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Leftover Turkey Frittata Recipe

Leftover Turkey Frittata Recipe2

 

Thanksgiving leftovers are a funny beast.

We spend weeks crafting a menu, days of prep, countless hours of cooking and then freak out about what to do with it all the next day. I do that same thing, even though leftovers on their own are fantastic. Maybe it’s because, even after hours and days and weeks of prep, we still feel "lazy" just reheating the tupperware containers and setting it out on the table.

Even though I will chow down on cold beer brined turkey and left over dinner rolls in those post dawn hours, it’s still not hyper socially expectable to serve mashed potatoes and leftover turkey for breakfast. But throw some chopped up rolls and a few handfuls of turkey into a skillet with some eggs and you’ve got brunch.

And you should serve it with a mimosa, you’ve earned it

Leftover Turkey Frittata Recipe

Ingredients

  • 3 tbs butter
  • 2 cups bread cut into cubes (leftover dinner rolls work well)
  • 1 cup turkey, cut into cubes
  • ½ red bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
  • 6 eggs
  • ¼ cup sour cream
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • ¼ cup green onion, chopped

    Instructions

  1. Preheat oven 400.
  2. Melt the butter in a 9-inch cast iron skillet over medium high heat.
  3. Add the bell peppers, cook until softened.
  4. Add the bread cubes, cooking until browned.
  5. Add the turkey, toss to coat.
  6. In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, sour cream, salt and pepper.
  7. Pour into the skillet, sprinkle with green onions.
  8. Cook undisturbed until the sides have set, about 5 minutes.
  9. Bake at 400 until until center has set, about 12 minutes.

Leftover Turkey Frittata Recipe

 

Chicken in Creamy Mushroom Beer Sauce

 

 

Today is November 6th, Election Day.

As Americans spend the day thinking of little else, wedged firmly between Barack and a hard place, I wanted to give you a little motivation to get through this day.

We will soon find ourselves at the end of this exhausting Election Season, our feelings of separatism from those who disagree with us will fade. We will find Facebook to be a friendlier place, and those Someecards of a political nature will ebb.

Regardless of the outcome, you have a reason to grab your favorite beer. Either in celebration of your guy winning the mad race to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, or as a way to console yourself over the fact that the other guy came out ahead.

Given that you may be too distracted to spend all that much time in the kitchen tonight, this meal only takes about 20 minutes.

And, I’m pretty certain it has bipartisan support.

For this recipes, I like a brown ale, a blonde, a pale or a wheat beer. Be aware that using an IPA will kick up the beer flavor considerably and may be too bitter in the end.

Chicken in Creamy Mushroom Beer Sauce

Ingredients
  

  • 4 boneless skinless chicken thigh fillets
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp pepper
  • 3 tbs butter
  • 1/4 cup onions chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 5 oz wild mushrooms such as Shiitake (not dried)
  • 1/2 cup beer
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1/3 cup shredded parmesan
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
 

  • In a pan over medium high heat, melt the butter. Sprinkle chicken thighs on all sides with salt and pepper. Add chicken to the pan and cook on both sides until browned, about 4 minutes per side. Remove chicken from pan.
  • Add onions and saute until soft and translucent, about 3 minutes.
  • Add garlic and mushrooms, cook until mushrooms are soft and have darkened, about 5 minutes.
  • Add the beer, scraping the bottom to deglaze the pan.
  • Reduce heat to medium, add the cream and stir.
  • Add half of the cheese, stir until melted. Add the remaining half, stir until combined.
  • Add the chicken and allow to cook until sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste, serve over rice or pasta.

 

 

Mac And Beer Cheese Soup

 

I have a confession to make. Before starting this blog, I tried to make beer cheese soup and failed. I was baffled, at first, but figured out that a combination of my lack of patience (manifesting itself in my cheese dumping rather than slow adding) and a furious boil, resulted in a sloppy mess.

