8 Beers that taste like Spring! #BeerMonth

FINALLY at long last it's Spring! So I compiled a list of beers that taste like Spring! From hoppy to sweet there is something for EVERYONE!

 These are 8 beers that TOTALLY taste like SPRING! After a loooong ass winter let's drink up some of that Spring taste with these!

IPA Pickles #BeerMonth

Everyone loves some pickles, well now you can make your own at home and make them even better with beer and garlic!!

This post is not just in celebration of #BeerMonth but also #NationalGarlicDay and this recipe definitely celebrates both!

Citrus Hops Gin Fizz #BeerMonth

Who says hops are only good for beer? It's beer month and I am finding a whole new use for hops and their floral flavor. This crisp refreshing cocktail with Gin is made with a syrup steeped with hops, lime and lemon peel.

Well I have quite the creative cocktail for you today! Beer month takes on so many forms! Not just beer recipes- but beer inspired! 

Hops baby- we love 'em in our IPA's, Pale Ales and well every beer!! So why do we only need to enjoy them in beer? Well I don't!

Hops are a cone shaped flower that is one of 4 main ingredients that MUST be in beer. So we are not talking like the hops below:



I made ice cream with hops and now a crisp and refreshing spring cocktail!

How? Well I made a hop and citrus simple syrup... it was truly simple! Really you will never buy simple syrup again especially when  you can infuse your very own VERY easily!

This is light, refreshing, thirst quenching and perfect for spring sippin'. 

Rum would have been your typical pick, but I went outside the norm and chose Gin.

Gin has a more herbal and floral taste to it that I though would more organically synch with this drink.

PS- Tuesday was National Beer Day, so you need to get this cocktail on STAT!

What you need

For the syrup

2 cups sugar

1 cup water 

5" x 5" square of cheese cloth

1 tablespoon citra hop pellets 

(can be bought at any home brew store)

Zest of 1 small lemon and lime

For the drink

1 tablespoon hop and citrus syrup

1 shot of Gin

3 ice cubes

Club soda to fill short glass 

How to make it

1- Create a simple syrup with 2 cups of sugar and 1 cup of water in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
2- Stir until sugar is dissolved. Place hop pellets in cheesecloth and tie it up, placing it in the sugar water mixture. Go ahead and also add your lemon and lime zest.
3. When in comes to a boil, let boil for about a minute and then cover the pot and let the flavors infuse further for 10 minutes.
4. Now you got your syrup ready. Dissolve 1 tablespoon of the syrup in 1 shot or jigger of gin. Add three ice cubes and club soda to fill.
5- Stir and serve with a lime garnish!

 

How to make the perfect oven baked fries #BeerMonth

I tried three methods in search of the perfect oven baked fries- it's all here for you. No trial and error needed!

I'm kicking off beer month with a healthier version of one of the bestest friends to beer- french fries! Don't we all crave some fried food once you start drinking?! Yuuup!

Honey Brown Beer Bread with Bacon, The Birth of a Brewery and More!

A #beermonth recipe, the birth of a brewery and exciting news of upcoming features on NY Foodgasm.

Chicken Beeriyaki with Asian Slaw #beermonth

I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Millennial Central for Kirin. I received product samples to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation. All ideas presented are my own.

Here is the first group celebration of #beermonth my friends! My blogger pals have all joined together to bring you their take on beer recipes. I am super excited to introduce you all to Lauren of Hall Nesting, Heather from girlichef and Jessica from Jessiker Bakes! I love all these ladies and I want you to show them love to by checking out there blogs (I love them all and read them all every week!) and by checking out their recipes at the bottom of this post!  

This is my very first sponsored post, I often shy away from these things unless I genuinely think you guys wanna read about it. With this one, I knew I should be involved with this one. It is #beermonth after all! So when the opportunity arose for me to sample and cook with Kiran Ichiban, I was totally on board.

If you haven't heard of Kiran Ichiban it is THE Sushi Restaurant go to beer to represent Japan. To learn more about the beer, visit their website! I hadn't tried it before, so my expectations were low. But it was pretty decent, crisp and clean. Absolutely perfect to accompany any Asian dish. I think it represents Japanese cuisine pretty well; it is a simple yet elegant beer and very balanced. Not overly malty or hoppy you can pair this with most anything. But you know I don't just pair beer with food, I make food with beer!

Asian beer, Asian inspired dish! All you foodies- don't hate on me, I have a confession. I don't like sushi- nope- I tried it all and it ain't my thing. So that was out and I was glad, it's a whole lotta work. So I made something completely different with my beer. Chicken Beeriaki, it's like chicken teriaki, but like WAY better.

