Taproom Trout

Taproom Trout

     This was one of those dishes that just came to me one night while at work. Myself and another coworker were sitting, rolling silverware, pondering what to eat for dinner. I mentioned wanting to come up with a great trout dish. We wracked our heads together and agreed on this taste combination. Think about it, you walk into a pub and what do you see? Beer on tap and probably some sort of bowl of pretzels or nuts awaiting and tempting you to munch on which in turn causes you to drink more.  The combination is priceless. So, why not combine those great flavors into one dish? So here goes, a delicious, light and flaky pretzel crusted trout with an orange ale sauce. Taproom Trout.

Ingredients:

• 2 trout filets split
• 2 cups pretzels
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 bottle of ale of choice
• 1 orange
• 4 tbs butter
• Salt/pepper

1. Take pretzels and blend them in a food processor. Combine with cornmeal and spread onto a plate.

2. Take trout filets and press meat side down into the pretzel cornmeal mixture.

3. In a large skillet melt 2 tbs of butter and brown the trout on meat side.

4. In a 350 degree oven place the trout filets skin side down on a baking dish and bake for roughly 8 minutes.

5. Meanwhile in a sauce pan pour in the 1/2 bottle of ale and simmer until reduced.

6. Zest the orange and place in the pot. Juice half of the orange and also place into the pot.

7. Drop in 2 tbs of butter and simmer until the sauce thickens and becomes shiny. Salt to taste.

8. Remove trout from oven. Place on plate and drizzle some of the orange ale sauce over.

     This was an amazing trout dish. I had my cousin over for dinner and she loved it. Pretty sure you will too.

Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 10-15 min
Serves: 2

Beer Cheese Soup

Beer Cheese Soup

 

 

 

     I used to work at this upscale restaurant out on the river. They specialized in some seafood and a wonderful outside deck atmosphere that overlooked the river and the national forest. I loved working there. I made some great friends, had some great times, and discovered some great dishes. One of which was our cooks specialty. She made a fantastic Beer Cheese Soup. What was this? I had never heard of this kind of weird creation. Apparently this soup is pretty popular out in the Midwest where cheese is made famous. My first bite was kind of weary. I was afraid of the combination of beer and cheese in a warming soup. I was in shock. The flavors that were mingling in my mouth were fantastic. It was so creamy, hearty, and had a nice spicy kick to it. It was amazing. Sadly the chef that created this dish left after I had been there for only a year. This was 17 years ago. I never had it again. No one knew what her recipe was either. I decided to do some research and mold and create my own version of this fantastic soup. So here goes, my Beer Cheese Soup.

 

Ingredients:

• 3-4 slices bacon diced
• ¼ cup diced celery
• ½ white onion diced
• 4 tbs butter
• 4 tbs flour
• 1 tbs spicy mustard
• 1 tbs Worcestershire
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups beer
• 2 cups cheddar cheese
• 1 cup Monterey jack cheese
• ¼ cup cream
• Salt/pepper

 

 

1.       In a large Dutch oven brown the diced bacon until just beginning to crisp.

2.       Toss in the diced celery and onion and cook until translucent

3.       Stir in the butter until melted.

4.       Mix in the flour and stir around with the bacon and onion/celery mixture until the flour has begun to cook through.

5.       Squirt in the mustard and Worcestershire sauce

6.       Pour in the chicken stock and beer and bring to a boil.

7.       Reduce heat and stir in the cheeses until they begin to melt and the soup has thickened from the cheese and the flour rue.

8.       Salt and pepper to taste and let simmer until ready to serve.

9.       Top each bowl with some homemade croutons.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30-40 minutes

Serves: 4-6 people.

      If you like a hearty creamy cheesy soup with a kick of your favorite beer and spice, give this fantastic soup a try. Enjoy.



Limoncello and Arancello

Arancello/Limoncello

 

     Italian's are known for their wine, their pasta, their cappuccino/espresso, etc. Many of our words in the English language are really from the Italian language and we forget that they are not English. Think of every pasta you know of.... Those are Italian words. Think of how popular your local coffee shop is or the famous Starbucks..... Those coffee names are Italian. See Italians are known for so many contributions to the American culture we tend to forget their origin.

     I have posted a couple times about our families wine making.  A tradition that has been handed down in my family for many years. Many people do not know that Italians are also famous for making liqueur drinks. Many after dinner drinks are so popular in Italian families that we seem to forget that not everyone knows about them. It is quite common after many courses of a meal in an Italian family that the meal is followed up with not only possibly a coffee drink but a nice shot of Italian liqueur. A good one that hits right at the bottom of your stomach. One that makes you feel relaxed, at home, and satisfied after a wonderful meal. A great liqueur that not only compliments the meal but completes it.

     Since it is summer time there are a few after dinner drinks that are perfect for the rising temperatures. The most famous of these is Limoncello. A lemon flavored liqueur chilled and sipped on. Another is its newest brother liqueur made out of oranges called Arancello.  Both of these are the perfect accompaniment to a refreshing summer meal. They're both easy to make and take very little time. The final product is so tantalizing that you won’t believe you made it all by yourself.  One of our cousins, Anita, gave us the recipe for these liqueurs. My cousin Claire and I decided to try our hands at it. So I am pleased to introduce you to our family’s recipe for Limoncello and Arancello. If you have never had these drinks, welcome to the world of Italian liqueurs and enjoy.

Ingredients:

• 8 lemons
• 8 oranges
• 2 liters grain alcohol
• 2 liters water
• 8 cups, (or 2 lbs), sugar

     First stage: Peel the skin off of your lemons and oranges. Place the peels into separate pitchers and cover with a liter each of grain alcohol. (We used Everclear. 2 bottles a piece to equal a liter roughly). Cover with plastic wrap and seal tightly for 5 days.

Claire peeling lemons

The first stage

     Second Stage: After five days take 1 liter of water and boil on the stove. Turn off the heat and mix in 4 cups of sugar until dissolved. Let cool for about an hour and then pour into the peel liqueur mixture. Recover and seal tightly for another 5 days.

Sugar water mixture

Second stage



     Third Stage: Strain your mixtures into another separate pitcher and then bottle. We chose nice little bottles with the metal and ceramic stoppers. Refrigerate immediately and enjoy! You can actually keep the original mixture with the peels covered for months if you want an even more full bodied drink. We chose a shorter period.

     Each batch makes about 2 liters a piece and we were able to fill about 4 each of the bottles we chose. We named ours too. Our Limoncello we called Loco Limoncello and our Arancello we named Arousing Arancello. These liquors will be perfect for our family reunion and summer picnic. The flavors and coolness of these two make a great after dinner sipping drink.  I am pretty sure we will all be a bit tipsy after a few of these. 

Straining

Loco Limoncello

Arousing Arancello

Salute!