Second confession of the day (just call yourself a priest, and I’ll say a few Hail Mary’s on my way out) is that even though I love this recipe, I think I may love the photos more. Because right after I took them I was reminded via ping of my first post and how on their best day, those photos are hideously below average. I’ve worked really hard to bring my photography up to an acceptable standard and these photos reminded me of how my work is paying off.

Third confession, I won a state-wide Cook-Off on Friday. Ok, not really a confession, but I’m excited, so I thought I would share.

Fourth confession, I still have  a crush on Luke Perry. And Val Kilmer’s character in Real Genius. Looks like I went one confession too far.

Mac And Beer Cheese Soup

Note: Cheese sauce separates easily if the mixture is brought to a boil, or if pre shredded cheese is used. If the mixture does separates, try to puree the cheese sauce with a hand blender before you add the noodles.

Ingredients
  

  • 3 tbs olive oil
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 1 fresh jalapeno stemmed, seeded and chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic chopped
  • 4 tbs butter
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1 tbs corn starch
  • 12 ounces Hefeweizen
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 2 cups cheddar cheese thinly grated, don't use pre shredded
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 1/2 cups elbow macaroni noodles

Instructions
 

  • In a large pot heat the olive oil. Add the onions and jalapenos, cook until softened, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds.
  • Add the butter stir until melted.
  • Sprinkle the flour and corn starch on top of the melted butter and whisk until combined.
  • Add the beer, broth and cream bring to a low simmer.
  • 1/4 a cup at at time, add the cheese and stir until completely melted before adding more (do not boil or cheese will separate). Repeat until all the cheese is incorporated into the soup.
  • Add the salt, pepper, smoked paprika and stir to combine.
  • Add the macaroni noodles and cook until noodles are al dente.
  • Add additional beer or broth to thin to desired consistency.

Apricot Basil Ice Cream

I’ve always defined the "Perfect Gift" as something you want but would never spend the money to buy for yourself. Things that may not be expensive, but because money is a limited resource no matter who you are , these things just don’t make that "Must Buy Today" list. Things you quietly (or possibly aggressively) lust after but there are always other things that take top billing in your budget.

A few years ago I was given a KitchenAid Ice Cream maker (affiliate link). for Christmas. Perfect. I wanted it, but don’t make enough ice cream to really justify the purchase. I’d see it at Sur La Table, pause for a moment and then end up with something a bit more practical in that brown and purple bag.

Now that I have it, it makes me feel like a brilliant hostess. "You MADE ice cream? From scratch?" it sounds so luxurious  and ambitious. Even though I only break it out a few times a year, I am always so glad I have it. If you agree not to tell anyone how easy it is to make ice cream from scratch, I won’t either. And we can continue to impress people with the long hours we slaved away to bring them such a momentous dessert.

Apricot Basil Ice Cream

Apricot add in:

 4 cups soft apricots, pitted

1 tbs fresh lemon juice

4 large basil leaves

1/4 cup sugar

Ice Cream Base:

2 cups whole milk

4 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup heavy cream

Place the bowl of your ice cream maker in the freezer for at least 8 hours (I store mine in the freezer so it’s always ready to go) or freeze according to manufacturer specifications.

In a food processor, add the apricots, lemon juice, basil leaves and 1/4 cup sugar, puree until smooth, some chunks of apricot are fine.

To make the ice cream base, add the milk, egg yolks, vanilla and remaining sugar  to a cold sauce pan and whisk until the mixture is well combined. Place the pan over medium high heat and stir until the mixture has thickened slightly (will coat a spoon), about 10 minutes, remove from heat. Stir in the cream.

Add the apricot puree and mix until combined. Add to an air tight container and place in the fridge and allow to cool for at least 4 hours.

Add to the frozen ice cream bowl and churn according to manufactures specifications, about 12 minutes in my Kitchen Aid Ice Cream Maker. Place in an air tight container and freeze until firm, about 2 additional hours.

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Homemade Beer Marinara From Scratch

 

The first time I made marinara was a complete accident.

