Cabin Fever French Onion Butternut Squash Soup

 

French onion soup gets not one, but two special twists in this recipe with the addition of roasted butternut squash and beer instead of red wine (and of course lots of stringy, Swiss Gruyere cheese broiled on top).

I love the way the rich, sweet flavor of the caramelized onions and the roasty brown ale pair with the mildly sweet butternut squash and the way their sweet and savory notes play off each other. The best part is poking your spoon through the molten layer of Swiss cheese to the thick soup below and breaking off the crackly pieces of cheese that melt down the sides of the bowl.


For this recipe, you will need:

4 tablespoons butter
3 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
pinch of brown sugar
3 cups cooked, mashed butternut squash (I use an immersion blender to make the squash extra smooth)
1 cup New Holland Cabin Fever Brown Ale
2-3 cups beef broth
coarse salt and fresh black pepper
2 - 3 cups shredded Gruyère or Emmental cheese

In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, bay leaf, thyme, and a pinch or two of brown sugar.

Cook the onions 25-35 minutes, stirring every few minutes until the onions are soft and caramelized. The onions should turn a deep brown color. If they begin to get burnt spots on them turn the heat down a little.

Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs (if using fresh). Stir in the squash, beer, and broth (start with 2 cups of broth, and add more depending on how thick or thin you want your soup). Cook on medium-low an additional 15 - 20 minutes, stirring often and seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat the broiler and place 4 oven-proof bowls or crocks onto a baking sheet. Ladle soup into each bowl, top each with 1-2 slices of bread, and then top with 1/2 - 3/4 cup of cheese.

Place the bowls under the broiler until the bread is toasted and the cheese is completely melted with bubbly, brown spots.

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Bell's Best Brown Tarte Flambée

In French, it’s known as tarte flambée; in Alsatian it’s flammekueche; in German: flammkuchen. Whatever you call it, it’s mouthwateringly good.

It's like a pizza, but made with lardons (strips of pork fat or bacon), onion, cream, and fromage blanc. In this twist on the classic version, I throw beer into the mix. Because beer makes everything better. Fromage blanc is usually pretty difficult to find in America, but ricotta cheese works as a great alternative.

So, if you're tired of always preparing the same side dishes and you're ready to mix up your traditional Thanksgiving meal a little bit this year, I would highly recommend adding this dish to your repertoire. It also works as a great brunch or main dish for lunch!

For this recipe, you will need:

1 pizza dough (you can use your favorite recipe -- I cheated and used about 1.5 16-ounce balls of frozen pizza dough)
1/2 pound slab bacon, cut into strips
1 large spanish onion, sliced thinly
3 russet potatoes, peeled
3/4 cup creme fraîche
2/3 cup shredded Emmentaler (or just Swiss Cheese)
2/3 cup ricotta
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 ounces Bell's Best Brown Ale
1/4 cup chives, chopped
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bring a pot of water to a boil and season generously with salt. Cook the potatoes until they can be pierced easily with a knife. Remove from the water and let cool.

Place the bacon in a large cast iron skillet. Add a tablespoon of olive oil so the bacon doesn't stick. Cook over medium-low heat until crisp and brown. Remove the bacon from the pan and reserve on paper towels.

Leave a small amount of bacon grease in the pan (enough to cook the onion), add the onions to the pan, and season with salt. Add the minced garlic. Turn the heat up and pour in the beer. Cook off the liquid and let the onions take on color. Once the onions are caramelized, add the bacon to the onions.

Slice the potatoes in 1/8-inch slices. Combine the creme fraîche, emmantaler, and ricotta. Add about 20 turns of cracked black pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Roll the dough out onto a greased medium-sized baking sheet (mine is 15.25"x10.25"). Dock the dough (poke it a few times with a fork so it doesn't bubble up) and parbake the crust for about 5 minutes. The crust needs to be slightly cooked on the bottom because the tarte is only going to be baked for a few more minutes at the end to caramelize the toppings and finish crisping up the crust.

Remove the dough from the oven. Smear the dough with the cheese mixture, and shingle the potatoes in a pinwheel pattern. Then, place an even layer of the caramelized onions and bacon on the potatoes. Top with a bit more grated Emmantaler.

Return the dough to the oven until the dough is crisp on the bottom and the toppings are bubbly, 8 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle with chives and serve.

The smoky bacon adds just enough savoriness and saltiness to counter the rich crème fraîche and sweet sautéed onion. Enjoy and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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Motor City Brew Tours Trip to Ohio

Let’s face it, there's a lot of breweries in Michigan. We’ve been visiting them for years and, at best, have made it to a little over half of them. At this point, too, the beer culture in Michigan has become such a phenomenon that I would classify it as a tourist-worthy destination; not just for beer geeks but for people interested in local Michigan destinations.

