Monday, October 15, 2007

Bratwurst in Beer

  • Beer – 1 can of your favorite
  • Water – 1 ½ cups
  • Onion (yellow) – 2 medium chopped
  • Bratwurst – 2 pounds
  • Salt – ¼ teaspoon
  • Pepper (black) – ¼ teaspoon
  • Butter – 2 tablespoons
  • Flour – 2 tablespoons
  • Apple Cider Vinegar – 2 tablespoons
  • Sugar – 1 tablespoon
  • Parsley – just enough to garnish
1. Preheat the grill for medium high heat. (A gas grill with a side burner is recommended for this recipe. But if you need to use the stovetop in the house it will work just fine as well.)

2. Combine the beer, water, onion, bratwurst, salt and pepper in a saucepan over medium heat on the side burner.

3. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook covered for 10 minutes.

4. Remove the bratwurst from the beer mixture and place the bratwurst on the grill turning them frequently to brown them all over. (The brats are done when an instant read thermometer reads 165 degrees.)

5. Remove the beer mixture from the heat and reserve for a reappearance later on for this dish.

6. Meanwhile, place a large sauté pan on the side burner over medium heat. Melt the butter and stir in the flour, cooking for about 6 minutes to make a light brown roux.

7. Then stir in the vinegar, sugar and the remaining beer mixture.

8. Season with salt and pepper and bring the mixture to a boil.

9. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, which is about 10 to 15 minutes.

10. Slice the brats into 1-inch pieces and add to the sauce. Cook for 5 more minutes.

11. Garnish with parsley and you are done.

Thanks to Eat This! Cooking

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Ghouls & Goulash

  • 1 bag Morningstar Farms Steak Strips, cubed
  • 2T vegetable oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 2t caraway seeds
  • 2T sweet Hungarian paprika (not hot!)
  • 1/4t pepper
  • 1 six oz. can tomato paste
  • 1 bottle of beer
  • 1/4t salt
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4t marjoram
  • 2 carrots, chopped (optional)
  • 2 red potatoes, diced (optional)
  • 1 1/2 cups V8 or vegetable juice (use less if omitting carrots & potatoes)
  • 2T flour

In a stew sized pot, heat oil and cook onions and caraway seeds until onions are soft. Add cubed faux steak and brown slightly. Stir in all of the remaining ingredients except flour. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes, until potatoes and carrots are soft. If necessary, add flour to thicken.

Thanks to Monica from the Rural Vegan

Monday, June 4, 2007

Chicken Cassoulet

  • 1/4 pound bacon (about 4 strips)
  • 1 pound sweet Italian sausage, cut into 1-inch-thick rounds
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled, minced
  • 1 cup beer (preferably a light lager)
  • 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 can (29 ounces or two 15-ounce cans) cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
  • 2 cups diced leftover chicken
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 cups seasoned bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 400.

In a large oven-proof skillet, brown the bacon over medium heat until it crisps and renders much of its fat, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels.

Add the sausage to the pan and cook, stirring , until well browned, about 8 minutes.

Add garlic and cook, stirring until it sizzles steadily but doesn't quite brown, about 1 minute.

Add beer and cook, stirring, until it almost completely reduces, about 2 minutes.

Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, stir in the beans, rosemary and chicken and simmer for 5 minutes to heat through.

Stir in Parmesan, season with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle evenly with the bread crumbs. Transfer to oven and bake until the crumbs brown and crisp, about 25 minutes. Let sit for a few minutes, then serve with a sprinkling of bacon.

Thanks to Freep

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Cilantro Fish Stew with Clams, Mussels, Corvina and Large Prawns

  • 4 large prawns
  • 2 small fillets of corvina or any firm-fleshed white fish
  • 1 cups of clams and mussels @ 6 of each
  • 2 ox. Spanish chorizo, chopped in small cubes
  • 8 cherry tomatoes halved
  • 6 limes juiced
  • 1 ear of white corn, off the husk
  • 1/2 bottle of XX Amber
  • 1/2-1/4 Fresno pepper, sliced
  • 1/2 bunch of cilantro
  • 1/2 white onion shaved or julienned
  • 1/4 cup chicken stock
  • olive oil
  • salt and pepper

In a large pan saute over high heat the clams, prawns, chorizo and corvina in olive oil until the fish and prawns are browned on one side. Flip the seafood then immediately deglaze the pan with the beer. Add the onion and corn. The chicken stock and lime juice are added to taste. Reduce the broth then add the whole picked cilantro, cherry tomatoes and Fresno pepper. Finish with salt and pepper. Enjoy! You should be left with a nice citrus broth containing beer and cilantro overtones. Most of these ingredients can be followed to recipe, but I recommend that they be added to taste.

Serves 2

Thanks to Beckler

Monday, May 7, 2007

Cheddar and Beer Soup with Tempura Broccoli Florets

  • 4 ounces butter
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup minced onions
  • 1/4 cup minced celery
  • Salt
  • Cayenne
  • 1 (12-ounce) bottle light beer
  • 4 cups chicken stock
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1 pound sharp Cheddar, grated
  • Dash hot red pepper sauce
  • Tempura Broccoli Florets, recipe follows
  • 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley leaves

Tempura Broccoli Florets:
  • 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup cornstarch
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • 1 cup seltzer water
  • 8 fresh broccoli florets, blanched
  • Salt and cayenne

1. In a large saucepan, over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly for 4 minutes to make a blond roux. Add the onions and celery. Season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook for 2 minutes or until the vegetables are wilted.
2. Stir in the beer and stock. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes. Stir in the milk and cheese. Continue to cook for 10 minutes. Season with salt and hot sauce.
3. Reduce the heat and keep warm. To serve, ladle the soup into each bowl. Garnish with the Tempura Florets and parsley.

Tempura Broccoli Florets:

1. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, egg, and seltzer water. Mix well to make a smooth batter. Season with salt and cayenne. Dip each floret into the batter, shaking off any excess. Carefully add the battered broccoli to the oil and fry until crispy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels. Season with salt.

Serves 8

Thanks to Tarah

Monday, April 23, 2007

Firehouse Chicken Stew

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 8 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
  • 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 3 yellow onions, chopped
  • 2 red bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 2 poblano or Anaheim peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 6 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch slices
  • 6 celery stalks, cut into 1/4-inch slices
  • 10 garlic, chopped
  • 6 large sprigs fresh thyme
  • 3 dried bay leaves
  • 2 12-ounce bottles brown ale, such as Newcastle
  • 4 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
  • 1 pound okra, stemmed, and cut into 1/4-inch slices
  • 12 cups canned low-sodium chicken stock
  • 2 28-ounce cans peeled whole tomatoes with their liquid, crushed
  • 2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels, (about 6 ears)
  • 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • Hot sauce, for serving (optional)

In a large bowl, whisk together 1 cup of flour, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Add the chicken, and toss well to evenly coat. Heat 1/2 cup olive oil over medium-high heat in a wide 20-quart heavy-bottomed pot. Add half of the chicken, and brown, turning once, until lightly golden, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer chicken to a large bowl. Add remaining 1/4 cup oil to the pot and brown remaining chicken; transfer to the bowl and set aside.

Add the onions, peppers, carrots, celery, garlic, thyme, and bay leaves to the pot, and season well with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 8 minutes. Add ale and bring to a simmer, scraping the brown bits off the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Add potatoes, okra, chicken stock, tomatoes and their liquid, corn, and red pepper flakes, and bring the mixture to a boil. Add reserved chicken, reduce heat to maintain a simmer, cover, and cook until vegetables and chicken are tender and cooked through, about 25 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk remaining 1/2 cup flour together with the milk until smooth. Stir mixture into the stew and return to a simmer. Cook until very thick, 2 to 3 minutes. Reseason with salt and pepper. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice. Serve with a dash of hot sauce, if desired.

Serves 24.

Thanks to Vox

Saturday, April 21, 2007

Serin's Meat Mud

  • 2 pounds of lean ground beef
  • 1 lime
  • 16 oz/500 g (ml?) Diced tomatoes (in a can cause I'm lazy)
  • 16 oz/500 g (ml?) Tomato Sauce
  • Two Green Bell Peppers
  • A handful of button mushrooms
  • A handful of shitake mushrooms
  • A corona (or heffeweisen, but then substitute a lemon for the lime in order to balance the change in acidity)
  • A Roma-Tomato's worth of not-red Onions
  • Two or three cloves of garlic (up to you really)
  • Large skillet
  • Extra-virgin olive-oil.

Now. With the ingredients...

Into the skillet, pour enough olive oil to cover about a third to a half of the bottom.

Heat skillet at medium heat.

Chop onion (smaller than pencil eraser sized chunks)

Dice garlic (Finer the better)

Slice lime wedges, (widest about half inch at the skin)

Roll oil around skillet to coat bottom.

Add onions

Open beer

Stir onions

Add lime wedge to beer.

Stir onions

Enjoy beer.

Repeat previous two steps until onions are brown/burnt/tiny

Add garlic.

Agitate to let the garlic brown.

When the garlic gets a hint past golden brown, apply meat.

Brown the meat. Stir occasionally while prepping vegetables. Use the spatula to chop up the meat to ensure all the meat is consistently brown

Open cans of tomato bits
Chop mushrooms and bellpeppers into bits. Try to keep all the pieces around the half-inch size.

When the meat gets to a nice even brown, push it all to one side and drain the fat with a spoon. (There'll be a tiny bit left, but that's okay)

Return pan to stove and add tomato goop. Stir.

When the mixture starts bubbling again, add vegetables.

Let the mass simmer for about 10 minutes.

Season to taste, starting as soon as the meat is browned. I tend to use about 3 spoons worth of montreal steak spice mix, added gradually, and then I add red pepper flakes and black pepper as I see fit. The tomato sauce tends to carry enough salt by itself. This last batch, I also added parsley.