Just a few months after I nearly accidentally graduated college, I got a job working with teenage gang members in South Central Los Angeles. You are free to laugh at the idea of a very white girl, who grew up on a farm in Eastern Washington, working in South Central. With gang kids.

I sat on one side of a light oak dining table in a small Group Home, a transitional respite for kids who had been released from jail but who were still on probation, to talk with Dominick. He was from a rough area of Compton, and had found his way to the seat across from me via a GTA charge and a hot temper. But to me, he was a baby faced 14-year-old who secretly liked Whitney Houston. This was our first meeting, and part of my job was to compile a list of his "Triggers." Anything that made him angry enough to lash out, to do something that could land his ass back in jail. We both had the same goal: get him back home. Most kids, in my short 4 months of experience all had a very similar trigger. This usually centered around someone "talking shit" about them, their mom, or their crew. Maybe a handful of other miscellaneous and understandable offenses.

When I asked Dominick what triggered him, what drove him to a rage that welled up in him a feeling of violence that once caused him to send a chair on a journey through a class room window, his face fell flat.

"What?" I was so curious, "What makes you that mad?"

He took a deep breath and lowered his voice, "When those mother fuckin' girls make human pyramids."

I laughed so hard I felt bad about it. His young face broke open into a sweet smile, "Jackie, I’m not gonna lie.." He started to giggle, "Pisses me the fuck off, I have no idea why. I want to push those chicks right over."

Fair enough. My job was to teach him how to deal with his anger, no matter what triggered it.

He wanted to learn how to cook, and he wanted to make Spaghetti. He thought that cooking might help him channel his anger. We didn’t have any sauce, but his group home staff had just come into ownership of 10 pounds of tomatoes, so we made do.

Because of Dominick, and his human pyramid hating ways, I will always love a good, homemade, can free, marinara.

Homemade Beer Marinara From Scratch

3 lbs tomatoes

1 large head of garlic

1 tbs olive oil, plus 2 additional tbs, divided

1 large white onion, chopped

1 large carrot, peeled and diced

16 ounces wheat beer (Golden Road Hefeweizen is a great choice)

1/3 cup chopped basil leaves

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Preheat oven to 400.

Rub the head of garlic until about half of the papery white skin comes off. Cut a small amount of the tip off the head of the garlic, just enough to expose all of the cloves. Place on a small piece of aluminum foil and drizzle with about 1 tbs of olive oil. Fold the foil tightly around the garlic, place on a baking sheet. Cut the tomatoes into quarters and place them on the baking sheet along with the garlic packet.

Roast the tomatoes and the garlic at 400 for 20-30 minutes or until the tomatoes are soft and the skin starts to peel back from the flesh. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

The skin of the tomatoes should be very easy to remove at this point, peel the skin off the tomatoes and discard. Place a fine mesh sieve or strainer over a bowl. Scoop the seeds into the strainer and place the remaining part of the peeled and seeded tomato into a bowl, repeat until all of the tomatoes have been seeded. Allow the seeds to continue to drain while you make the rest of the sauce.

In a pot over medium high heat, add 2 tbs olive oil. Add the onions and carrots, sauté until carrots are soft and onions are translucent. Add the beer, seeded and peeled tomatoes and whatever juice has accumulated in the bowl beneath the tomato seeds. Discard the seeds. Remove the head of garlic from the foil packet and squeeze the soft head until the cloves comes out and into the sauce. Add the salt, pepper and basil.

Reduce heat to maintain a low simmer, allow to cook and reduce until thickened, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

If you want a smoother sauce, add to a food processor and process until smooth.

Use this with my Homemade Beer Ricotta to make a beer infused Lasagna or stuffed Rigatoni.

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Carbonara Couscous

There is something so comforting about being busy. A hectic lifestyle reminds me that I’m needed, that I have a function. I was interviewing a brewery owner yesterday for a piece I’m writing for Honest Cooking and he put it into perspective for me. "When I’m old, I don’t think I’ll wish I slept more." Having things to do, people to talk to and jobs to get done is a good place to be. As hard as I try and fight that 5:30am alarm clock, or force myself to shut my eyes when I finally get back in bed, I know I’ll miss it someday.