Everything is better with beer, but I also made this super easy too! All you have to do is brown some chicken and prepare the sauce in the food processor, then added the fresh Asian veggies. No cooking of veggies required, so it kinda makes an Asian slaw. I paired it with some sushi rice for that authentic feel. So I got what I like about sushi- protein, the sauce and that awesome sticky rice without the seaweed taste. I made a roll out of the ingredients, but I tasted it and I don't care for the seaweed AT ALL! If you do like sushi and seaweed wrappers this can easily be made into a roll. You can see I included a piece of the roll on the pictures so you could see it.

 Why is this a Foodgasm?

Chicken teriyaki is a staple- but kicked up with beer?! Even better. I find the beer flavor intensified and enhanced this and accompanied it even more than I imagined! This sauce is one of my new favorite things and I think it will be yours too! Even for the skeptical- try it! It will surprise you! Plus it is easy to make and low in fat and calories!

What you need

2 chicken breasts, cut into strips
1/3 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste
Olive Oil as needed for browning

1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon pickled ginger
1/2 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 cup Kiran Ichiban beer

2 cups chopped Asian salad (the kind you buy in a bag)

 

How to make it

1- Dredge chicken in mixture of flour, salt and pepper.
2- Brown chicken on both sides in a skillet on medium heat.
3- In a food processor, combine: 1 tablespoon sesame oil, 1 tablespoon pickled ginger, 1/2 tablespoon honey, 1 teaspoon minced garlic and 1/2 cup Kiran Ichiban beer.
4- Mix together the Asian chopped salad with some of the sauce.
5- Serve atop Sushi rice.

Nutritional Information

Each serving includes chicken sauce and vegetables. Additional calories for white rice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#Beermonth recipes

 

Thirsty Thursday- 10 Beery Facts About Me #beermonth

I have come to the conclusion that I really don't tell you all about me all that much. So here is what I have been up to lately- especially as it pertains to #beermonth

Here are 10 beery facts about me!


1- This year I went to my first beer festivals- seriously!

 

I know you are probably shocked by this, I am too. But owning a home on Long Island don't come cheap so the usual $35- $75 ticket price is a swift kick in the ass for me. As this blog becomes bigger and I write more, I am sure I can get in with a press pass. This year I was working as a vendor, so I got to pour beer and pour myself beer from ALLL the breweries. Yeah it kicked ASS!

Also not all beer festivals are super cool. I went to The Spring Craft Beer Festival at the Nassau Colluseum and most recently to the Blue Point Cask Festival. LOVED the Cask Festival, not so much Nassau. Nassau is more a starter festival for craft newbies and college kids that wanna get wrecked. The cask festival is more for people that really know and love their beer. Special casks with special flavors of flagship beers.

Citrus IPA Poundcake #beermonth

What is an IPA you may say? (That is what my mom said to me anyways) IPA stands for India Pale Ale. IPA's belong under the larger umbrella style of Pale Ales, meaning that they use pale colored malts. The IPA is known to be a hoppy beer so you really taste the hops more than the malt. Digging deeper than that, the type of hops you use can bring out certain characteristic flavors and aromas. Many hops can bring out citrusy flavors naturally, so that is where the idea for this recipe came in...

IPA's are a hot style right now, with Double IPA's (also known as an Imperial IPA) and Triple IPA's trending I thought I would need to experiment with this style. To bring out the citrusy notes in the IPA I have wanted to make this pound cake for a WHILE now, to experiment and make something memorable with it.

It's good to have friends that brew craft beer! My friend Matt from Outer Lands Brewing Company asked me to try their Good Mojo IPA. It was the day after a beer festival, I didn't wanna look at beer or even drink it, but I took a taste. It's nicely balanced, not bitter at all with great citrus notes. Exactly what I needed for this recipe! For a non IPA drinker or someone that does not like a bitter IPA this craft  is for YOU.

#Beermonth Begins with a Chocolate Stout Shake!

For those of you that have been following me for a while you will remember #Beermonth from last year. It is a month where I celebrate my love for craft beer with: recipes, articles, reviews and more from me and some of my blogging friends! This year I have my friend Lauren from Hall's Nesting, Jessica from Jessiker Bakes, Melissa from Drunk and Unemployed and Nicole from Nibbles by Nic.You can expect BIG recipe posts 4/16 and 4/30 from ALL of us and maybe some articles and general craft beer love coming your way!

The Story of Beer Month...

My love of craft beer started with The Gateway to Craft Beer, Pumpkin Spice. I think you ladies know what I am talking about. If not this is the magic that is pumpkin spice ale- It is ale brewed with pumpkin and spices and then in NY (as I understand this is not done everywhere) they rim the glass with pumpkin spice sugar. TO- DIE- FOR. I fell and I fell hard for the spice. The spice captured my heart and then I just had to know more about craft beer.