The whole process, end to end, takes about 30 minutes or so. The result is a very heavy meatsauce. I used the spatula to slice out chunks that just spread over the spaghetti noodles under it's own weight, like a blob of mud.

Thanks to Stir Fry Kitty

Friday, April 20, 2007

Bacon and Cheddar Beer Bread

  • 3 cups sifted White Lily self-rising flour
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 envelopes Goya ham flavoring
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 4 tablespoons cold butter, cut into cubes
  • 1 cup (4 ounces) grated sharp Cheddar
  • 1/2 cup cooked real bacon pieces
  • 1 (12 ounce) bottle beer

In food processor fitted with the chopping blade, first 4 ingredients Add butter. Process in pulses until it resembles meal. Stir in cheese and bacon. Package airtight and store in the refrigerator. Give along with a bottle of beer and baking instructions.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-5-inch bread pan. Empty contents of package into a mixing bowl. Make a well in center of ingredients. Pour beer into well. Stir by hand just until ingredients are blended. Spread batter evenly in bread pan. Bake 40 to 50 minutes, until bread sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from
oven and place on cooling rack for 5 minutes. Remove bread from pan. Bread slices cleaner and neater if allowed to cool before slicing. Makes 1 loaf.

Thanks to Peggy at Cajun Cooking Recipes

Thursday, April 19, 2007

Kraut Burgers (Runzas)

  • 1 pound fresh ground meat [turkey or ground beef chuck] *
  • 1 small white onion [chopped]
  • 1/2 cup beer
  • Black Pepper
  • 1/2 head of green cabbage [coarsely chopped]
  • 1 lb. frozen bread dough [thawed]
  • 1/4 cup melted butter

  • 350 degrees oven temperature
  • two cookie sheets [greased or sprayed with non-stick PAM]

First, you brown your meat and chopped onion. I used ground turkey. [*my grandmother and mother used leftover shaved beef roast] Once the ground meat is browned thoroughly, I add one half cup of beer! [The alcohol cooks out of it, and gives a really 'special' flavor!

Add chopped cabbage and 1/2 cup beer

Add black pepper and stir to coat meat, cabbage and onion

Reduce heat, and cover....allowing mixture to cook more thoroughly and cabbage and onion to become soft, translucent--

When cabbage is limp, then remove from heat to cool.

In the meantime, divide the 1 lb bread loaf [thawed] into eight 'biscuit' sized balls

...with your hands, flatten each 'biscuit' to about 4 inches in diameter. Add about 1/2 cup of meat [USING A SLOTTED SPOON SO JUICES CAN DRAIN], onion and cabbage mixture and fold dough over the mixture. Pinch dough to secure tightly.
[Note: if your mixture is too hot, the dough will split from the heat and make it very difficult to fold without breaking open!]

Place your meat pockets -- the runzas on the prepared cookie sheets, allowing room for rising, cooking dough--- Bake until nicely browned. Baste finished runza [kraut burgers] with melted butter...giving them a beautiful finish.

Serve hot! I love 'em with yellow mustard dipping sauce. Dill pickle slices.

Thanks to Hootin' Anni

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Green Onion Beer Bread

  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 1/4 oz active dry yeast
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 12 oz bottle beer (we used Smithwicks)
  • 1 bunch onions

optional add ins:
  • 1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan
  • 1/2 cup fresh basil
  • 1/4 cup sundried tomatoes
  • red pepper flakes
Preheat oven to 400. Oil or spray a baking sheet. In a large bowl, stir together salt, pepper, paprika, cheese (if using), green onion, yeast and flour. Add the beer and stir until a dough forms. Shape into a round loaf and place on the greased baking sheet. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until the loaf is slightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Thanks to Rachel

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Spring Shepard’s Pie with Tempeh, Asparagus, Sweet Peas and Beer

  • 4 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
  • splash of milk/cream/soymilk
  • 3 Tbsp butter/margarine
  • 2 cups grated parmesan cheese, completely optional
  • 1 8oz block tempeh cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 bottle of beer*
  • (2) veggie bullion cubes
  • olive oil
  • 3 leeks, well washed and sliced
  • 1 bunch of asparagus, sliced diagonally into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 cups frozen sweet peas
  • 1 bag fresh spinach
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 tsp parsley flakes, optional
  • salt and pepper

*try a nice flavorful ale or wheat beer. I think it would work less well with a dark stout or porter or anything too light like a lager, but it’s casserole and your call.

Start by making your mash potatoes. Make them whatever way you like them but in case you don’t have a favorite way, here’s an easy one: throw your potato chunks into boiling salted water and cook for 15 - 20 minutes or until they are soft through the middle.
Drain the potatoes well and add the milk, butter, salt and pepper. Mash with a potato masher or electric beaters. Right before the potatoes go on to top the casserole, stir in 1/2 the cheese if you’re using it.

While your potatoes are cooking, start simmering the tempeh. Heat the bottle of beer in a small saucepan until almost simmering. Add the tempeh and 2 bullion cubes. Simmer for 15 - 20 minutes or until there is a cup or so of beer left unabsorbed.

In a large skillet/wok, quickly sauté the leek until wilted and then add the asparagus for about 2 minutes, or until just starting to heat. Add the bag of spinach and cook, stirring well from the bottom, until wilted. Add the tempeh and simmering liquid, lemon zest, parsley flakes and taste to adjust salt/pepper levels. Stir in frozen peas.

Dump out the veggies and tempeh into a greased 9″ x 13″ casserole. Cover the casserole with a layer of mashed potatoes - plop spoonfuls down all around the casserole and spread. Brush the mash potatoes with a thin coat of olive oil and top with the other 1/2 of grated cheese. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until the top is starting to get golden and you see a little bubbling around the side.

Thanks to vanessipes.com

Monday, April 16, 2007

Sam Adams Chocolate Cream Stout Cake

Yield: 6 Servings
  • 4 TB butter
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 cup Samuel Adams Cream Stout
  • 4 TB cocoa powder
  • Optional
  • Whipped cream
  • Chocolate sauce
Butter an 8-inch cake pan with 2 tablespoons of the butter and pre-heat the over to 350 degrees F.

Cream the remaining butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.

Gradually beat in the egg and the egg yolk.

Sift the flour, baking soda and baking powder into a separate bowl.

Stir the Samuel Adams Cream Stout into the cocoa.

Alternately fold the flour and beer mixture into the butter and sugar mixture.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and bake for approximately 30-35 minutes, or until firm to the touch.

Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning the cake onto a wire rack.

Leave the cake to completely cool before slicing.

If you like, serve with whipped cream and chocolate sauce.

Thanks to Steve

Bob’s Chili Con Carne

Bob’s Chili Con Carne with Habanero and Beans
version 10

Makes around six bowls of chili.

In addition to the usual kitchen hardware you will need:
  • a crockpot, slow cooker or simmering element. A regular stove boiler element is generally too hot.
You will need the following ingredients:

  • 800 mg of lean (but not extra lean) ground beef (about 28 ounces)
  • 800 ml of crushed tomatoes (about 28 fl oz.)
  • 540 ml tin of mixed beans (20 fl oz.) If you are in Canada, you won’t go wrong with the Unico version of this. In a pinch, a tin of kidney beans will do
  • 1 medium sized onion (I like red, but any onion will do)
  • 3 tbsp of bacon fat recovered from salt-reduced bacon
  • 1 tbsp ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp garlic powder (or half a bulb of very finely chopped garlic)
  • 3 tbsp of New Mexican chilli powder (regular American style works OK too)
  • 1 tbsp (or so) of dry oregano. I’ve never measured out oregano in my life, prefering instead to throw it in by the pinch. But this is around the amount I’m using
  • 1 tsp cayenne powder
  • 1/2 tsp ground pepper. About eight full grinds of the pepper mill ought to do it
  • 2 big habanero peppers. Scotch bonnets can be used instead for their heat, but won’t impart the flavour we’re after.
  • 125 ml of water (about 1/2 of a cup)

Now I know what you are thinking, “¿dos habaneros? ¿está él loco?“* Keep reading and you’ll find out how we control the heat from the habanero.

Traditional chili recipes call for suet, but the bacon fat adds a most interesting flavour. Besides, you’ll get to eat a bunch of bacon sometime before this — ain’t nothing wrong with that! Bacon fat will keep for months in the fridge, so don’t feel as if you have to cook it the night before. The easiest way to get it is to cook a quarter kilo of bacon in a frypan until it is brown, not black, then pour off the excess fat into a ramekin. Cover the ramekin and put it in the fridge. Any chunks will settle to the bottom, leaving clean white bacon fat at the top. Use only the top two thirds of the fat — chuck the rest. It is important to use salt-reduced bacon, not just because it’s better for you, but to control the amount of salt. Crushed tomatoes have salt, the beans have salt, and the beef has salt. Add to this some regular bacon fat, and you will have a chili that tends to be too salty. You can add more salt if you like, but you can never take salt away, so we err on the side of caution here.

This recipe should fill your average crockpot maybe three quarters of the way up. Set your slow cooker to “Auto” or your stove to low. Chili has to be carefully simmered or it will burn and taste funny. If you see little bubbles at the sides of the pot (slow cooker) or a few in the middle every second (stove top), this is good. If the top is vigorously bubbling like a young pasta sauce — too hot. Cook the beef and put it, along with any fat it yields, into the slow cooker along with the bacon fat, and the tomatoes. Chop up the onion and throw it in there too. Most brands of crushed tomatoes don’t have enough water in them so add some or all of the water until the chili thins out to the consistency of a smoother pasta sauce — thick enough to draw a shape in, but not thick enough to form big mounds. What I like to do is add the water to the empty can of tomatoes and swish it about to get leftover tomato off the sides. Stir all of it up well and then leave it alone for about an hour or so. This will bring it up to temperature and melt the bacon fat.