For now, I’m trying to enjoy the pace my life has taken. The people, places and opportunities that are taking my life down a new and exciting path. And I’m just trying to do it all justice. Approaching it with an open heart and a grateful spirit that will allow me to fully appreciate this time in my life without focusing on what seems to be my near constant caffeine  deficiency and lack of "free" time. It all goes back to the motto of my life: figure out what is great about the situation you are in and enjoy the crap out of it. 

And I have to say, I really enjoyed the crap out of this couscous.

Carbonara Couscous

 1 cup dry Israeli (pearl) couscous

1 tbs buter

5 ounces pancetta

5 basil leaves

½ cup parmesan

1 tsp pepper

2 eggs (plus 2 additional if desired for side dish size portions)

Makes 2 entrée portions or 4 side dish portions

Cook couscous according to package direction. In a separate pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and cook until browned, do not drain, add to the couscous. Chop basil leaves, add to the couscous along with parmesan and pepper, stir to combine.

Poach eggs in simmering water.

Distribute couscous equally among dishes, top with poached egg, serve warm.

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Drunken Strawberry Tart with Beer Lemon Curd

Being wrapped in a world filled with food people, the lovers, academics and fanatics, I’ve often lost my footing. Forgotten the simple pleasures of small, honest meals for the sake of a journey towards the creation of an epic recipe. While surrounding myself with people who strive to reinvent the world of food as we know,  I’ve been so entranced that I’ve stepped away from the core of who I am and the food I fell in love with.

I am not a moderist cook.

I am not a chef.

I may never create an epic recipe.

I am OK with that.

It was through a process, not of self discovery but of self remembrance, that stumbled upon a memory that I had almost lost within my catalogue of food experiences. Under the thousand dollar dinners, PR events, celebrity chefs, and world renowned restaurants was a small Italian city, and a home cooked meal.

Years ago, on what turned out to be a 16 hour layover, I was stuck in Pescara Italy. A girl about my age, just past 21, took pity on a broke and confused American in her tiny local airport and asked if she could show her town to me. It began with a home cooked meal, from her own mothers hands on a rickety folding table in her living room, the only place in the small apartment that would accommodate us all. Homemade bread, a small green salad, smashed peas and a roasted chicken.

For dessert was a lemon tart. Simple, beautiful and tangy, made by the hands of a woman who didn’t speak a word of English, but who took time to cook for me even though we would never have the ability to have a conversation, and I could never properly thank her. This is the food that I fell in love with, and I am reminding myself to stay true to that.

I’ve done my best to make the beer infused version of the tart that was made for me in Pescara, and chose a beer that is nearly as fascinating to me. Cooney Island Lager has flavors that remind me a great meal made in spring, orange, citrus, bread and apples.

If you can’t find this beer, look for a low hop beer with notes of citrus, tropical fruits and bread.

Drunken Strawberry Tart with Beer Lemon Curd

Ingredients
  

For the tart crust:

  • 1 1/4 cups of flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 stick of unsalted butter cut into small cubes
  • 3-5 tbs ice cold water

For the curd:

  • 1 tbs lemon zest
  • 2 whole eggs plus six yolks
  • 1 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice about 6 large lemons
  • ½ cup beer
  • 2 tbs corn starch
  • 1 stick unsalted butter cut into cubes

For the Strawberries

  • 3 cups strawberries
  • ½ cup beer
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar

For the Whipped Cream

  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tbs beer
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Instructions
 

