5 Amazing dishes prepared with beer!

Cook up a great Father’s Day using beer-based foods. Beer was the first alcoholic beverage to be made legal on April 7, 1933 after the repeal of prohibition. Others were not made legal until December of that year. With new studies showing beer is actually healthy, why not eat your beer?

Beer Bread Recipe

Add a few simple ingredients to a can of beer and make a delicious loaf of beer bread. This bread is best eaten right from the oven. Heavenly! If you do have leftovers (doubtful!), it makes great toast.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 Tablespoons baking powder
• 12 ounces beer (NOT light beer)
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 70 minutes

Total Time: 75 minutes

Yield: 1 loaf

PREPARATION

1. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt with sugar. Add beer and egg both at once and stir. You may have to knead last of flour in with hands.
2. Place in greased 9-inch by 5-inch loaf pan and bake at 375 degrees until done – about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Remove from pan immediately and cool.

Beer Puffs Recipe

These tiny puff rolls made with beer may be filled with crab salad, tuna salad, chicken salad or whatever suits your fancy for a tasty appetizer. They are quite easy to make, are a perfect bite-size sandwich, and perfect for parties. Beer puffs work equally as well with sweet fillings for dessert bites.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup beer
• 8 Tablespoons (1 stick or 1/4 pound) butter
• 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 eggs
• Filling of your choice

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 60 to 80 servings

PREPARATION

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat baking liners.
2. In a heavy saucepan, heat beer and butter until it barely comes to a boil and the butter is melted. Add flour and salt, lower heat, and stir constantly until the mixure pulls away from the side of the pan and forms a ball. Remove from the heat and let rest for 1 minute. Add eggs, one at a time, beating each one in until the dough is shiny.
3. Drop or pipe dough in 1-inch rounds onto prepared baking sheets. Bake 10 minutes at 450 degrees F. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F, and turn baking sheets. Bake beer puffs an additional 10 minutes until brown and dry. Turn off oven, crack open the oven door, and let puffs dry further until cool.
4. Split beer puffs with a fork (or slice with a serrated knife) and fill with your choice of fillings such as paté, chicken salad, tuna salad, seafood salad, vegetable cheese mix, pudding, mousse, or whatever you like.

Note: Feel free to add your favorite herbs or spices to the flour for added flavor. I used a piping tip to make fast work of forming the puffs on the baking sheets. I do not bother with a pastry bag. Just cut a small corner from a zip-top freezer bag, insert the piping tip, spoon in the batter, squeeze out the air, seal the bag, and pipe the puffs. No pastry bag to wash.

Guinness Stout Brownies Recipe

The original version of these brownies was developed in Ireland. The malt in the Guinness stout beer intensifies the flavor of the chocolate in these delicious brownies. The texture is an interesting combination of fudge, mousse, candy, and traditional brownies.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 Tablespoons butter, cut into cubes
• 8 ounces dark bittersweet chocolate, chopped (may substitute extra-dark chocolate chips)
• 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup granulated white sugar
• 1 cup (8 ounces) Guinness Extra Stout beer (see Note below)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Yield: 36 to 48 servings

PREPARATION

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick foil.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, and salt until evenly combined. Set aside.
3. Melt butter, bittersweet chocolate, and white chocolate chips in a double-boiler over very low heat, stirring constantly until melted. Remove from heat.
4. In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add melted chocolate mixture, beating until combined.
5. Beat reserved flour mixture into melted chocolate mixture. Whisk in Guinness stout beer by hand. The batter may seem a bit thin.
6. Pour into prepared baking pan. Drop semisweet chocolate chips evenly on top of batter (some will sink in). Bake 25 to 30 minutes (oven temperatures vary) on center rack in the oven, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Let brownies cool, uncovered, to room temperature.

Note: The Guinness should be at room temperature. This recipe uses less than a standard 12-ounce bottle of Guinness stout beer. Pour it early so the foam can settle. Do not include foam in the measurement. Either spoon off the foam or let it rest until the foam subsides.