Now throw in the rest of the ingredients except for the habaneros and the beans. Stew for around 4-5 hours, stirring once an hour, or whenever you feel like it. Get the stirring done fast so as to not lose too much heat.

I imagine you are wondering about the habanero… so tasty… but so hot! How do we control the heat? If we chopped them up fine and threw them in at the beginning, we would extract all of the capsaicin from them and the chili would be too hot for most. So we’re not going to do that. Instead, we are going to use the pepper itself as a kind of bouquet garnee. About halfway through that 4 to 5 hours, take the habaneros and cut through them twice, about three quarters of the way up along their length, leaving the top intact. This allows flavour to flow out of the pepper, but leaves them big enough to find later. Drop them in. Getting flavour from a habanero this way takes at least an hour, so on the next stir, break out your spoon and give your chili a taste. There should be a delightful floral-like smell and a slight fruit flavour as well as some heat. If it is hot enough for you, fish out the habaneros, gently shake the chili off of them, and throw them away. If you are like me and like lots of heat, leave them in until the end. If one of your habaneros is missing a quarter, don’t freak out, all you have to do is get most of it out to control the heat.

In the last hour or so, drain and stir in the beans. Tinned beans are already soaked and slightly mushy, so all you have to do is get them in there to absorb some flavour. Don’t drain the beans completely, in fact, adding a a tablespoon or so of the bean juice is often not a bad idea, as the slow cooker may have lost too much moisture over the last few hours. Nearing the end of the cooking we are expecting the chili to get stiffer, but no too stiff. When hot you should be able to pull a decent rounded spoonful from your bowl, but not ice cream sized chunks.

And that’s it. Spoon it into a bowl and enjoy!

Thanks to cobolhacker

Raisin Beer Sauce

Combine in a saucepan:
1/4 cup firmly-packed brown sugar
1-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt

Stir in:
1 cup beer
1/4 cup raisins, cut in halves

Put in a cheesecloth bag and hang it in the cooking sauce from the edge of the pan:
8 whole cloves
1 two-inch stick cinnamon

Cook and stir for about 10 minutes. Add:
1 tablespoon butter

Remove the spices. Serve the sauce very hot. Good with hot or cold ham or smoked tongue.

Yield: About 1-1/2 cups

Thanks to CrazyBone

Friday, April 13, 2007

Chef Leo’s Prime Rib Roast

  • 3 teaspoons grated fresh ginger root
  • 1/3 cup orange marmalade
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
  • 1 tablespoon mustard powder
  • 1 cup beer
  • 1 (8 pound) prime rib roast
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • Freshly ground black pepper

Directions: Mix together the ginger, marmalade, garlic, soy sauce, brown sugar, hot sauce, and mustard. Stir in the beer. Prick holes all over the roast with a 2 pronged fork. Pour marinade over roast. Cover, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, basting at least twice. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Place roast on a rack in a roasting pan. Pour about 1 cup of marinade into the roasting pan, and discard remaining marinade. Pour olive oil over roast, and season with freshly ground black pepper. Insert a roasting thermometer into the middle of the roast, making sure that the thermometer does not touch any bone. Cover roasting pan with aluminum foil, and seal edges tightly around pan. Cook roast for 1 hour in the preheated oven. After the first hour, remove the aluminum foil. Baste, reduce heat to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C), and continue roasting for 1 more hour. The thermometer reading should be at least 140 degrees F (60 degrees C) for medium-rare, and 170 degrees F (76 degrees C) for well done. Remove roasting pan from oven, place aluminum foil over roast, and let rest for about 30 minutes before slicing.

Thanks to Chef Fatboy

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Beer-braised Chicken Stew with Fava Beans and Peas

  • 2 tablespoons anise seeds
  • 4 garlic cloves, coarsley chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads (I omitted this as those are expensive, and it still tastes and smells good)
  • 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons pure olive oil
  • 8 skinless chicken thighs
  • Salt
  • 1 cup shelled fava beans
  • 1/2 cup fresh peas
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 pound button mushrooms halved
  • 8 scallions thinly sliced
  • 2 thyme sprigs
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • One 12-ounce bottle belgian beer
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream.
  • 1/4 cup coarsley chopped flat parsley.

In a small skillet, toast the anise seeds over moderate heat, shaking the skillet until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Let the seeds cool slightly, and then crush with the side of a knife.

In a mini food processor, combine the seeds, garlic, saffron (if using), paprika, anc cayenne. Add the lemon juice and puree. Transfer to a large, shallow bowl and stir in 1/2 cup olive oil.. Ad dthe chicken thighs and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

While the chicken is marinating, bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add salt and the fava beans, and cook for one minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the fava beans to a small bowl and cool slightly. Add the peas to the boiling water and cook until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain the peas. Peel the fava beans and add to the peas.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large enameled cast-iron casserole. Remove the chicken thighs from the marinade, scraping off the excess. Season the chicken with salt and black pepper and cook over moderatley high heat, turning occasionally, until browned, about 10 minutes.

Wipe out the casserole, add the butter and heat until melted. Add the mushrooms, sliced scallions, and cook over moderate heat sirring occasionally, until any liquid has evaporated and the mushrooms are browned, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mushrooms, and cook, stirring for 1 minute. Slowly stir in the beer, and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the casserole.

Return the chicken thighs to the casserole and season wth salt and black pepper. Cover and simmer over low heat until the chicken is tender and cooked through, about 25 minutes. Add the cream, fava beans, and peas, increase the heat to moderate, and cook uncovered until the sauce has reduced slightly, about 5 minutes. Discard the thyme sprigs.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Chili a la olio

  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • ½ pound sirloin, cubed (I buy stir-fry beef then cut the strips into small cubes with kitchen scissors)
  • 2 tablespoons McCormick Montreal Steak seasoning
  • ¾ box button mushrooms, coarsely chopped
  • ¾ box cremini mushrooms (aka baby portobello), coarsely chopped
  • 1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
  • 3 stalks celery, coarsely chopped (use some of the leafy tops, too)
  • 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic (6 if they’re small), finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 chipotle pepper in adobo, finely chopped (you can remove
  • some/all of the seeds if you prefer milder chili)
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 bottle beer (any lager)
  • 1 16-ounce can black beans (don’t drain)
  • 1 16-ounce can crushed tomatoes (don’t drain)
  • 1 cup beef stock
  • 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves

Garnish (optional):

  • ½ cup mild yellow cheese (Gouda is a good choice), grated
  • 1 small white onion, finely chopped
Heat a large, deep skillet over high heat.

Add 2 tablespoons oil, the meat, and the grill seasoning.

Sear the meat for 2-3 minutes, then reduce heat to medium and push meat to one side.

On the “clean” side of the skillet, add another tablespoon of oil, then the mushrooms. When the mushrooms begin to brown and shrink (about 2-3 minutes), stir them once quickly then push them off to the side with the meat.

Add the remaining vegetables (onion, celery, red pepper, and garlic) to the clean side of the skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes, then mix the meat, mushrooms, and vegetables together.

Add the Worcestershire, chipotle, and cumin. Stir quickly to mix, then add the beer.

Stir/scrape the bottom of the skillet well to deglaze. Simmer until the beer has reduced by half (about 2 minutes).

Taste, and if you want it spicier, you can add a little more (¼ teaspoon or so) adobo sauce from the can of peppers.

Add the beans, tomatoes, beef stock, and thyme and simmer for 10 minutes.

This dish only takes about 30 minutes to make.

Thanks to Lee at Olio

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Beer Cheese Soup, Ghetto Gourmet Style

312 Beer Cheese Soup w/ Brie, Chorizo and Manchego
  • 2 yellow onions, chopped
  • 2 fennel bulbs, chopped
  • 2 cups of thinly sliced celery
  • 6 pack of 312 Beer (2 bottles for the soup and the other 4 for you!)
  • 1 tablespoon of ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon of ground coriander seeds
  • 2 teaspoons of crushed red pepper
  • 4 tablespoons of flour
  • 1 pound of cheddar cheese, grated
  • 1 pound of brie cheese, sliced (leave the rind on)
  • 1 stick of butter
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 8 cups water or stock
  • Mexican-style chorizo, cooked and drained very well (or Soyrizo)
  • Shredded manchego cheese
Heat oil and butter in a large stock pot. Add the onion, celery, fennel, cumin, coriander and crushed red pepper. Sautee on medium heat and stir frequently until everything is caramelized, which should take about 10-15 minutes. Add the flour and cook for 2 more minutes while stirring constantly. Add the beer! Stir and scrape the bottom of the stockpot to deglaze the pan (all that stuck-on stuff is really flavorful and you want in the soup, not stuck to the pan). Add the water/stock and bring everything to a light boil. Add the cheddar and brie cheese and stir to combine. Lower the heat to a low simmer and cover the pot. Cook the soup for one to two hours on low heat and stir occasionally to blend the melted cheese into the broth.

Ladle the soup into bowls and top with a bit of chorizo and shredded manchego cheese.

Thanks to Gaper's Block

Monday, April 9, 2007

Beer Can Chicken

  • 1 plump chicken without giblets
  • 1 can of beer
  • 2 heaped tablespoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 heaped teaspoon mustard powder
  • 1 teaspoon chilli powder (I like powdered chipotles for this, but you can use cayenne pepper)
  • 1 teaspoon allspice
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 3 heaped tablespoons soft dark brown sugar

Snip through any strings holding the chicken's legs neatly together, and spread them out. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl and rub them all over the chicken, then add a tablespoon of the rub to the cavity of the chicken and smear it around a bit with the back of a spoon. Leave for the flavours to penetrate for two hours at room temperature. Meanwhile, open the beer can, pour half of the beer out and drink it. (This is a fun recipe.) Use a metal skewer or a nail and hammer to make a few more holes in the top of the half-full beer can.

