Meyer Lemon Belgian Saison + Meyer Lemon Bars

Another brewing + baking post (I told you we have been brewing lately!).

This time, we made a Meyer Lemon Belgian-style Saison Ale. One of our friends who brews with us brought back a ton of Meyer lemons from his family's home and we decided to brew with them. During the brewing process we only needed the zest of the lemons, as we'll add in some lemon juice when we transfer to the secondary fermenter. So, since we had a bowl full of zested Meyer lemons that would likely dry out and go to waste in the next week or so, we decided to bake some lemon bars while the beer was brewing on the stove. They were a hit and curbed our craving for Meyer lemons while we wait for the beer to finish fermenting.

Meyer Lemon Belgian Saison

Grain: 

1 lb Belgian 2 Row 

1 1/2 lb Wheat

1/2 lb Wheat Flakes

Hops:

2 oz Styrian Goldings (1 oz at 60 min; 1 oz at 30 min)

Other:

5 lbs dry malt extract

Saison ale blend yeast

Zest of 5 Meyer Lemons (added at completion of boil)

Juice of 1 -2 Meyer lemons (about 1/4 cup, added to secondary fermenter)

Meyer Lemon Bars

Ingredients:

Crust:

1/4 cup powdered sugar

3 tablespoons butter, softened

1/2 cup all purpose flour

Filling: 

3 large eggs

1/3 cup agave nectar

2 tsp grated lemon zest

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 

1 tsp vanilla

3 Tbsp all purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

powdered sugar for dusting

Directions: 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Crust: Beat the powdered sugar and butter on medium speed until creamy. Gradually add the 1/2 cup flour and mix on low until the mixture resembles pea-size crumbs. Press the mixture into the bottom and up sides (about 1/4 to 1/2 inch) of 8 or 9 inch square baking pan and bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. 

Cool on a wire rack while you make the filling. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.

Filling: Beat the eggs on medium speed until foamy. Add the remaining ingredients and beat on low until combined. 

Pour the mixture over the crust and bake at 325 until set, about 20 - 25 minutes. Cool on wire rack and dust with powdered sugar before serving.

S'more Stout + Spent Grain Chocolate Chip Cookies

Happy New Year! After a busy end of 2013, we are officially back with some new posts to kick off 2014. We have been brewing a lot lately and experimenting with baking with the spent grain (the grain that we steep to start the brewing process). This time, I scooped out enough to line a square baking pan and tried to dry out some of the moisture in a 200 degree oven for about 5 hours. We were brewing a chocolate-y stout, so the grain had a great sweetness to it. After getting most of the moisture out, we put it in a food processor to grind it up a bit. I think next time we'll let it stay in the oven a bit longer, but we were pleased with the nutty, earthy flavor that the gain added to the cookies. Here are the recipes for both the cookies and the S'more Stout (inspired by this beer by Highwater Brewing Company).

S'more Stout

Grain:

1 1/2 lbs Maris Otter

1/2 lbs Roasted Barley

1/4 lbs 

1/4 chocolate

1/4 150L Crystal Malt

Hops: 

2 oz Fuggle (1oz at 60 min; 1oz at 30 min)

Other:

6 lbs malt extract 

Nottingham yeast

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup honey

2 cinnamon sticks

3 vanilla beans (2 in boil, whole; 1 in the primary, sliced lengthwise)

About halfway through the boil, we took 2 cups of wort and placed it in a saucepan. To it we added the cocoa, honey, cinnamon and vanilla beans and let simmer for the remaining time. The goal was to create the flavor you get in a s'more- chocolate, honey from the graham crackers, and vanilla in the marshmallow. Before cooling the wort, we added in the cocoa mixture. Once we had transferred to the primary fermenter, we added the third vanilla bean, sliced lengthwise to maximize the flavor. We have about 2 weeks to go until our S'more Stout is ready to drink, and we can't wait!

Spent Grain Chocolate Chip Cookies

We used the recipe from the back of the bag of chocolate chips, with a few minor substitutions. We used 1/2 cup spent grain in place of 1/2 cup of the flour. Because the grain was not completely dry, we did not have a flour consistency, so the result was that the cookies were a little flat. Next time I'll add some baking powder in addition to the baking soda in the recipe to try to get them to rise a bit more. 

Ingredients: 

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup ground spent grain

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar 

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt and set aside. 

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla until smooth. Next add in the spent grain, then gradually mix in the flour mixture until all ingredients are combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

Bake on cookie sheet 8-10 minutes, or until golden brown.

Rye PA

Yesterday was brew Sunday! Even though the calendar says it is summer, the weather here in San Francisco feels like fall (bordering on winter!) so we decided to brew a rye IPA. Our last few beers have been Belgian-style, and we wanted something a little more hoppy. We can't wait to taste this beer!