  • In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Pulse to combine. Add the cubes of butter and process until combined, about 1-2 minutes. Your dough should resemble course meal.
  • Start with 3 tbs of water, pulse until combined. If the crust doesn’t hold together add more water, a bit at a time, until it does.
  • Dump the dough into a 4 inch deep, 9 inch wide tart pan with a remove-able bottom (you can also use a pie pan). Starting with the sides, form the crust inside the pan, trying your best to make it all as even as possible. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for a least 3 hours.
  • Preheat oven to 375.
  • Place a sheet of parchment paper inside your tart and fill with pie weights. If you don’t have any, dried beans work great.
  • Bake for 20-25 minutes or until your tart is a light golden brown. Remove from oven, allow to cool slightly. remove pie weights.
  • Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, beer, sugar, corn starch, whole eggs and yolks to a bowl and whisk until well combined. Add the lemon mixture to a pan over medium/low heat along with the butter. Whisk until thickened, about 10 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature.
  • Add the curd to the crust and chill until set, about 4 hours.
  • Just prior to serving add the berries to a shallow bowl of pie pan and cover with 1/2 cup beer. Allow to stand at room temperature for 15-20 minutes. Drain and return to bowl with the sugar, stir to combine.
  • Add all of the whipped cream ingredients to a stand mixer and mix on high until soft peaks form, about 4 minutes.
  • Top tart with berries and whipped cream just prior to serving.

IPA Marinated Citrus Pork Chops With Peach Poblano Salsa

A really well crafted IPA is a beautiful thing,but this is the style that is most often poorly done. The art of balancing a  hop forward beer delicately with its subtle back notes is an art that only a few persistent pros seem to be able to manage. The well crafted, well balanced IPA is an incredible art, that takes the dedication of a thoughtful and persistent brewer to really ace.

 I present to you Stone Ruination. It is a Masters level education on how to do the IPA right. Seek it out if you adore the Indian Pale Ale, or even if you tend to avoid it. That’s how you make an IPA.

IPA Marinated Citrus Pork Chops With Peach Poblano Salsa

For the Pork Chops:

1 cup IPA (Stone Ruination Preferred)

1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp salt

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp agave

1/2 tsp Sriracha

4 bone-in pork chops (about 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick)

3 tbs olive oil (plus additional if needed)

For the Salsa:

1 cup chopped fresh yellow peaches (about 1 large peach)

1 cup chopped red bell peppers, stem and seeds removed (about 1 medium sided pepper)

2/3 cup chopped poblano pepper, stem and seeds removed (about 1 large pepper)

2/3 cup chopped red onion (about 1/2 of 1 large onion)

1/4 cup chopped green onion

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbs IPA

1/4 tsp chili powder (add more for a spicier salsa)

 

In a large bowl or baking dish, combine the IPA, lemon juice, salt, agave, garlic and srirach, stir to combine. Add the pork chops, turning to coat. Place the bowl (or baking dish) in the refrigerator and allow to marinate for 30 minutes.

Add all of the salsa ingredients to a bowl and toss to combine.

In a pan over medium high heat, add the olive oil and allow to get hot but not smoking. Add the pork chops, cooking one or two at a time, don’t crowd the pan. Cook on each side for 3-4 minutes. You want them to still have a slight hint of pink still in the center, pork chops go from undercooked to overcooked really quickly, so keep a close eye on them.

Plate, and top with salsa. You will have more than enough salsa for the chops, serve the excess in a bowl with chips.

Creme Brulee Bread Pudding

Creme Brulee and Bread pudding are two things that never occurred to me growing up. Creme Brulee was much to bourgeois for a kid who raised pigs in her back yard and bread pudding sounded like something you ate over Bingo hoping the Polident didn’t give out.  As  real life grown up, I realized that these are both really simple desserts that have a versatility and beautiful creaminess that have earned themselves a place in my kitchen. Bread pudding has been my way to use up the last bit of homemade pastries, cinnamon rolls and raisin bread that I hate to throw out but go stale so quickly. And Creme Brulee is so easy and lovely, lending itself very well to a multitude of flavors, it tends to be a Go-To for me when I’m a loss for what to serve. 

Mixed together, it’s fairly addictive, easy to make and has a homestyle fanciness that’s perfect for so many get togethers. 


Creme Brulee Bread Pudding

3 egg yolks

1/2 cup of sugar

1 1/4 cup of heavy cream

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp slt

1/4 cup granulated sugar for brulee crust topping

3 cups bread, crust removed, cut into 1 inch cubes

Preheat oven to 300. 