Put a tablespoon of the remaining rub in the can with the beer. It will froth and bubble, so add your rub carefully. After the two hours are up, rub and remaining spice mix onto the chicken and push the bird carefully, bottom (that's the end with the legs) first, onto the upright beer can, as in the picture. Roast the whole apparatus at 180° C (350° F) for 1 hour and 30 minutes, remove the bird carefully from the can without spilling any beer, and rest for ten minutes before serving. (If you are a lucky person with a large and easily controlled barbecue, try cooking the chicken in there over some flavorful wood - it'll be delicious.)

Don't be tempted to use the hot beer as a sauce. It'll taste bitter and revolting, so just pour it down the sink. Let the chicken's natural juices (there will be plenty, and they'll come out of the bird as it rests) act as a gravy. This is a great dish with a salad and a pilaf or cous cous. Serve with a couple of nicely chilled cans of whatever beer you used in the cooking.

Thanks to Gastronomy Domine

Saturday, April 7, 2007

Golden Ale Flapjacks

How about beer for breakfast? Adding a Golden Ale to pan cakes creates a light fluffy texture. The ingredients are as follows:
  • 1 1/2 cup sifted flour
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tbsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tbsp. sugar
  • 1 egg · 2/3 cup Devil Mt. Golden Ale
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 2 tbsp. melted butter
First mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Next add the milk, beer and eggs. Using a mixer at medium speed beat the batter until it has light, frothy cream consistency. Add the melted butter last. Cook over medium heat in a lightly greased pan or hot griddle. Makes 18 average sized pancakes.

Thanks to Mitch

Friday, April 6, 2007

BBQ Shrimp Pie

  • 4 4-5 inch tart shells
  • Sweet Potato Filling: 2 lb. sweet potatoes (roasted and peeled)
  • 2 oranges (zested and juiced)
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • pinch of ground cloves
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • pinch of salt
  • 16 jumbo shrimp-about 2 lbs-(peeled in center, leave head and tail intact)
  • 2 tsp. seafood seasoning
  • 1 tsp. finely chopped rosemary
  • 1 tbsp.finely chopped garlic
  • 1 tsp. cracked black pepper
  • 4-6 tbsp. butter
  • 1/4 cup of beer
  • 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • juice of 2 lemons
  • 1/2 cup of seafood stock

Brown small amount of butter in skillet, add pepper, rosemary, and shrimp. Add seasoning and garlic, saute over high heat until shrimp are pink. Add Worcestershire, beer and stock. Bring to a boil and allow liquid to reduce. Finish sauce by emulsifying butter into it.

To serve: Fill tart shells with warm sweet potato mixture, arrange shrimp on top and then pour sauce over and around the pie. Garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary.

Serves 4

Thanks to Sarah's Kitchen

Thursday, April 5, 2007

Deep Fried Bacon Cheese and Beer Dog

  • 1 hot dog
  • 1 slice of thick-cut bacon
  • 1 can of spray cheese
  • 1 can beer (It doesn’t matter what kind, but we recommend something dark. Corona probably isn’t a good idea)
  • 1 cup flour
  • Oil for frying
This one is a little work-intensive, so be ready to buckle down. First take the center out of the hot dog with an apple corer, if you have access to one. If not, just cut out the middle with a knife.

Fill the cavity with the spray cheese and use the hot dog you removed from the middle as a cap to keep the cheese in.

Wrap the bacon around the hot dog.

Deep-fry for two to four minutes or until bacon is cooked.

Dab them dry with a paper towel (so the batter will stick). Mix the beer with the flour until it reaches a thick, but lump-free consistency. Dip the dogs in the batter, coating the dog completely.

Deep-fry on high heat for two to three minutes or until brown and deadly.
DANGER: Don’t fry them too long or all of the cheese will explode out into the oil.

Many thanks to mesablue at moralauthority.wordpress.com

Tuesday, April 3, 2007

Red Beer Chili

  • 1 kg braising steak, cut into 4cm chunks
  • 1 bottle of beer
  • 4 ancho chillies, stemmed and deseeded
  • 6 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 large onions roughly chopped
  • 6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 2 400g tins whole, peeled plum tomatoes
  • 75 ml cider vinegar
  • 60 g brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp Spanish paprika (preferably pimenton)
  • 1 tbsp mild chilli powder
  • 3 tbsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground
  • 400 g tin kidney, borlotti or pinto beans, drained and rinsed
  • salt and freshly ground pepper

Put the beef in a medium bowl, pour the beer over and leave to marinate for 30 minutes. Drain, reserving the liquid and pat the beef dry with kitchen paper.

Toast the chillies for 30 seconds in a dry saute pan then pour boiling water over and soak for 15 minutes or until soft. Drain and put in a food processor with the beer. Puree until fine and set aside.

In a large saucepan, heat two tablespoons of the olive oil. Season the meat and sear in batches until evenly browned. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add the remaining olive oil and saute the onions and garlic for five minutes. Put the meat back in the pan and pour the chilli mixture over.
advertisement

Puree the tomatoes in the food processor and add to the pan. Add the cider vinegar, brown sugar, paprika, chilli powder and cumin and season.

Cook partially covered with a lid, for one hour over low heat or until the meat is very tender. Add the beans in the last five minutes of cooking to warm through. Serve in small bowls with a choice of accompaniments: cooked rice, chopped red onion, coriander crackers.

Serves 4-6

Thanks to Gazette & Herald

Monday, April 2, 2007

Famous Beer Bread

  • 12 cups (or 4) Gold Medal self-rising flour
  • 1 cup (or 1/3) granulated sugar
  • 72 ounces (or 24) beer
  • 1/2 cup (or 1/6) melted butter

Combine dry ingredients. Add beer to the consistency of a thick batter. Spray four bread pans (10x5x3) with non-stick pan coating. Fill bread pans three-quarters full. Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for approximately 45 minutes. Test doneness with a toothpick. Remove from pans, brush lightly with butter. Let cool and wrap.

Thanks to Mary Ellen Psaltis

Thursday, March 29, 2007

Peanut Butter Chicken Wings

  • 50 chicken wings, wing tips removed (save for future soup stock, if desired)
  • 2 (12-ounce) bottles beer
  • 1 cup molasses
  • 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 cup prepared mustard
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
  • 1 to 2 lemons, sliced thin, for garnish
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a large roasting pan with foil.

Cut chicken wings in half at the joint and place wings evenly in roasting pan.

In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the beer, molasses, peanut butter, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, salt, and chili powder.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer over low heat about 15 minutes until sauce has reduced and thickened.

Pour sauce over chicken wings, tossing to coat each wing. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes.

Place wings on a large platter, and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Garnish with lemon slices and serve.

Yield: 15 to 20 servings

Thanks to Peggy Trowbridge

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Caribbean Bock Chicken

  • 5 to 6 chicken leg quarters
  • 2 tablespoons Jamaican jerk seasoning
  • 1 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 2 jalapeno chiles, seeded and diced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1-1/2 cups parboiled rice
  • 1 bottle (12 ounces) bock beer
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
  • 1 can (16 ounces) red or pink beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro

Coat chicken all over with jerk seasoning. In a large pan with lid, warm oil over medium heat.

Cook chicken in two batches, turning frequently until well-browned, about 8 to 10 minutes per batch. Remove chicken to plate. Pour out all but two tablespoons of pan drippings.

Add onion, chiles, ginger, garlic and salt to remaining drippings in pan. Cook, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes until onion is lightly browned. Stir in rice and cook for 1 more minute. Add beer, coconut milk, beans and half of cilantro. Return chicken to pot along with any accumulated juices.

Bring chicken mixture to boil, cover pot and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 30 to 35 minutes or until liquid is absorbed, rice is tender and chicken is cooked through. Stir in remaining cilantro.

Serves 4

Thanks to Lew Bryson

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Zesty Pork & Beer Sandwich

  • ½ cup water
  • 1 pound ground pork (can substitute ground pork sausage)
  • ½ cup beer
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • ¾ teaspoon ground white pepper
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 pinch of salt - taste
  • 6 soft sandwich buns

In a large skillet, cover ground pork (or ground pork sausage) with water. Simmer until meat is white.

Drain well.

Add beer, sugar, dry mustard, and pepper and simmer - approximately 10 minutes.

Add salt to taste.

Serve on soft sandwich buns with dill pickles, chopped onion, cheese, and/or mustard.

Thanks to Jeff

Monday, March 26, 2007

Beer & Brown Sugar Cookies

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 1/4 cups room temperature beer
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Cream together the butter or margarine and the brown sugar. Cut in flour, baking soda and spice. Blend in beer slowly to form a soft dough.

Drop by teaspoonfuls and top with a walnut piece.

Bake 12-15 minutes at a 350 degree F (175 degrees C) oven until lightly brown. Cool one minute on cookie sheet and remove to wire rack.

Thanks to Tina

Sunday, March 25, 2007

Raspberry Wheat Beer Ice Cream

  • 4 cups milk
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 1/2 pints whipping cream
  • 1 Celis raspberry beer
  • 4 eggs -- lightly beaten
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla
  • 4 tablespoons Celis Raspberry Beer


Warm Milk to tepid, add sugar, 12 oz beer, and salt, stir. Add 4 Tbs. of milk mixture to the eggs and stir light to heat them up. Add eggs to milk mixture. Stir constantly until either the temp. gets to 155F or it coats the back of a spoon. Watch out for egg curdling. Cool in an ice bath for 15 minutes. pour mixture in to the ice cream maker bowl and add the 4 Tbs. of beer. Stir. process in the maker for at least 30 minutes or until the paddle is frozen enough that the maker will not turn. Turn out and Freeze.

