Community Gardens Impact on Health

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Seed Bombs: Urban Agriculture

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Craft Beer Round Up

I love craft beer. If you haven't been to the beer section of your liquor store in a while, you might be surprised at some of the beers now available to the American public.  It seems any ingredient used in cooking is fair game for brewing as well.  Below you'll find a beer brewed with endive and hibiscus, one brewed with fresh chilies and one that defines the style of Double IPA.  While these beers are new to the American public, many ingredients used in them do have some historical use in beer.

This brew is made with endive and hibiscus giving it a very interesting bitterness.  It is also part of an emerging trend in the craft beer world of "Colabeeration Brews" in which two breweries put their heads together to brew a beer together.  Vrienden means "friends" in flemish.  This style of beer comes from the Flanders region that hugs the border of France and Belgium.  Beers that emerge from this region are often described as "winey" due to the fact that many are barrel aged, have fruit added and incorporate wild yeasts.

This beer is brewed with 5 different types of fresh chilies.  Twisted Pine Brewery in Boulder, Colorado infuses wheat beer with jalapeño, fresno, serrano, habenero and anaheim chilies.  This brew makes an incredible addition to a bloody mary, or as they call it, a "Bloody Billy."  The beer packs a subtle heat with a well rounded fresh chili aroma and flavor.

This brewery, Russian River, is often credited with inventing the style "Double IPA."  The beer comes off very piney and grapefruity with a lingering finish.  This is a great beer to pair with blue cheese or calamari.

Tipping Etiquette Around The World

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Beet Sashimi

This was the welcome finding of combining golden beets with red beets when pickling them.  I cooked the beets until tender, peeled them, and let them cool.  Next I put them in a mason jar, added some balsamic vinegar, salt and covered them with water.  I put a lid on them, refrigerated them overnight and they were delicious the next day.  The longer they sit in the liquid, the deeper the flavor.  Eat within 3 weeks. 

Beet Sashimi

Espresso Stout Floats

Photo by Athena Damianos

Ingredients

12 oz Espresso Stout, I like Twisted Pine's
1 scoop French Vanilla Ice Cream
Whipped Cream and Cherry 

Directions

Pour stout into your favorite mug and add a scoop of ice cream.  Top with whipped cream and cherry.

Stranahan's Whiskey with Spicy Burnt Lemon

Stranahan's Whiskey with Spicy Burnt Lemon

Mixology is really starting to take off in Colorado.  We've now got a ton of bartenders taking a chefs' approach to making a cocktail.  At Lou's Food Bar in Denver they serve a Bloody Mary infused with strawberry, tarragon and black pepper.  The Pinyon in Boulder has a cocktail made with Racer 5 India Pale Ale, Jackalope Gin and grapefruit juice that is exceptional.  If you haven't caught any of this exiting cocktail scene, here is a short list of a few of my favorite restaurants around Denver and Boulder that are taking cocktails to a whole new level.  Also following, an original recipe for Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey with Spicy Burnt Lemon.

Best Cocktails of Denver and Boulder:

The Pinyon in Boulder, Downtown
Oak in Boulder, Downtown
TAG in Denver, Lodo
Lou's Food Bar in Denver, Highlands
SALT in Boulder, Downtown
RootDown in Denver, Highlands 
Colt & Gray in Denver, Union Station Area
Happy Noodle House(Bitter Bar) in Boulder, Downtown



Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey with Spicy Burnt Lemon

Ingredients

2 oz Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey
7 dashes Angostura Bitters
1 tsp simple syrup
1 tsp lemon juice
lemon twist
2 thin slices of Serrano pepper
water (to taste)


Directions

Fill a large glass with ice then add bitters and whiskey.  Stir until chilled.  Add simple syrup and lemon juice.  In a rocks glass squeeze the lemon peel with a lighter lit while close to the glass to perfume the glass with a really nice burnt lemon aroma.  The flame should dance a little bit as you do this.

Strain whiskey into rocks glass, then muddle the rest of that lemon peel and the Serrano in the bottom of the glass.  Add 2 ice cubes, taste the drink. and add water to your liking.