In a bowl, combine the yolks and 1/2 cup of sugar and whisk until light and frothy. In a pot, combine the cream, salt and vanilla and heat until steamy but not boiling. Remove from heat and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. While you whisk the eggs, slowly, slowly add the cream, whisking until combined. If there are any lumps or “eggy bits” in your cream mixture (possibly because you didn’t let your cream cool down) strain the custard through a mesh strainer.

Assemble 6 ceramic ramekins, or individual oven safe serving bowls in a baking dish. Add the bread cubes to each dish, pressing down a little bit to compact. 

Pour into the custard over the bread until covered. 

Add hot water to the baking dish until about half filled, the water rising to about half way up the sides of the ramekins. 

Bake at 300 until the custard no longer wobbles when the rack is shaken, about 20-25 minutes (this is not a "tooth pick inserted in the middle should come out clean" situation).

Refridgerate until set, at least 2 hours. Just before serving, top the creme brulee with an even layer of granulated sugar. Pass the flame of a kitchen torch slowly and evenly over the sugar until it’s liquified and a light amber colored. Serve immediately. The sugar crust will start to break down after about an hour.

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Beer Braised Pulled Pork

There is nothing new about braising with beer. In fact,  it should be the standard. Beer, as with all alcohol, is a natural meat tenderizer but it’s the flavors of the beer that make for braise meat that has a truly special taste. Craft brews are known for more intense flavor profiles and will always produce a vastly superior product when cooking than a macro brew. Craft beer is truly that, a craft. I have had a soft spot for Rogue brewery for years. Rogue is beer lovers beer, and dedicated to the art of the craft. Actual real life people making really good beer. If you live on the West Coast, this Portland Oregon brewery’s beer is probably at your local grocery store. It’s one of the few great craft beers that I have a very easy time getting my hands on.

What does braising mean? What a good question. Braising just means to sear meat at a very high heat and then cook it slowly at a low heat until cooked through. I used another amazing craft beer for this recipe. Rogue’s Chipolte Ale:

 

Beer Braised Pulled Pork

Ingredients
  

  • 1 tbs kosher salt
  • 2 tbs brown sugar
  • 1 tbs onion powder
  • 1 tbs chili powder
  • 1 tbs ground cumin
  • 1 tbs black pepper
  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 2 tsp dry mustard powder
  • 3.5 lb Pork butt It’s acctually the pigs shoulder, and sometimes called that. The actual butt is called Ham.
  • 6 cloves of garlic peeled
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 3 cups Chipotle ale or smoked porter (I used Rogue’s Chipotle Ale)

Instructions
 

  • In a small bowl stir together the salt, brown sugar onion powder, chili powder, cumin, pepper, smoked paprika and mustard powder together until combined, set aside.
  • Take out your pork and stab 6, 2 inch deep holes fairly evenly spaced through the meat. Push a clove of garlic into each hole until no longer visible.
  • Rub the entire surface of the meat with the spice mixture, using it all.
  • In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil until very hot. Sear all surfaces of the meat, even the sides, until browned. The entire process will probably take about 10-15 minutes.Pour the beer over the meat, cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook for about 2 1/2 to 3 hours, turning the meat over about every 30 minutes, until the meat is tender and falling apart.
  • Once the meat is finished, remove from the pot and allow to cool. Use two forks to shred into pieces. Return to the braising liquid and allow to simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove the meat from the pot and discard the liquid.

 

 

I used this meat in three ways, on italian bread as a delicious sandwich, over rice and beans, and in a burrito. Other ideas for pulled pork include:

Pulled pork nachos

Pulled pork sliders

Pulled pork tacos

Pulled pork enchiladas

Pulled pork flatbread pizza

Pulled pork hand pies

Seriously, you could go all Bubba Gump about this and it would be endless. There is no shortage of uses for Pulled Pork.