Thanks to Hungry Monster

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Moules Frites, Belgian Style

  • 6 dozen mussels, cleaned washed and debearded
  • 2 pieces thick center cut bacon, chopped
  • 3 fresh leeks, washed and sliced
  • 2 shallots, chopped
  • 1-2 T. butter
  • 1 1/2 T. dijon mustard
  • 3/4 pint Belgian beer (I use a high-quality Trappist ale, not something too bitter)
  • 1/4 c. cream

Put a very large heavy-bottomed pot with a tight lid on the stovetop, and bring up the heat to medium. Fry the bacon until a light golden brown, but not crispy or dark, you just want to make sure to cook it through. Remove the bacon and drain on paper towels. Discard the extra grease.

Saute the leeks and shallots with the butter, use only enough to keep it from burning in the pan. When the shallots are transluscent, add the dijon mustard and stir to incoporate. Add the bacon back to the pan and stir again.

Pour in the beer and reduce heat to medium-low. Bring the broth up to a good simmer but not near boiling.

Gently add the mussels with a wire skimmer into the broth. Put the lid on tightly and let the mussels steam until their shells open up, about 2-3 minutes. Do not cook them longer, once the shells are fully open they are ready. Turn off the heat of your burner. Use the skimmer and fetch the mussels from the broth, dividing evenly into four bowls.

Add the cream to the broth and stir quickly to incorporate, the broth should still be very hot. Ladle the broth over the mussels.

Serve with frites, hearty and crusty bread and a delicious Belgian beer to keep with the theme. Enjoy!

Thanks to Scrumptious Street

Friday, March 23, 2007

Lunar Beer Bread

  • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons baking powder
  • 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
  • 1 teaspoon thyme
  • 1 tablespoon cooking oil
  • 12 ounces beer, at room temperature

Mix all the dry ingredients. Add oil and beer. Stir until dough is just mixed. Put dough in a greased 9x5x3-inch loaf pan. Bake at 375° F for 45 minutes or until nicely browned. Remove from oven and let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan to cool some more.

Thanks to Lunar Babe and Men's Health

Beer Barbecue Sauce

  • 1 medium Spanish onion, diced
  • 1 medium banana pepper, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 Tbsp capers
  • 5 ripe tomatoes, diced
  • 1 small can tomato paste
  • 1/3 c wine vinegar
  • 1/3 c olive oil
  • 1/3 c soy sauce
  • 1/3 c brown sugar
  • 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 Tbsp Tabasco
  • 2 Tbsp honey
  • 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 2 Tbsp horseradish
  • 2 Tbsp oregano
  • 2 Tbsp fresh ground pepper
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • Dash of ground clove
  • 12 ounces amber ale or porter

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and boil for 10 minutes. Lower heat and simmer about 4 hours until thickened. Cool and refrigerate for 24 hours so the flavors can meld. Then baste everything but the dog with it.

Thanks to Lunar Babe

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Prawn & Fennel Fritters

  • 300g (2 cups) plain flour
  • 1 375ml btl lager beer
  • 2 eggs, at room temperature
  • 500g cooked school prawns, peeled
  • 2 baby (about 300g) fennel bulbs, tough outer leaves removed, halved, thinly sliced crossways
  • 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh continental parsley leaves
  • 1 red onion, halved, each half cut into 6 wedges
  • 2 egg whites
  • 100ml (5 tbs) olive oil

wholegrain mustard mayonnaise
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1 1/2 tbs fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tsp wholegrain mustard
  • Salt & freshly ground black pepper
  • 185ml (3/4 cup) olive oil

To make the wholegrain mustard mayonnaise, place the egg yolks, lemon juice, mustard and a pinch of salt in the bowl of a food processor or in a blender. With the motor running, gradually add the oil in a thin, steady stream until the mixture is thick and pale. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge until required.

Sift the flour into a medium bowl and make a well in the centre. Whisk together the beer and eggs in a jug. Add to the flour and use a wooden spoon to stir until just combined. Add the prawns, fennel, parsley and onion, and stir until combined. Season with salt and pepper.

Use an electric beater to beat the egg whites in a medium bowl until soft peaks form. Use a large metal spoon to fold half the egg whites into the prawn mixture until just combined. Repeat with remaining egg whites.

Heat 1 tbs of the oil in large non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Pour 1/4 cupfuls of batter into pan, cooking 3 fritters at a time, and cook for 3 minutes or until golden underneath. Turn and cook for a further 1 minute or until golden underneath. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and cover loosely with foil to keep warm. Repeat with remaining oil and batter in 4 more batches (with only 2 fritters in the last batch).

Serve immediately with the mayonnaise.

Thanks to Taste.com

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Pasta and Eggplant in Beer

  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 medium eggplant, about 1 pound, peeled and diced
  • Salt and pepper
  • 6 ounces smoked ham, cubed
  • 1 cup lager
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary or l/2 teaspoon dried
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen peas
  • 1 pound large tubular pasta such as penne cooked according to the directions on the package
  • Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Put in the egg plant, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, for about 10 minutes, until it becomes soft. Stir in the ham, and fry 2 minutes. Add the lager and rosemary, and bring to a boil. Reduce the liquid by half. Put in the peas, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 2 minutes. Stir the cooked pasta into the sauce, and cook for 30 seconds to heat through. Transfer to a serving bowl, sprinkle with plenty of Parmesan cheese, and serve.

Yield: 4-6 servings

Thanks to Robert

Monday, March 19, 2007

Barbecue Beer Shrimp

  • 16 jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined (tails on if you want) (1-1 1/2 lbs)
  • 2 TB Creole/cajun seasoning
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 TB finely chopped rosemary
  • 1/2 cup amber beer
  • 6 TB hot sauce
  • 6 TB worcestershire suace
  • 5 TB fresh lemon juice
  • 12 TB butter
  • Crusty Bread!

Heat a large skillet over medium heat until hot. Meanwhile, put the shrimp and cajun seasoning into a bowl; toss to coat. Set aside.

Add oil and garlic to skillet and cook until golden, about 1 minute. Add rosemary and cook for 2-3 seconds. Add shrimp and cook, flipping once, until it starts to turn pink, about 30 seconds.

Transfer shrimp to a large plate; set aside. Add beer, hot sauce, worcestershire and lemon juice in skillet; stir well. Cook, stirring, until thickened, 7-8 minutes.

Remove skillet from heat; whisk butter a few pieces at a time (sauce will start to thicken). Return shrimp to skillet; toss to coat. Return skillet to medium heat and cook until shrimp are cooked through, 2-3 minutes. Transfer shrimp and sauce to plates. Serve with chunks of crusty bread for dipping!

Serves 4.

Thanks to ScottE

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Beef and Guinness Pie

  • 2 lb boneless beef chuck, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 cup beef broth
  • 1 cup Guinness or other Irish stout
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 teaspoons drained brined green peppercorns, coarsely chopped
  • 2 fresh thyme sprigs
  • Rough puff pastry dough
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • Special equipment: 4 (14-oz) deep bowls or ramekins (4 to 5 inches wide; see Shopping List, page 301) or similar-capacity ovenproof dishes


Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.
Pat beef dry. Stir together flour, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish. Add beef, turning to coat, then shake off excess and transfer to a plate. Heat oil in a wide 5- to 6-quart ovenproof heavy pot over moderately high heat until just smoking, then brown meat in 3 batches, turning occasionally, about 5 minutes per batch, transferring to a bowl.

Add onion, garlic, and water to pot and cook, scraping up any brown bits from bottom of pot and stirring frequently, until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in beef with any juices accumulated in bowl, broth, beer, Worcestershire sauce, peppercorns, and thyme and bring to a simmer, then cover and transfer to oven. Braise until beef is very tender and sauce is thickened, about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours. Discard thyme and cool stew completely, uncovered, about 30 minutes. (If stew is warm while assembling pies, it will melt uncooked pastry top.)

Put a shallow baking pan on middle rack of oven and increase oven temperature to 425°F.

Divide cooled stew among bowls (they won't be completely full). Roll out pastry dough on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 13-inch square, about 1/8 inch thick. Trim edges and cut dough into quarters. Stir together egg and water and brush a 1-inch border of egg wash around each square. Invert 1 square over each bowl and drape, pressing sides lightly to help adhere. Brush pastry tops with some of remaining egg wash and freeze 15 minutes to thoroughly chill dough.

Bake pies in preheated shallow baking pan until pastry is puffed and golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 400°F and bake 5 minutes more to fully cook dough.

Thanks to bbs.chrismoore.com

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Newcastle Brown Ale Rarebit

  • 50g butter
  • 50g flour
  • 250ml Newcastle Brown Ale (or any strong beer)
  • 200g strong cheddar cheese, grated
  • 1 tbs Worcestershire Sauce
  • 1 tbs English mustard
  • Freshly ground pepper

Melt the butter in a deep pan and add the flour, stirring for 1 minute to form a roux.

Pour in the beer bit by bit, stirring all of the time until you have a thick sauce.

Stir in the cheddar cheese, Worcestershire Sauce and English mustard, a good grinding of black pepper and stir until thoroughly combined. You should have a thick paste.

Toast your choice of bread, finishing the 2nd side with a liberal spread of rarebit mixture and grilling until golden and bubbly.

Serves 2 on lots of toast

Thanks to David Hall from Book the Cook

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Irish Pumpkin Pie

  • 1 9 inch unbaked pie shell
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 3/4 cups canned pumpkin
  • 6 ounces Guinness Beer

Combine sugar, salt, cinnamon, and ginger in a bowl. Lightly beat in two eggs. Stir in canned pumpkin and Guinness beer until well combined. Pour mixture into pie shell; preheat oven to 425F and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350F, and bake an additional 45-50 minutes, or until fork placed in center of the pie comes out clean. Cool, and serve.