The problem becomes, then, one of logistics and quantity. You can’t visit all of them, and many of us may not have the fortitude required to plan a proper multi-stop brewery trip. Remember that visiting more than one brewery includes planning places generally close to each geographically, keeping one’s wits even (remember, we’re talking about driving from place to place here, so some temperance is mandatory), and keeping an eye to possibly available tours at each facility. Laura and I do this probably twice a month, and even with our experience it can be quite the investment of time.

Enter Motor City Brew Tours. The Tour company, which operates primarily out of Detroit (but with visions of expansion) takes care of all of that planning for you. It also alleviates the “who’s driving?” issue. Motor City brew Tours offers bus, walking, and bike excursions through the city and surrounding areas of Detroit, giving people an opportunity to learn about Michigan brewing culture and history from experts while enjoying some of the products created here.

Additionally, MCBT organizes day trips; the Michigan Beer Blog was fortunate enough to attend a North Ohio tour, allowing us to visit the Maumee Brewing Company, the Market Garden Brewery and Distillery, and Ohio’s gem – Great Lakes Brewing Company. The ticket price pays for the bus, personalized tours with the brewers, and water and snacks to and from each location.

The trip was a great way to visit areas we would not have historically visited! For those of you in the Detroit area interested in a safe and well planned adventure that incorporates history and culture with Michigan beer, I would recommend checking out Motor City Brew Tours.

More pictures of our tour can be found on our Facebook Page!

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Oval Beach Blonde Marshmallows

If you haven't ever tried making homemade marshmallows, it is a food DIY project that you simply must attempt.  Nothing compares to the sweet, vanilla scented airiness of homemade marshmallows. You will find that once you start making your own, there is no going back.

In this recipe, adapted from How Sweet It Is, I used beer instead of water to add just a hint of yeast and hops.  I then dipped every square-shaped little marshmallow into dark chocolate and rolled them in crushed pretzels for a perfectly sweet and salty little snack.  Heaven?  I think so, too.

For this recipe, you will need:

3 1/2 envelopes unflavored gelatin (I used Knox)
1 cup cold, flat Saugatuck Oval Beach Blonde, divided in two
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2-4 cups dark chocolate morsels (melted, for dipping)
Hard sourdough pretzels, crushed

To flatten the beer, take the cap off the bottle and leave open overnight, or pour beer into a bowl and whisk vigorously to remove some carbonation. I did the second option and it worked perfectly! Just make sure it is cold.

Oil a 9 x 13 baking pan and sprinkle on powdered sugar to cover and coat. Set aside. In the bowl of your electric mixer (a whisk attachment is best), pour 1/2 cup cold beer and 3 1/2 packs of gelatin. I gently mixed with a spoon once, then let sit while you make the sugar mixture.

In a medium pot combine sugar, remaining beer, syrup and salt. Heat over low heat and whisk until sugar is dissolved, about 3-5 minutes. Turn heat up to medium and let sugar come to a boil. It will bubbly up so keep yours eye on it so it does not overflow. Let it boil for 8-12 minutes, until it reaches 240 degrees F (measure with a candy thermometer). The mixture will appear to be a lightish brown color depending on the beer you use – don’t worry, the marshmallows will still be white.

Once mixture is at 240 degrees F, turn off heat and gently pour it in the mixer over the gelatin with the mixer on low speed. Once all of the sugar has been added, turn the mixer to high and beat for for 6-8 minutes. It should grow in size and be white and fluffy. About 3-4 minutes in, add the egg whites to a separate bowl and beat until stiff peaks form. I used a hand mixer to do this. If you don’t have a hand mixer, I assume you have to remove the whisk attachment, clean it (it will be a sticky mess), add a new bowl to the mixer, beat egg whites. Once stiff peaks are formed, add egg whites and vanilla extract to the sugar/gelatin mixture and beat until just combined.

Pour marshmallow mix into the 9 x 13 pan. It will impossibly sticky so be careful, and you will not be able to get it all out of the bowl. Get as much as you can, then spray a spatula with non-stick spray and smooth. Dust powdered sugar on top and let sit to firm up for 3-5 hours.

Once firm, turn the pan upside down on a cutting board to release marshmallow rectangle. Cut them into pieces of whatever size you like.

