Recipes For Cooking With Beer

Cooking with beer has been a Belgian tradition for a number of years. The craze is now spreading worldwide. Here are a few beer recipes, including the famous Belgian Carbonnade a la Flamande.

Carbonnade a la Flamande

Ingredients:
1 ¼ pounds lean ground beef chuck
3 tbsp unsalted butter or margarine
¼ cup all-purpose flour
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 cups fresh or frozen chopped onions
2 3-inch springs fresh lemon thyme or ½ tsp dried thyme, crumbled
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 ½ lbs red-skin potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1 ½ inch chunks (not peeled)
1 can beef consommé - 10 ½ ounces
1 package frozen asparagus cut (do not thaw)
12 ounce can beer blended with 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
Salt and pepper

Instructions:
Shape ground chuck into large flat patty - dredge both sides in flour.
Heat butter in medium-sized Dutch oven over high for 1 minute.
Add ground chuck patty - brown 3 minutes on each side
Place patty in plate and set aside.
Lower heat to moderate temperature.
Add onions, garlic, thyme, and nutmeg to drippings and sauté (about 3 minutes).
Add potatoes and consommé.
Bring to a gentle boil.
Place lid on askew and cook for 15 minutes.
Add beer mixture and cook until liquid thickens (about 3-5 minutes).
Add meat, breaking into large clumps.
Cover and cook 10 more minutes.
Add asparagus and cook, breaking up frozen clumps, until potatoes are tender and meat shows no signs of pink (7-10 minutes).
Remove thyme sprigs.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve in heated soup bowls.

Chocolate Stout Cake

Ingredients:
¼ cup cocoa powder to dust the baking pans
2 sticks butter or margarine
1 cup stout or porter
2/3 scant cup Dutch-process dark cocoa powder
1 scant tsp salt
2 cups unbleached flour
2 cups sugar
1 ¼ tsp baking soda
2 extra-large eggs
½ cup sour cream

Instructions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Lightly dust 2 greased 8-inch pans with cocoa powder.
In a heavy saucepan or microwave oven, heat butter, beer, and cocoa powder until butter melts. Cool.
Sift dry ingredients together, add the beer-cocoa mixture and beat thoroughly on medium speed for 1 minute.
Add eggs and sour cream and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
Pour batter into prepared pans and bake at 350 degrees for 24 to 30 minutes.
Place pans on wire rack to cool.
Spread each layer with a thin coat of chocolate frosting.
Stack the layers and cover the sides with frosting.
Serve.

Citrus Lager Marinade (Perfect for fish or chicken)

Ingredients:
1 ½ cup lager
1 tsp cracked black pepper
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 stalk lemon grass
Pinch of salt

Instructions:
Slice lemongrass length-wise and remove center stalk and discard outer, fibrous husk.
Coarsely chop stalk and place in food processor with ingredients.
Blend well.
When settled, marinate fish or chicken up to two hours - no longer for fish because the citric acids will cure the fish.