Thanks to HungryMonster

Steak and Stout Pie

  • Pastry for double-crust 9-inch deep-dish pie
  • 4 slices bacon, coarsely chopped
  • 4 medium onions, coarsely chopped
  • 4 tablespoons flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons golden raisins
  • 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
  • 12-ounce bottle Guinness Stout
  • 3 tablespoons Tabasco Green Pepper Sauce
  • 1/2 cup chopped parsley

Line a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate with half of a prepared pastry. Bake according to package (or recipe) directions. Cool.

Set oven to 350 degrees. Cook bacon and onions in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and add to Dutch oven or ovenproof casserole.

Combine flour and salt in large bowl. Add meat; toss to coat well. Heat oil in skillet; add beef pieces, a few at a time, and brown on all sides. Remove to Dutch oven.

Place Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add raisins, sugar, stout and Tabasco sauce and bring to boil. Cover and bake in oven for 1 hour 30 minutes. Stir occasionally and add more stout or water if gravy appears too thick.

Remove beef from oven and increase oven temperature to 425 degrees. Stir parsley into beef mixture; spoon into pastry-lined pie plate. Roll out remaining pastry into circle, forming top crust. Cut slits or shamrock designs to allow steam to escape. Place on pie, flute edges as desired. Place pie on baking sheet and bake until crust is golden, about 14 to 16 minutes. Remove pie from oven and let sit for 15 minutes before cutting. Serves 6 to 8.

We remember this Irish side dish around St. Patrick's Day, but in fact it ís good at any time of the year. In Ireland, it is traditionally associated with Halloween. This is an excellent side dish for the Steak and Stout Pie or for ham. The recipe is from "Irish Cooking,'' published in Ireland in 1991.

Thanks to The Daily Times

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Fried Fish With Vodka and Beer Batter

  • 1 1/2 pounds (about 4 large fillets) turbot, sole or flounder
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 1/4 cups white rice flour; more for dusting
  • 2 to 3 quarts vegetable oil for deep-frying
  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/4 cups vodka
  • 1 1/4 cups lager beer.

Rinse fish fillets, and dry with paper towels. Season well with salt and pepper, and dust with rice flour, shaking off any extra. Set aside.

Place a wide, deep pan over medium heat. Add oil to a depth of at least 1 1/2 inches, and bring to 375 degrees on a deep-fry thermometer. In a medium bowl, mix together the all-purpose flour, 1 1/4 cups rice flour, baking powder and salt. Slowly stir in the vodka and beer to make a batter. (Don’t make batter ahead of time, or the bubbles from the lager will be lost.)

Dip one fillet into batter to coat it completely, and lower into hot oil. Repeat with other fillets. When undersides of fillets are golden brown, after 1 or 2 minutes, turn, and brown other sides, a minute or two. Lift from oil, drain and serve.

Yield: 4 servings.

Time: About 45 minutes

Thanks to nytimes.com

Boffo Beer Bread

  • 3 Cups Self-rising flour
  • 3 Tbs. Granulated Sugar
  • 1 12 oz. Can of beer (room temp.)

Feel free to experiment with any beer you like, but keep in mind that if you use a micro-brewed IPA you will have very bitter bread. For good mild beer flavor use a can of beer like Bud, it should be a lager - not a stout.

Preheat oven to 350.

Spray a loaf pan with non-stick spray.

Mix flour and sugar. Pour beer into mixture. Stir to combine, use your hands when it comes together. Knead 10 time in the bowl. The mixture should be VERY sticky.

Place in prepared loaf pan and Bake for 1 hour.

The crust on this bread is very lovely and hard. It is a perfect match with Beef or other hearty stew.

Thanks to cpaig at TeamSugar

Monday, March 12, 2007

Guinness Beef Stew

  • 4 lbs boneless beef chuck stew meat
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 2 onions, chopped
  • 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 1/2 cups Guinees Draught (not the extra stout)
  • 1 tbsp light brown sugar
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 1 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 5 carrots, peeled and cut into 1" chunks
  • 1 lb parsnips, peeled and cut into 1" chunks
  • 1 1/2 lb baby red potatoes, scrubbed clean
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 tbsp minced parsley (fresh)

Pat beef dry with paper towels and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tsp oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Cook half of beef until browned on all-sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer to slow cooker insert and repeat with additional 2 tsp oil and remaining beef.

Add remaining 2 tsp oil, onions, and 1/4 tsp salt to skillet and cook until onions are lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add broth, 1 1/4 cups stout, sugar, thyme, chocolate and bay leaves - bring to boil using wooden spoon to scrape up browned bits. Transfer to slow cooker insert.

Add carrots, parsnips, and potatoes to slow cooker insert. Cover and cook on low until meat is tender, 9-10 hours (or cook on hight for 6-7 hours). Set slow cooker to high. Whisk flour and remaining 1/4 cup beer until smooth, then stir mixture into slow cooker. Cook, covered, until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Stir in parsley, season with salt and pepper, and discard bay leaf. Serve!

Thanks to YumSugar at TeamSugar

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Vegetarian Irish Stew

2 medium onions, chopped
1/4 c. unbleached flour
4 c. water
1 c. Guinness stout (or other dark beer)
2 c. mushrooms, thickly sliced
1 c. carrot, sliced into rounds
1 c. celery, diced
1/2 c. split red lentils
1/2 c. fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 c. soy sauce
3 vegetarian bouillon cubes or 3 T. vegetable-stock base
1 bay leaf
2 tsp. Marmite (I use nutrional yeast instead)
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. each dried thyme, marjoram and rosemary
2 cloves garlic, minced
Black pepper to taste
1 package of frozen or refrigerated vegetarian "steak" strips

In a large, lightly oiled, heavy pot, steam-fry the onion until it begins to soften. Add the flour and stir thoroughly. Add the remaining ingredients, mix well, and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer on low heat for about 30 minutes, or until the vegetables are done.

Serves 6. Serve with Colcannon (an Irish dish of mashed potatoes and greens -- generally kale, although some recipes use leeks or green onion) and Irish soda bread.

Thanks to Cassandra at Journal Now

Emerald Isle Stew

  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 3 pounds boneless beef top sirloin, fat trimmed, cut in one-inch cubes
  • 2 large onions, diced
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 2 cups stout beer (12 ounces)
  • 3 cups water
  • 1 cube concentrated beef bouillon
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon caraway seed
  • 1 tablespoon table salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 pound carrots, in chunks
  • 1 pound new potatoes, in chunks
  • 3 tablespoons flour

Heat oil in a Dutch oven on medium high til shimmery. Add the meat, let it brown, stirring often. Stir in onion and garlic as they’re prepped, let cook til onions are soft. Add beer, water, bouillon, bay leaves, caraway, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to maintain a simmer, simmer 30 minutes. (Cook ahead to here if you like. Return to a simmer to continue.)

Add the carrots and potato, return to a boil, cover and let simmer 30 minutes.
Remove bay leaves. Sprinkle flour over hot mixture a bit at a time, stirring each bit in before adding more. Let cook 2 – 3 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

Thanks to Kitchen Parade

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Not Your Mother's Pot Roast

  • 1/4 pound bacon
  • 5 pounds chuck roast (have butcher cut into 1-pound portions and net or tie
  • with butcher's twine)
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 1-1/2 cups chopped carrot
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped
  • 5 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 quart water
  • 2 (12-ounce) bottles Guinness Stout
  • 2 (12-ounce) bottles high quality lager (such as Beck's or Samuel Adams)
  • 1/8 cup beef bouillon granules or paste
  • 1/2 cup Dijon mustard
  • 3/4 cup molasses
  • 6 sprigs fresh sage
  • 6 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 4 sprigs fresh parsley

Blanching Vegetables:
  • 1-1/2 pounds turnips, cut in large dice
  • 1-1/2 pounds carrots, cut in large dice
  • 1-1/2 pounds rutabagas, cut in large dice
  • 2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into large dice
  • Garnish: Fresh rosemary, thyme and sage sprigs

Cook bacon over medium heat in large oven-proof pot until fat has rendered,
3 to 5 minutes. Remove bacon, chop and set aside.

In a separate pan, brown roast on all sides in the vegetable oil.

To the rendered bacon fat in the pan add onion, carrot, celery, and garlic.
Cook until wilted and lightly browned. To the cooked vegetables, add water,
beers, bouillon, mustard, molasses, sage, thyme, and parsley. Bring to a
boil and place meat in pot with vegetables. Cut a piece of parchment paper
to fit over the pot and place it on top of mixture. Cover pan tightly with
foil.

Roast in oven at 375 degrees F. for 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Allow to cool then
skim fat. Remove roast and set aside. Simmer vegetables in cooking liquid
until crisp tender.

Garnish and serve with horseradish sauce.

Yield: 5 servings

Thanks to Robert

Classic Welsh Rarebit

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • Pinch cayenne pepper
  • 3/4 cup pale ale or nut brown ale
  • 8 ounces (approximately 2 cups) shredded sharp cheddar cheese
  • 4 1-inch slices good-quality bread, toasted

In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and whisk in the flour. Cook, whisking constantly for 2 to 3 minutes, being careful not to brown the flour. Whisk in mustard, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper and cayenne until smooth. Add ale and whisk to combine. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 to 3 minutes to soften the flavor of the alcohol. Over very low heat, gradually add cheese, stirring constantly, until cheese melts and sauce is smooth; this will take 4 to 5 minutes. Makes 4 servings.

