2012 February «

Archive | February, 2012

Drunken Buffalo Sandwiches with Fried Sage

This sandwich was inspired by one of the best things I ate last year — the Wild Boar Sloppy Joe from Longman & Eagle.

But as it turns out, wild boar is pretty hard to find in Chicago (unless you want to buy 10+ pounds of it, which I didn’t). In fact, I went to three of the area’s best butcher shops, came up empty handed, and was forced to settle on buffalo. Not a total loss, but not exactly as I intended. Such is life.

I remember the Longman & Eagle version being a bit sweet and a bit savory, so I added ingredients to capture both flavors. And in true Fresh and Foodie style, I added some beer — why not? I have no idea whether or not I even came close to replicating the ingredients used by Longman & Eagle in their recipe, but my version certainly satisfied my cravings.

Serve with a stack of heavy duty napkins. Knives and forks are encouraged.

Drunken Buffalo Sandwiches with Fried Sage (serves 4)

What you need:

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus 1/4 cup for frying sage
2 carrots, grated
1 medium yellow onion, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 pound ground buffalo
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
8 ounces stout beer (I used a local barrel-aged stout)
2 tablespoons dark-brown sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 brioche rolls, halved and toasted
16 sage leaves

How you do it:

In a large saucepan or skillet, heat one tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Ad carrot, onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions become translucent — about four minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Add tomato paste and stir into the vegetables. Cook for about three minutes. Add the buffalo and cook for about five minutes or until the meat is no longer pink.
Add the tomatoes (with juice), beer, brown sugar, cider vinegar, Worcestershire and cayenne pepper, stirring to combine. Raise the heat and let the mixture simmer for 15 minutes. It’ll thicken up as it cooks.
Meanwhile, In a small skillet, heat the remaining quarter cup of olive oil until it’s shimmering on top. Working in batches, quickly drop a few sage leaves into the oil (careful — it will splatter) and let them sit in the oil for no longer than 10 seconds. Remove from oil and place on a plate lined with paper towel. Season the sage with coarse salt.
To serve, plate a hearty portion of buffalo on the brioche rolls and top each sandwich with four sages leaves.

Comments 6 Comments
Categories Craft Beer, Meat & Poultry, Sandwiches & Wraps

Bourbon County Stout Pancakes with Cardamom-Spiced Maple Syrup

20 Feb

I realize that there will be two reactions to this post.

1. “Beer in pancakes? Really? She’s such a lush.” Or…

2. “Bourbon County Stout in pancakes? Really? What a waste.”

And yes, I have a response for both.

For those of you who think beer in pancakes is crazy, I encourage you to think again. Not only is beer good in nearly anything, but when stout is combined with chocolate, it’s magical. Even at breakfast.

And for those beer nerds out there, trust me — I had similar thoughts. I fully realize that Bourbon County Stout is one of the best beers you can get your hands on, so why would I want to use it in pancakes? But if you look at the recipe, it only calls for two ounces of beer, which means you can drink the rest. Which I did.

Moral of the story: beer at breakfast. It’s a win-win.

(And yes, I very well may be a lush. But at least I drink good beer.)

Bourbon County Stout Pancakes with Cardamom-Spiced Maple Syrup (makes 6 large pancakes, but recipe can be doubled)

What you need:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup 100% whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 ounces Bourbon County Stout (or any other bourbon barrel-aged stout)
2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled, plus extra for greasing the griddle
A small pinch of ground cardamom
1/4 cup (or so — depending on your preference) real maple syrup
1 tablespoon powdered sugar (optional)
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted (optional)

How you do it:

In a large bowl, whisk together both flours, cocoa powder, sugar, salt, baking powder and cinnamon until well combined. Add buttermilk, eggs, stout and melted butter and mix until no lumps remain.
Preheat a large skillet or griddle over medium-high heat. When a drop of water skips across the top of the griddle, it’s hot enough. Melt a bit of butter in the pan to prevent sticking, then ladle batter — in 1/2 cup portions — onto the griddle and cook for approximately two minutes or until bubbles appearing on the to of the pancakes remain open. Flip and cook for another two minutes.
Meanwhile, heat maple syrup and cardamom in a saucepan over low heat until warmed through.
To serve, top each pancake with syrup, sifted powdered sugar and chopped pecans.

Comments 12 Comments
Categories Breakfast & Brunch, Craft Beer

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting

13 Feb

PIN IT!

My husband and I aren’t big Valentine’s Day people. In fact, in the past we’ve been known to order a heart-shaped deep dish pizza (hey, we do live in Chicago) from one of the local pizza joints and call it a day. But this year, since he already surprised me with a box of my favorite smoked salt caramels from Fran’s in Seattle, I decided to surprise him back. With red velvet cupcakes. With bourbon cream cheese frosting.

Sure, red velvet is sort of expected for Valentine’s Day, but it also happens to be one of my husband’s favorite cake flavors. My friend Jen always used to make this very recipe, and I find that it’s one of the best. To jazz it up a bit for him, I chose to put a “manly” spin on the frosting by adding a bit of bourbon. Why not, right? (Albeit not kid friendly, so just eliminate it and add a teaspoon more vanilla if kids are present.)

This year, we passed on the pizza and celebrated with t-bone steaks, beer-braised Brussels sprouts, red velvet cupcakes and a trip to the Chicago Auto Show. Not a bad way to spend the day with someone you love.

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting (makes approximately 24 cupcakes)

Slightly adapted from Saveur

What you need:

For the cake:

2 1/2 cups plus 10 tablespoons all-purpose flour (the original recipe called for cake flour, but I used AP and it worked just fine)
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons red food coloring
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar

For the frosting:

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
8 ounces unsalted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 teaspoons bourbon
2 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

For decoration (optional):

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans, toasted and cooled

How you do it:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners. Set aside.
In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt. In a separate large bowl, whisk together the eggs, vegetable oil, buttermilk, food coloring, vanilla and vinegar until well combined. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet (I did this step by hand, but you could use an electric mixer if you wanted to), scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go.
Distribute the batter evenly between the 24 muffin cups and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, approximately 22 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.
For the frosting, use an electric mixer to combine the cream cheese, butter, vanilla and bourbon. Add the confectioners’ sugar in batches until well combined.
Spoon frosting into a pastry bag loaded with a wide star tip (I used Wilton No. 2110) and slowly pipe onto the cupcake, starting from the outside and working your way in a circular motion into the center. Top cupcakes with toasted pecans.