Recipe: 

Grain:
1 lb Moris Otter
1 lb Rye
1/2 lb 60 L
1/2 lb 20 L

Hops:
1 oz German Northern Brewer @ 60 min
1/2 oz  Willamette @ 30 min
1/2 oz German Northern Brewer @ 15 min
1/4 oz Willamette @ 10 min
1/4 oz Willamette @ 5 min
1/2 oz German Northern Brewer @ end of  boil

7.5 lbs Malt extract
Yeast- Safale #5

Shrimp Tostadas

I saw an idea on Pinterest to make cookie shells for ice cream using the back of a cupcake pan. I thought I would give it a try for a savory dish, using corn tortillas and turning them into baked taco / tostada shells. It worked out great, though a little messy to eat.

Ingredients:

4 corn tortillas
1 dozen large shrimp
1/2 bell pepper, sliced in strips
Lettuce, avocado salsa and sour cream (or greek yogurt!) for topping

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Position the tortillas on the back of the greased cupcake pan and place in preheated oven. Bake 10 minutes or until crisp and golden brown.

While the tortillas are baking, cook the bell peppers in a heated pan with a little olive oil for a few minutes until they start to soften. Add the shrimp and cook until pink.

Once the tortillas are done, fill them with the lettuce, avocado, shrimp, peppers, salsa and sour cream. These would be so fun to fill with other taco fixings- such a versatile dish!

Garden Bounty!

We are so proud of our garden! It really is the little garden that could. It started as a bunch of dirt that we were certain would never let things grow. But with a little TLC, we were able to produce so many yummy veggies, greens and herbs. Kevin harvested the cucumbers, zucchini (blossoms too!) spinach, tomatoes and beets pictured above and we turned it into dinner. Gardening is such a rewarding hobby!

For an appetizer, we stuffed the squash blossoms with goat cheese, rolled them in an egg wash and bread crumbs, and browned in a pan. Talk about melt-in-your-mouth goodness!

Next, we roasted the beets and added them to the spinach, cucumber and tomatoes to make an unbelievably flavorful salad.

Finally, we steamed our zucchini, and seasoned with a little lemon pepper and Parmesan cheese. We served this along side some salmon burgers from Whole Foods, and voila! Dinner is served.

And yes, some homebrew to round out the meal :)

Two-in-One Recipe: Meatballs and Meatloaf

It is pretty typical for us to be making dinner around 8pm, so having things ready to heat up makes things much easier. About  a year ago, we posted our Meatball Potpies, which are still a favorite in our house. If we make them on a Sunday, when we have more time, leftovers on Monday are a great way to kick off the week. To keep things easy later in the week,  we have learned that while we are taking the time to make the turkey mixture for the meatballs, we may as well double the recipe and use the rest to make a turkey meatloaf.

To mix things up, once the meatballs are rolled and in the pan, we add some diced bell pepper and BBQ sauce to the turkey, then place in a covered loaf pan to bake later in the week. I have also frozen the meatloaf both cooked and uncooked to have on hand for another time. If you freeze uncooked, just be sure to thaw in the fridge for a day or two in advance so the baking time is quicker.

Ingredients:

2 lb ground turkey (I use 1 lb extra lean and 1 lb lean for added flavor)
1/2 small onion or 2 shallots, diced
1- 2 eggs
1/2 - 3/4  cup bread crumbs (depending on how wet your mixture is)
Salt and pepper
Sprinkle of nutmeg
follow the rest of the recipe for the meatball potpies

Once the meatballs have been made, add 1/4 - 1/2 diced bell pepper (any color) and BBQ sauce to taste (about 1/4 - 1/3 cup) and press the mixture into a greased loaf pan. drizzle more BBQ sauce on top.

Bake for 35-45 minutes, until cooked through.

Lindsay's Candied Ale

Finally- a long overdue beer post! We have been really in to brewing seasonal beers over the past year, starting with our summer 2012 brew, Lobster Tale Ale. Last winter, Lindsay decided the beer would be one that incorporated the spices of the season. And so, Lindsay's Candied Ale was born. We found one of these tucked in the fridge, and it is just as tasty on a foggy San Francisco summer day as it was during the holidays.

Recipe for 5 Gallons: 

Adapted from the Brooklyn Brew Shop's Beer Making Book- Gingerbread Ale

4 cinnamon sticks
12 whole cloves
2 Tbsp candied ginger
2 whole nutmegs, grated
7 lbs malt extract
3 oz Cascade hops (1 oz @ 60 min, 1/2 oz at 30 min, 1/2 oz at 15 min, and 1 oz at 5 min)
English ale yeast