Thanks to Oregon Live

Taco Soup

  • 2 pounds lean ground beef
  • 1 large chopped onion
  • 4 oz can diced green chilis (I dice the contents up even finer than it comes)
  • 2 cans corn (remember: DO NOT drain anything!)
  • 4 cans stewed tomatoes (or any combination of diced/stewed/whole canned tomatoes you have on hand equaling 4 cans - I don't often have 4 cans stewed, but can mix & match enough to come up with the equivalent without having to run to the store!)
  • 1 can pinto beans (or black beans, or white beans - whatever will work in this "Southwest" dish!)
  • 1 can kidney beans
  • 1 packet taco seasoning mix
  • 1 packet ranch dressing and/or dip mix
  • 2-3 cups beer

Brown the ground beef and the chopped onion together in a large skillet. Drain. Put meat and onions into a large crock pot (slow cooker). Then just start opening cans and packets and start dumping all into the crock pot! I usually stir after each addition. Then put the lid on, turn on low, and at the end of the day (or a couple hours) voila: Taco Soup!!

Thanks to Blogger World Cooking

Thursday, March 8, 2007

8 Hour Irish Stew

  • 2 lbs. lean stew beef (or lamb, if preferred)
  • 1 clove garlic, grated or 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 1 large onion, halved and sliced
  • 1–12 oz. bottle Extra Stout beer
  • 2 cups beef broth (low-sodium)
  • 3 Tbsp. tomato paste
  • 2 cups carrots sliced
  • 4 new potatoes, cut into quarters
  • 2 turnips, cut into quarters
  • 1 4-inch stem of rosemary, or 1 tsp. dried rosemary leaves
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Combine all ingredients (except the cornstarch and water) in a slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours. Combine the cornstarch and water in a bowl and stir into the stew. Cover the slow cooker and allow the stew to cook an additional 10 minutes, until thickened slightly. Top with parsley. Serves 8.

Thanks to Sara's Kitchen

Monday, March 5, 2007

Beer-Battered Onion Rings

  • 190g (1 1/4 cups) plain flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 x 375ml btl chilled lager-style beer (such as Carlton Crown Lager)
  • Vegetable oil, to deep-fry
  • 4 medium (about 720g) white onions, cut into rings, rings separated
  • Sea salt flakes

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Use a balloon whisk to whisk in the beer until the mixture is smooth.

Add enough oil to a large wok or saucepan to reach a depth of 10cm. Heat to 190°C over high heat (when oil is ready, a cube of bread will turn golden brown in 10 seconds). Dip one-third of the onion rings, 1 at a time, into the beer batter to evenly coat, then straight into the hot oil. Deep-fry for 2-3 minutes or until crisp, golden and cooked through. Transfer to a tray lined with paper towel. Repeat, in 2 more batches, with the remaining onion rings and batter, reheating the oil between batches.

Arrange the beer-battered onion rings on a serving platter and season with sea salt flakes. Serve immediately.

Thanks to Taste.com

Beer Maple Glaze

  • dark beer (Guinness or New Glaris Boch)
  • ½ cup of real maple syrup
  • 2 tablespoons peppercorns
  • 1 tablespoon whole cloves
  • 1 bay leaf
  • ½ tsp of salt
  • ½ tsp pepper

Combine beer, maple syrup and spices. Simmer on low heat until reduced by half. Strain and throw the spices away. Continue reducing the glaze until about ¼ cup remains. Add salt and pepper. Serve over pork tenderloin, chicken or beef.

Thanks to Chef Emily

Baby Back Ribs with Beer BBQ Sauce

  • 1/2 cup A-1 steak sauce
  • 1/2 cup bourbon or good dark beer
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon regular or grainy Dijon mustard
  • 2 pinches of red pepper flakes
  • Salt to taste
  • 2 racks baby back ribs (about 2 1/2 pounds)

First make the barbecue sauce. Heat all the ingredients together in a saucepan over medium heat until steaming. Cool. The sauce will keep in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Cut the racks of ribs in half crosswise. Rub the ribs with the sauce of your choice, paying most attention to the meaty side.

Lay the rib pieces, meat side down, in an 11" x 13" baking dish. The pieces will overlap slightly.

Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake until the meat pulls away from the ends of the bones and the ribs are tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

You can bake the ribs up to three hours before you grill them and leave them at room temperature. Or you can bake them the day before and keep them refrigerated. Bring the refrigerated ribs to room temperature about one hour before you grill them.

Remove the ribs from the baking dish but reserve the cooking liquids. Grill the ribs, brushing them with a reasonable amount of the remaining sauce, until they're browned and heated through, about 10 minutes.

Move the ribs around as they grill; the sugar in the sauce makes it easy for them to burn, so watch out for that. Let the ribs rest for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting them into one or two bone pieces.

Thanks to Dave Lieberman & BBD

Saturday, March 3, 2007

Oatmeal Stout Beef Stew

  • 2 lbs stew meat
  • 1 large onion (pref. yellow) (diced, but not too tiny)
  • 1 to 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots
  • 1 to 1 1/2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms (may substitute 1 large potato)
  • some flour (white or whole wheat)
  • 4 strips of bacon
  • 1 bottle (12 or 16 oz) of Oatmeal Stout (I use Samuel Smiths)
  • 1 packet of McCormick's Beef Stew Seasoning
  • 1 bay leaf (optional)
  • Crockpot

Cook bacon in a large skillet.

While bacon cooks, toss the stew meat in some flour to coat lightly (this is not "breading" just a coat of flour).

Remove cooked bacon from pan, do NOT drain grease.

Brown stew meat in bacon grease, it is not necessary or desirable to fully cook the meat.

While meat cooks, chop carrots, dice onion, slice mushrooms, and chop the cooked bacon.

Add all vegetables to the crock pot, add the meat too.

Pour a room temperature Oatmeal Stout into the crock pot. Add entire packet of McCormicks Seasoning mix and 1 bay leaf.

Add water until ingredients are barely coated, ideally you want some of them sticking out of the water. The veggies will release their own water, so don't add too much. I usually add about 2 beer bottles full (24 oz). You can experiment with the beer/water ratio if you want.

Stir

Cook on high in your crockpot for 3-4 hours until meat is "flaky". Don't open lid during cooking.

Add salt and pepper to taste (I've never had to add any, the bacon takes care of the salt). Find and Remove the bay leaf.

Thanks to mfischer2 at The Brewing Network

Friday, March 2, 2007

Beef, Mushroom and Stout Pot Pies

  • 1kg shin or gravy beef, cut into 3cm pieces
  • 1/2 cup plain flour
  • 40g butter, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 brown onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 125g button mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 1 1/4 cups stout beer
  • 2 tablespoons thyme leaves
  • 8 sheets filo pastry
  • olive oil cooking spray
  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Grease four 1 1/2-cup capacity ovenproof dishes. Toss beef in flour to coat. Heat butter and oil in a frying pan over high heat. Cook beef, in 4 batches, for 3 minutes or until browned, adding more butter and oil as required. Transfer to a plate.

Add onion, garlic and mushroom to pan. Cook over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes or until onion is soft. Add stout and thyme. Return beef and any juices to pan. Stir to combine. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low. Simmer for 25 minutes or until gravy thickens. Spoon into dishes. Allow to cool.

Preheat oven to 200°C. Spray one piece of pastry with oil. Top with another pastry sheet and spray with oil. Repeat to form 4 layers. Cut two 21cm rounds from pastry sheets. Pinch centre of rounds and twist to form small topknots. Drape pastry over dishes to cover filling. Spray tops with oil. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Repeat with remaining pastry, oil and sesame seeds.
4. Place pies on a baking tray. Bake for 25 minutes or until pastry is golden and filling is piping hot. Serve.

Thanks to Taste.com

Thursday, March 1, 2007

Beer Brined Grilled Pork Chops

  • 2 cups water
  • 2 cups dark beer
  • 1/4 cup coarse salt
  • 3 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 cup ice cubes
  • 6 thick-cut, bone-in pork chops
  • 7 garlic cloves, minced
  • salt and fresh-ground black pepper, to taste
  • 2 teaspoons dried sage leaves

For the Brine: Combine water, beer, 1/4 cup coarse salt, and sugar in a big bowl. Stir until salt and sugar dissolve. Stir in the ice cubes. Put pork chops in a large plastic bag, then pour the brine into the bag. Seal the bag and put it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, turning the bag occasionally.

Now heat up your grill (medium-high heat). Take the pork chops out of the brine and pat them dry. Mix the garlic, salt, pepper, and sage together. Rub this mixture on both sides of the pork chops. Grill until they have an internal temperature of about 145 (no more than 10 minutes per side ... this depends on your grill).

Remove them to a platter, cover with foil and let them rest at least 5 minutes.

Thanks to Eat Your History

Pasta With Lamb Shanks in Beer and Tomato Sauce

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 lamb shanks (about 5 pounds total), trimmed of fat
  • 3 ribs celery, sliced 1/3 inch thick
  • 2 large carrots, sliced 1/3 inch thick
  • 4 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 1 cup dark beer or ale
  • 1/4 cup tomato paste
  • 2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, with their liquid
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary (or 2 teaspoons dried, crushed)
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano (or 3/4 teaspoon dried)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste
  • 1 pound thick pasta in a chunky shape

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat and cook the shanks until golden brown on all sides, 5 to 7 minutes in all. Brown in batches, if necessary, and move to a plate when finished. Pour off all but about 1 tablespoon of oil. Add the celery, carrots and garlic to the skillet and cook, stirring a few times, until softened, about 5 minutes. In the slow cooker, make a bed of the vegetables and arrange the lamb on top.

Add the beer to the skillet and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits stuck to the pan. Stir in the tomato paste, diced tomatoes with their liquid, rosemary, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for about 5 minutes. Pour the sauce over the lamb. Cover and cook on low until the lamb is fork-tender, 7 to 8 hours.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta. With a slotted spoon or tongs, transfer the shanks to a shallow baking dish and keep warm in the oven while you cook the pasta and finish the sauce.

Strain the sauce, reserving the solids. Remove as much fat as possible from the sauce and pour sauce into a small saucepan. Stir in the carrots and celery and bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the sauce thickens a bit, about 10 minutes.

Cook the pasta, and drain. Serve pasta topped with sauce and lamb.

