IPA and Basil Mashed Potatoes

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

4 lbs Yukon Gold Potatoes, roughly peeled and sliced ¼”  

3 tbsp salt

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 tbsp butter

¾ cup milk

½ cup New Belgium Ranger IPA

9 leaves basil, chopped

Fresh cracked black pepper to taste

Directions

Put potatoes in a cold pot of water and add salt.  Bring to a boil and then simmer for 15-20 minutes until fork tender.  Drain and return to the pot.

Sauté garlic in olive oil just until it begins to brown.   Add butter, milk, and IPA.  Cook until warm, then add to potatoes and mash them.  Fold in basil and serve.

Drunken Monkey Cupcakes

This recipe is sort of a fusion of traditional banana bread and cupcakes. Some ginger and spices add a welcome complexity to these, while still maintaining a great banana flavor. The beer in the recipe provides a subtle sweet roasty flavor with a unique fluffiness from its' carbonation. The frosting is based on a canoli filling recipe I stumbled across when I was looking to do the frosting a little bit differently. These cupcakes make a great snack for any time of the year.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups flour

2 cups ripe bananas (3-4 bananas), mashed

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 tbsp molasses

1 tsp fresh ginger, grated

2 eggs(preferably free range), beaten

6 oz 70% cocoa bitter sweet chocolate, chopped(I used a food processor)

6 oz unsalted organic butter(1 1/2 sticks)

1 cup stout beer (I used an Espresso Stout from Twisted Pine)

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tbsp vanilla

1 tsp nutmeg

Ricotta Frosting (recipe follows)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a medium bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt, chocolate chips, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir to combine.

In a large bowl cream together butter, brown sugar and molasses until there are no more lumps. Add mashed banana, eggs, ginger, stout, vanilla. Whisk until smooth. Add dry mixture to wet mixture, stirring just until everything is combined.

Spoon into a cupcake pan with wrappers lining the pan filling each about 3/4 full.

Bake for 17-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean. Allow to cool for 40 minutes then add ricotta frosting.

Make the Ricotta Frosting:

Ingredients

1/4 cup coffee

1 tbsp kahlua

2 tbsp 70% cocoa bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small chips

1 tsp lemon zest

2 tbsp Ricotta Salata(or regular ricotta drained in a fine sieve)

1 tsp cinnamon

2 cups powdered sugar(add less or more depending on desired sweetness)

3 tbsp butter, melted

Directions

Combine all ingredients and whisk until proper consistency, adding more sugar or coffee as needed. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before spreading on cupcakes.

Caraway Beer Bread

Ingredients

2 and 3/4 cups(345 g) all purpose flour, sifted
3 Tbsp honey
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 - 12 oz dark beer(I used Deschutes Jubelale)
1 tsp whole caraway seeds
Egg wash (whisk 1 egg and 2 tbsp water)


Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix together sifted flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and caraway. In a separate bowl mix together honey and beer. Stir into dry mixture until just combined, do not over mix. Brush with egg wash.

Bake for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Note: This recipe is very versatile. Try using maple syrup instead of the sugar. Just mix it into the beer before you add it to the dry ingredients.

Try Rosemary and Feta
Garlic and thyme
Sage and brown sugar

Chili Beer Collard Greens

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 bunch collard greens
1 smoked turkey leg or ham hock
2 whole cloves garlic, peeled
½ onion, sliced
3-4 Tbsp hot sauce
1 - 12 oz bottle Billy’s Chilies, chili beer
3 cups stock(chicken, vegetable, beef or water)

Directions

Heat vegetable oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Sear turkey leg or ham hock on all sides. Add onions and garlic and cook until fragrant about 2 minutes. Add collard greens, beer, stock and hot sauce. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 1 hour. Taste liquid to check salt. If it is not salty enough remove the lid and reduce. If it is too salty add more liquid. Serve with fried chicken.

Pearl Street Porter Braised Short Ribs

Recipe by Terroir Restaurant

Ingredients

1 – 12oz bottle Pearl Street Porter
¼ cup molasses
2 dried ancho chilies
3 cloves of whole garlic
¼ cup of tomato paste
1 cinnamon stick
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 daikon radish, chopped
1 stalk of celery, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 onion, peeled and cut into quarters
64oz stock (vegetable, chicken or beef) (low sodium)
salt and pepper to taste
2 ½ pounds of bison short ribs (beef if you can't get bison), bones separated

Directions

Cut the ribs between the bones creating individual bone-in pieces of rib. Rub with salt and pepper and set aside.

Heat a large skillet pan or pot with vegetable oil (about 1/8 inch deep). When hot, add bison pieces, brown on all sides over high heat and remove from pot.
Drain hot oil from pot and add 1 tablespoon of new oil, add carrots, daikon, onions, celery, and whole garlic cloves. Brown lightly.

Add porter and bring to a boil. Add tomato paste, molasses, ancho chili, and cinnamon stick. Stir to incorporate everything. Add the ribs back into the pot with the liquid.

Add enough stock to cover the ribs by 1/2 inch. Bring the mixture to a simmer, cover with a lid or aluminum foil, and lower the heat to medium low. Cook on low covered for 3 hours or until the meat pulls away from the bone. With a slotted spoon, remove the ribs and strain the liquid into a new sauce pan. Reduce the liquid by half and taste for salt. Add the ribs back into the liquid to hold until you are ready to serve. At this point you can serve right away or place in the refrigerator. The fat will naturally rise to the surface overnight and can easily be removed.

Serve with green chili and sweet corn polenta or mashed, roasted or boiled potatoes.

Brown Ale Mussels

Recipe by Laurent Méchin, Executive Chef St Julien Hotel

Ingredients

12oz Twisted Pine Honey Brown Ale
2 lbs mussels
1Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp garlic (chopped)
1 shallot (finely diced)
1 Tbsp parsley (washed and chopped)
4 oz tomato sauce
1 Tbsp butter
1 ea French Baguette (sliced and grilled)


Directions

Pour yourself a beer in a thick chilled pint glass, enjoy!
Thoroughly wash mussels, discard open and broken shells.
Add 1 Tbsp of oil to a sauce pot and sauté the mussels for 2 minutes over medium heat. Next add garlic, shallots and ale, cover with a lid and cook until shells open (3-4 minutes).
Add tomato sauce and stir in butter. Adjust seasoning as needed with salt and pepper.

To Serve

Scoop mussels into deep soup bowls, discard unopened mussels, pour 3 oz of sauce over the mussels and sprinkle fresh parsley. Serve with grilled bread slices to soak up the sauce and chilled brown ale.

Brown Sugar and Porter Glazed Pork Chops

Recipe by Doug Johnson

Ingredients

2 large ½ inch cut pork chops(center-cut, bone-in)
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup Pearl Street Porter
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup raisins
2 apples, cored and sliced
¼ tsp rubbing sage
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper

Directions

Heat vegetable oil in a large pot over high heat. Rub chops with salt, pepper and rubbing sage. Brown pork chops on both sides. Add beer, cider vinegar, and brown sugar, stir until dissolved, scrapping up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Add apples and raisins then cook uncovered until the sauce turns into a syrup like glaze 20-40 minutes. Cool 5 minutes before serving. Goes great with sweet potatoes.

Note: This recipe would be delicious with most darker beers, just stay away from the hoppier ones.

Amber Ale Arroz con Pollo

Here is a recipe I wrote about a year ago after traveling to South America posted on Brewers Associations new website: Amber Ale Arroz con Pollo - Recipe

http://www.craftbeer.com/pages/beer-and-food/recipes/recipes-list/show?title=amber-ale-arroz-con-pollo