed-salmon/

Ale Steamed Salmon With Belgian Wheat Beer Bearnaise

There are always exception to even the most powerful rules. This leaves a movement and an honestly to the lives we live, without the guilt of hypocrisy. The rule I am adding an addendum to is my strong allegiance to West Coast beers. Although great beer can be found nearly everywhere in the world these days, I have a powerful draw to local food and drink. I’ll make a unabashed exemption to my locavore attitude in support of my love for Allagash. In fact, Allagash Black was one of the beers I choose for my profile shot, and a fabulous example of a well crafted stout. If I ever make it up to Portland Maine, I’ll be making a very long stop at the brewery.

Today, I used Allagash’s freshman beer, their first ever product that was an undeniable success and pioneer in American Brewed Belgian Wheat Beers, The Allagash White.

Ale Steamed Salmon With Belgian Wheat Beer Bearnaise

4 Salmon Fillets, about 3 oz each

2 bottles of Allagash White

2 tbs vinegar

1 tbs finely chopped shallots

1/4 tsp white pepper

2 tbs fresh tarragon

1 tbs chervil

1 sprig fresh parsley

4 egg yolks

1/2 tsp salt

2 sticks unsalted butter

Rice or pasta for serving

Preheat oven to 350.

Place a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet, place the salmon fillets on the rack. Pour one bottle of Allagash White in the bottom of the baking sheet, making sure that the beer does not submerge the wire rack. You want at least 1/2 inch between the beer and the top of the wire rack.

Cover the baking sheet with aluminum foil, making sure to tent the foil over the salmon so that the foil does not touch the fish at all. Secure tightly, in order to trap the steam inside the foil.

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the salmon flakes easily with a fork.

While the salmon is cooking, make the Bearnaise.

Add ½ cup of the remaining Allagash beer, the vinegar, shallots, pepper, tarragon, chervil, and parsley to a pan over medium heat. Allow to simmer and reduce until about 2 tbs of liquid remain, about ten minutes. Pour through a fin mesh strainer to remove the solids, allow to cool.

In a food processor add the 2 tbs of liquid, egg yolks and salt. Melt the butter in a sauce pan until very hot and just starting to bubble. Remove the stopper from the top of the food processor lid. Turn on the food processor, allowing to process for a few seconds before beginning to slowly pour the melted butter into the food processor while it is still running. Allow to process until well combined and frothy, about 3 minutes.

Plate the salmon over rice or pasta, pour about ¼ cup sauce over each plate.

Serve with Allagash White.

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