4 servings; Hands on: 20 minutes; Total time: 8 hours

Thanks to Lufkin Daily News

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

White Chicken Chili

  • 2 lbs boneless chicken breasts
  • 2 cans Great northern beans
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 med. onions, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, Minced
  • 8 oz. Salsa Verde
  • 2 tsp or more ground cumin
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 5 cups canned chicken broth
  • 1 can beer
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • salt to taste
  • 3 cups grated monterey jack cheese
  • Sour cream and salsa

Place chicken in large sauce pan. Add cold water to cover and bring to simmer. Cool until just tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and cool, cut into small pieces.

In large pot saute onions in oil until translucent. Stir in garlic, salsa verde, and seasonings and saute a couple of minutes.

Add beans, broth, and beer. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Add the chicken meat and 1 cup of cheese, stir until the cheese is melted and the chicken warmed through.

Season with salt to taste. Serve with remaining cheese, sour cream and salsa.

Thanks to WhiplashGirlchild

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Peruvian Lamb Stew

  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 2 tsp. anatto
  • 3 lbs. lamb chops
  • 1 lb. lamb ribs
  • 3 tsp. coarse mustard
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
  • 1 bottle Mexican pilsner
  • 1 bunch cilantro
  • 1 handful fresh parsley
  • 1 tomato
  • 1 onion
  • 1 1/2 tsp. cumin
  • 1 can chicken or beef stock or broth
  • 1/2 cup oil
  • 1 1/2 pound yucca root

First, you will need to marinate your lamb meat. Slice lamb into about 4 ounce size pieces, place the bones aside, but do not dispose of them. Lay lamb chunks flat in a flat bottom bowl or pie dish. Mix together 2 cloves diced garlic, 1 tsp. annatto, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. pepper, 1/2 cup of the beer and 2 tsp. of the mustard. Pour evenly over your lamb. Spread the last tsp. of mustard over the top of the lamb meat. Let stand for 2-4 hours.
Place in blender 1/2 tomato, the onion coarsely chopped, the cilantro, parsley, 1 tsp. of the cumin and 1/4 cup of broth/stock. Mix until well blended.
Peel yucca root and slice into 1 inch cubes. Place cubes in a pot full of water and bring to a boil. Boil until yucca is easily penetrated with a fork, then set aside.
Once the meat is marinated, place oil in pan and heat. When oil is warm, add the lamb meat without the marinade. Sear the outside evenly and place aside. Now add the vegetable blend to the pan and fry for about 1 minute. Add the meat back in, stir and cook for another 5 minutes over medium high heat. Add the marinade left over, the bones you set aside before and the rest of the broth/stock. When stew comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium, add the rest of the chopped tomato and leave to simmer for about 1 hour or until meat is very tender. Stir occasionally. At this time, add the rest of the cumin, annato, pepper and beer. Bring heat back up to med-high and bring to a boil. Leave boiling for 2 minutes, then reduce heat to low. Add yucca root and stir. Let sit for 5 more minutes, then remove from heat.
Serve with spiced rice.

Thanks to LiveJournal

Monday, February 26, 2007

Beef and Irish Stout Stew

  • 2 pounds lean beef stew meat
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 pinch cayenne pepper
  • 2 large onions, chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 1/2 cups Irish stout beer (e.g., Guinness)
  • 2 cups chopped carrot
  • 1 sprig fresh thyme
  • 1 tableespoon chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Toss the beef cubes with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper. Dredge the beef in this to coat.

Heat the remaining oil in a deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the beef, and brown on all sides. Add the onions, and garlic. Stir the tomato paste into a small amount of water to dilute; pour into the pan and stir to blend. Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and cook for 5 minutes.

Pour 1/2 cup of the beer into the pan, and as it begins to boil, scrape any bits of food from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. This adds a lot of flavor to the broth. Pour in the rest of the beer, and add the carrots and thyme. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust seasoning before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Thanks to ritten

Saturday, February 24, 2007

Apple Beignets Recipe

  • 4 small apples, peeled, cored and sliced 1/2- inch thick
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/4 cup Calvados, plus 2 tablespoons
  • 1 cup flour, sifted
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4-ounce yeast
  • 3/8 cup flat beer
  • 3/8 cup apple juice
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • Half an egg white, stiffly beaten
  • Oil for deep frying
  • Confectioners' sugar for dredging
  • 1 pound canned apricot halves
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup Slivovitz (see note)
  • Grated rind of half an orange
  • 3/8 cup cream
  • 1 egg yolk
Place apple slices in a bowl. Sprinkle with sugar and 1/4 cup Calvados and allow to macerate 15 minutes. Make batter by placing sifted flour and salt into a warm bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour. Add the yeast, beer, apple juice and olive oil. Combine to form a smooth batter. Cover the bowl and allow the mixture to stand 4 hours. After this period add a little more beer if necessary and fold in the half egg white stiffly beaten.

Heat oil for deep frying. Place macerated apple slices into a small frying basket and then place this basket into the batter. Allow all the apple slices to become well coated in the batter. Drain and then place into the hot oil. Fry the beignets for 3 minutes, or until batter is crisp and golden, drain and dredge in confectioner's sugar and serve accompanied by the apricot sauce.

Apricot Sauce:
Place apricots into a pan on high heat. Add the butter and allow to melt. Flavor with cinnamon. Pour in Slivovitz and light. When flames have almost died down, add the remaining 2 tablespoons Calvados. Add the grated rind of half an orange, and then stir in the cream. Puree in blender and then pour mixture back into the pan and heat. Whisk in the egg yolk and then place
sauce into sauceboat. Serve.

Yield: 4 servings

Note: Slivovitz is a dry, colorless, slightly bitter plum brandy.

Thanks to Robert

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Singha Ramen

  • 3 packs Mama brand Thai instant pork noodles
  • 1 large slab of ham cut into small cubes
  • 1 head of cabbage, chopped into bite sized pieces
  • 2 13oz bottles of Singha beer
  • salt and pepper
  • red chili powder (optional)

In a big pot, boil ramen w/sauce packets and cabbage in 3 cups of Singha beer for approx. 4min. Add ham and continue boiling and stirring for another 4min. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add red chili powder to make it spicy.

Thanks to BBD

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Beef in Beer & Onions

  • 2 pounds chuck or round beef roast, cut into 6 to 8 slices
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 5 to 6 medium onions, peeled and thinly sliced into rings
  • 1-1/2 tablespoons flour
  • 2 cups dark beer
  • 2 to 3 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried)
  • 1 bay leaf, crumpled

Sprinkle both sides of the beef slices generously with salt and pepper.

Heat a large heavy dutch oven over high heat until very hot. Add butter and
olive oil and brown meat quickly on both sides. Remove beef and set aside.

Add sliced onions to the drippings. Lower heat and sweat onions until soft
and lightly browned, stirring often. Add flour to onions. Cook, stirring
constantly, until the flour is lightly browned.

Add beer to onion and flour roux, stirring until thickened. Add thyme and
bay leaf. Return beef to the pot and cover pot. Cook over low heat about
2-1/2 hours, until beef is tender. Check often to be sure the beef is
covered in liquid, adding more beer or water if necessary.

Serve with buttered noodles or rice.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Thanks to Robert

Arroz Con Pollo

  • 8 chicken thighs
  • salt and pepper
  • olive oil
  • one large onion
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 2 cans of fire-roasted diced green chilies
  • 1 15 oz. can of fire-roasted tomatoes
  • a pinch of saffron
  • 2 tsps of chicken base (or 2 bouillion cubes)
  • 1 1/4 cups of uncooked brown rice
  • 6-8 large green pimiento-stuffed olives (whole or sliced in half width-wise)
  • 1 1/2 cups of lager or pilsner beer (just not dark beer)
  • water or broth (if needed)
  • 1/2 can or jar (about a cup) of petite sweet peas, drained (Yes, canned! They are one of my guilty pleasures. Okay, frozen is fine, but canned adds a little sumthin'-sumthin'.)

Add oil to a large (lidded) saute pan and heat to medium-high. Salt and pepper the chicken and saute until nicely browned on both sides. Remove to a plate and keep warm.

Add onion, garlic, green chilies to pot and saute until onion is soft. Stir in tomatoes, saffron, and chicken base. Return chicken and any accumulated juices to pan. Reduce heat to medium. Cook for 10-15 minutes, flip chicken once during cooking. Add rice, beer, and olives, reduce heat to low, cover and continue cooking until rice is tender, about 45 minutes. Check periodically and if rice is looking too dry add a little water or broth if needed. Just before serving, stir in peas and warm through. Serves 4-6.

Serve with a green salad on the side, or for a heartier meal (to serve more people) serve seasoned black beans as well.

Thanks to CityMama

Prawn Fritters with Tomato Salsa

3/4 cup self-raising flour
1/2 cup beer
1 egg, lightly beaten
300g green prawns, peeled, deveined
5 spring onions (see note), trimmed
olive oil, for shallow-frying

Tomato salsa
250g cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 spring onion, trimmed, finely chopped
1/4 cup coriander leaves, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

Make salsa: Combine tomatoes, onion, coriander, oil, vinegar and salt and pepper in a bowl. Cover and set aside.

Combine flour and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre. Add beer and egg. Stir until batter is smooth.

Chop prawns and 1 onion. Stir into batter. Thinly slice remaining onions into rounds.

Pour enough oil into a large, non-stick frying pan to cover base. Heat over medium heat. Add 6 onion slices to pan. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until light golden. Top each with 1 tablespoonful prawn mixture. Place 1 onion slice on each prawn fritter. Cook fritters for 3 minutes each side or until golden and cooked through. Transfer to a wire rack. Cover and keep warm.

Place fritters on plates. Top with tomato salsa. Season with pepper and serve.

Thanks to Taste.com.au