 


Cheddar Beer Biscuits

When you go about baking biscuits, beer is a great addition. Not only because beer is fantastic will every possible edible substance, but because the the carbonation is an amazing leavening agent that lends itself well to culinary beer usage.

For this recipe I used a Orange Wheat beer from Hangar 24, a Southern California based brewery. The beer was beautiful and the flavors where perfect for these biscuits. When I pick up a beer with fruit on the label, I am initially a touch apprehensive. I wait for the possibility of a Hard Cider like taste with the hesitation of a contused prostitute, before taking a sip. I am HAPPY to report that the natural orange was perfectly subtle and a well balanced citrus flavors, with a clean, crisp finish.

Even after cooking, the flavors stayed intact and complimented the white cheddar beautifully.

 

I also used Kerrygold cheese, although this has nothing to do with Oktoberfest, it’s just really great cheddar. The flavors are perfect for this recipe.

Cheddar Beer Biscuits

2 cups of flour

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp sugar

1 stick (8 tbs) butter, cut into small cubes

1/2 cup craft wheat beer (Orange Wheat from Hanger 24 preferred)

1/2 cup white cheddar (Kerrygold reserve preferred)

Preheat oven to 400.

Put the flour, salt, pepper, baking powder, baking soda and sugar in your food processor and pulse until combined. Add your butter cubes and  process until the butter is evenly distributed, about 1-2 minutes.

Move to a bowl and add the cheese and beer and stir until combined.

 

Dump the dough onto a floured surface. Squish together with your hands to form a ball and then flatten into a rectangle about 6  inches wide and 10 inches long and 2 inches high. Use a sharp knife to cut the biscuits into squares.

 

You can make them as big or small as you want, but this recipe will make 6-8 average sized biscuits.

Place the biscuits on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Sprinkle the top with a bit of sea salt and pepper.

Bake for 12-14 minutes or until light golden brown.

 

Oktoberfest Beer Creme Brulee

I know that Oktoberfest started as the celebration of a royal wedding that would have put the recent William/Kate union to shame. I also know that it is not an actual proper Holiday.
But for those of us completly in love with all things Beer, it might as well be.
Oktoberfest, as in the one that takes place late September  to Early October in Munich, is about LOCAL beer. I love all beer, but I have a special affinity for beer brewed close to home. Although this beer isn’t actual German beer, being that I am in California, it is in line with the locavore spirit of Oktoberfest and their rule for never serving any beer at the official Oktoberfest Festival that is not brewed in their own backyard. And that backyard would be the Munich City limits.
For this recipe, which I loved SO much, I used another incredible local craft beer, this one came from  Bison Brewing. Honey Basil Beer. It’s local (to those of us in California), it’s organic and the flavors are amazing.

Beer Creme Brulee: Creme Beer-lee
  • 3/4 cups heavy cream
  • 3/4 cup Bison Honey Basil Beer (can sub German style wheat beer)
  • 5 egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup sugar, plus another 1/4 cup for the topping
  • Preheat the oven to 300.

Put the cream, and beer in a sauce pan over medium heat. Cook just until its bubbly around the edges but not boiling. Remove from heat, cover and allow to cool for about 15 minutes.

In a bowl, combine the egg yolks, and 1/2 cup of sugar. Whisk until frothy, about 3 minutes.

While continuing to whisk, slowly add the cooled cream mixture until well combined.

Put 8 ceramic ramekins in a baking dish, filling the baking dish with about 1 inch of water (don’t get any water in the ramekins).

Pour your custard through a mesh strainer into ramekins.

Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 40-45 minutes or until the edges are set and the middle is still slightly wobbly.

Remove from oven and allow to cool, at room temp, in the water filled baking dish for 30 minutes. Transfer to a plate and allow to chill and set in the fridge for 4 hours. Right before serving, cover the top of your set custard with an even, thin layer of sugar (about 1/2-1 tsp). Then run a culinary torch over your sugar, slowly, until it melts and turns an amber color.

Notes

Cooking tip: Don’t brulee the sugar until you are ready to serve. After about an hour of sitting, the sugar will start to liquefy again.