Melt dark chocolate chips (I melt in 30 second increments in the microwave and stir) in a bowl. Crush hard sourdough pretzels. Using a fork, toothpick or fondue pick, coat marshmallows in chocolate then sprinkle with or roll in pretzel crumbs. You can also drizzle with salted caramel. Let sit at room temperature until chocolate hardens. Marshmallows can be stored in an airtight container for 1-2 weeks!

Makes one 9 x 13 pan of marshmallows, cut however you desire.

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4th Annual Detroit Beer Week to Span 11 Days

Showcasing the Craft Beer Scene in Metro-Detroit
Thursday, October 18 – Sunday, October 28, 2012

www.facebook.com/detroitbeerweek  /  www.detbeerweek.com

In the Motor City, the fall season has become synonymous with Detroit Beer Week. In its fourth year, this multi-day beer event has grown beyond its original concept, spanning 11 days and featuring a full spectrum of craft beer-centric happenings throughout the City of Detroit and the immediate surrounding suburbs.

The 2012 edition of Detroit Beer Week will feature individual events to showcase breweries from all over Michigan, plus out-of-state brewers from around the US that the organizers from Liquid Table cheekily refer to as “Friends of Michigan Beer.” This adds depth to the effort, as a whole, and creates a point of difference from the Michigan Brewers Guild Festivals that Liquid Table’s Michigan Beer Weeks build to and complement.

“While our primary focus will always remain on Michigan-brewed beer, it’s also important to recognize our brothers in other states who have fought so hard for the same ideals we are fighting for,” stated Barry Johnson, Regional Liaison for Liquid Table, and a highly-respected pioneer in the Michigan beer industry. “Many Michigan brewers got their start in other states, and many brewers in other states got their start here. Through our efforts we hope to promote Michigan beer, but with an understanding of the thought that ‘A rising tide lifts all ships.’”

Detroit-based Liquid Table Beverage Solutions is producing and marketing Detroit Beer Week. Liquid Table began Detroit Beer Week in 2009 in cooperation with the Michigan Brewers Guild, piggybacking the Detroit Fall Beer Festival. This concept continues in the fourth year of the effort, as the Fall Beer Festival also expands to 2 days.

“We’ve been witness to impressive growth over the last few years, and Liquid Table continues to offer innovative and creative event management and promotional concepts in the craft beer arena,” stated Eric Briggeman, President of the Michigan Brewers Guild. “We are proud to continue this partnership that helps to further The Guild’s mission of promoting a healthy beer culture in the State of Michigan.”

Detroit Beer Week events and information will be constantly updated on Facebook. Liquid Table is producing a minimum of one Signature Event each night during the week, in addition to the multitude of events hosted by participating Beer Destinations throughout the metro-Detroit area. All events will be marketed under the banner of Detroit Beer Week, with Real Detroit Weekly acting as the media partner, producing a Guide to Detroit Beer Week prior to the launch date.

Detroit Beer Week launches with a ceremonial tapping of 313ale, a collaboration of the Detroit Beer Barons, a group of local professional brewers, featuring primarily locally sourced ingredients. The beer will be available at select locations throughout DBW. The week continues with multiple events each night, including tap takeovers, beer dinners, contests, pubcrawls and educational events, culminating in the 4^th Annual Michigan Brewers Guild Fall Beer Festival and subsequent Brewers’ Brunch at Tashmoo Biergarten.

About Liquid Table

Liquid Table Beverage Solutions is a privately-owned Detroit-based company. Formed in 2009 by Jon Piepenbrok, Liquid Table focuses on producing and marketing beverage events, including Detroit Beer Week, with a focus on local craft beer, mead, and artisan spirits, as well as providing private beverage services on contract for in-home and private events. The company also offers trade services, such as on- and off-premise consulting, education, marketing, and brand management. For more information, contact beer@liquidtable.net. 

About the Michigan Brewers Guild

The Michigan Brewers Guild exists to unify the Michigan brewing community; to increase sales of Michigan-brewed beer through promotions, marketing, public awareness and consumer education; and to monitor and assure a healthy beer industry within the state.

The Guild fully endorses and supports the efforts of Liquid Table in the production and marketing of Michigan Beer Weeks (Detroit, GR and A2).

Michigan’s thriving brewing industry contributes over $24 million in wages with a total economic contribution of more than $133 million. In terms of overall number breweries, microbreweries and brewpubs, Michigan ranks #5 in the nation, with 118 current licenses – thus supporting its claim as “The Great Beer State.” More information can be found at www.mibeer.com.

Contact:

Jon Piepenbrok -- Founder and El Jefe -- jp@liquidtable.net

Dianna Stampfler -- Media Consultant -- dianna@promotemichigan.com                                                 

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