Basic Beer-Can Chicken Recipe

This delicious chicken dish is also called “beer butt chicken.” The method involves placing a (beer or soda) can of liquid up into the cavity of the chicken, then roasting. The liquid inside the can boils forcing flavor up and through the meat. Try experimenting with various fruit juices, wine, broth, or soda in the can instead of beer. Tomato paste cans work for cornish hens. You can purchase can stands to make the bird more stable. This method may also be used in the oven, but do not attempt to smoke food indoors.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 can (12 ounces) beer
• 1 chicken (3-1/2 to 4 pounds)
• 2 Tablespoons All-Purpose Barbecue Rub (recipe link below) or your favorite commercial rub
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 90 minutes

Total Time: 100 minutes

Yield: 2 to 4 servings

PREPARATION

1. You will also need: 2 cups wood chips or chunks (preferably hickory or cherry), soaked for 1 hour in water and/or beer to cover, then drained.
2. Pop the tab off the beer can. Pour half of the beer (3/4 cup) over the soaking wood chips or chunks, or reserve for another use. If cooking the chicken on the can, using a church key-style can opener, make 2 additional holes in its top. Set the can of beer aside.
3. Remove the packet of giblets from the body cavity of the chicken and set aside for another use. Remove and discard the fat just inside the body and neck cavities. Rinse the chicken, inside and out, under cold running water and then drain and blot dry, inside and out, with paper towels. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of the rub inside the body cavity and 1/2 teaspoon inside the neck cavity of the chicken. Drizzle the oil over the outside of the bird and rub or brush it all over the skin. Sprinkle the outside of the bird with 1 tablespoon of rub and rub it all over the skin. Spoon the remaining 1-1/2 teaspoons of rub into the beer through a hole in the top of the can. Don’t worry if the beer foams up: This is normal.
4. Hold the bird upright, with the opening of the body cavity at the bottom, and lower it onto the beer can so the can fits into the cavity. Pull the chicken legs forward to form a sort of tripod, so the bird stands upright. The rear leg of the tripod is the beer can.
5. Tuck the tips of the wings behind the chicken back. Set up the grill for indirect grilling and preheat to medium. If using a charcoal grill, place a large drip pan in the center. If using a gas grill, place all the wood chips or chunks in the smoker box or in a smoker pouch and preheat on high until you see smoke, then reduce the heat to medium.
6. When ready to cook, if using a charcoal grill, toss all of the wood chips or chunks on the coals. Stand the chicken up in the center of the hot grate, over the drip pan and away from the heat. Cover the grill and cook the chicken until the skin is a dark golden brown and very crisp and the meat is cooked through (about 180 degrees F. on an instant-read meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of a thigh, but not touching the bone), 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hours. If using a charcoal grill, you’ll need to add 12 fresh coals per side after 1 hour. If the chicken skin starts to brown too much, loosely tent the bird with aluminum foil.
7. Using tongs, hold the bird by the can and carefully transfer it in an upright position to a platter.
8. Present the bird to your guests. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes, then carefully lift it off its support. Take care not to spill the hot beer or otherwise burn yourself. Halve, quarter, or carve the chicken and serve.

Beer and Ginger Marinade Recipe

Beer, ginger, garlic, olive oil, and orange peel are combined in a flavorful marinade for beef. Goes particularly well with flank steak.

INGREDIENTS

• 1-1/2 cups flat beer
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1 (1-by-3-inch) piece of orange peel

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

 PREPARATION

In a nonreactive bowl, combine the beer, olive oil, ginger, garlic, and orange peel. Use a receptacle large enough to snugly hold the meat (beef, lamb, or game) but not too large or flavor will not penetrate. Cover tightly and be sure to leave the meat in the marinade long enough to pick up the flavors of the liquid, at least 6 hours and up to 48. Turn frequently so that the marinade is evenly distributed. Strain and use as a basting sauce if desired.