I moved on to other fruit beers. One of my first faves was Bluepoint Blueberry Ale, so delicious and perfect in the summer. Then I tried Sam Adams Cherry Wheat. Then I really started getting adventurous and ventured onto the dark side. Dark beers- dun dun dun **cue scary music**

I learned one thing- never to judge a beer by it's color. Just like with people, you should see what's happening on the inside. While I don't encourage you to lick a person to see if they're any good... I do encourage you to at least take a simple sip of a beer. At worst, you can easily spit it our if you don't like it.

Since I had my own blog I knew I had to incorporate cooking and beer together for a month of craft beer love.

Since my love of craft beer grew, it blossomed into a new direction for me. I write for 2 magazines about local craft beer and have become completely immersed with the craft beer culture here on Long Island. Beer month was born so I can share recipes with local craft beer and give you a little taste of the local scene and happenings.

Since I never drink alone- I always invite some bloggers to get in on the fun with me!
I have some surprises too! This month I will be brewing my VERY own beer with The Brewers Collective, a local group of home brewers. I strongly believe that homebrewers' creativity heavily influences the nano and craft brew market. With homebrew you can take those chances and you know I like to get creative!

Now for the reason you are all here- this drippy mess of deliciousness that I call A Chocolate Stout Milkshake...

I have been going to a local restaurant, Relish, for a while now. The food is always fresh, as local as it can be and inventive while still being incredibly comforting and inviting. No small portion or names you cannot pronounce or understand. This is down to earth, creative twists on classic comfort. A place that anyone can feel comfortable. When I heard they were serving beer, I was excited. When I saw they had a Guinness Milk Shake, I had to try it and WOAH it stopped me in my tracks, I clutched my chest to keep my heart still. It was way better than I ever expected.

Chocolate and Stouts are  not an uncommon combination at all. If you follow one of my faves, The Beeroness, You will see stout and chocolate are a "thing", basically mouth magic! The dark maltiness of a stout already had notes of chocolate present often, so to add it to a chocolate recipe further pushes the bounderies.

So I thank Relish in Kings Park, NY for this recipe! It rocks HARD!

Why is this a Foodgasm?

This is pretty easy to answer, chocolate ice cream + stout beer = MAGIC.
But to balance it out there is caramel and chocolate syrup for a little more sweet-ness as stouts sometimes have a bitter edge to them.

Six Point Diesel Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

Why is this a Foodgasm?

So I knew I had to make fresh brussels sprouts, it came to me on a visit to a Brewery in the Financial District of NYC. They served brussels sprouts with bacon. Well duh...bacon makes everything better! Aside from that I thought this is just an excellent side you got your guilt free veggie so you know what...it's totally okay to add a little bacon for favor. A little bacon goes a loooong way!


But how do I give this my own signature Foodgasm flair? ADD BEER! Not just any beer, but Sixpoint Diesel. I heart Sixpoint mostly because they know good design, but also because they have a nice selection of brews. I used their Diesel an interesting combo of a black IPA and American Stout. Not usually a dark beer lover, this one is great since there is no real bitter aftertaste.

It is amazing how the beer really infused the sprouts, then when it reduced it added a sweetness. Then you got some salty awesomely yummy bacon and YES you just landed smack on top of a Foodgasm!

Great South Bay Blood Orange Pale Ale Chicken with Lemon Roasted Potatoes

 

Why is this a Foodgasm?

I took a different approach with this recipe...I let the beer decide what it wanted to be. I started with a local fave Great South Bay's Blood Orange Pale Ale. With this beer it has been love at first sip- crisp, light, just the right amount of orange flavor and so easy to drink! I wanted to make sure to get in some of my awesome local long island beer. I love the local craft beer scene. Immediately I thought orange chicken, kinda like the one you get from a Chinese place, but healthier and with local craft beer twist (seriously is there anything better??). 

I knew this recipe needed to happen, but how did I execute it. So I kinda went the route of Chicken Fracaise, but made a beer reduction syrup with this. The results were AMAZING! Sweet, but not syrupy sweet and it was light. It paired perfectly with these easy lemon roasted potatoes! You must try this recipe and please do try and get your hands on this beer- you will not be disappointed!

Beer Month Recipe Round-up Number 2 - Bluepoint Blueberry Muffins: A Fat Free Foodgasm

Why is this a Foodgasm?

I have always been a fan of Bluepoint Blueberry, it was one of my first favorites! So crisp and sweet, it just works so well with the taste of the beer. I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner, but I finally connected the dots and made blueberry muffins with it! This pair was meant to be! The blueberry beer intensifies the overall blueberry flavor in the muffin, then I added 1 whole cup of blueberries!  

But I am not the BEST baker in the world, I thought I needed more experience to make my own muffins, then I found this great recipe for Homemade Cake Mix on i am baker. So I thought I am just gonna use this dry ingredient recipe and make these like I make my cupcakes with a beer and an egg- and it WORKED! Needless to say I was thrilled and I have to tell you they are AMAZING! Totally blueberry bliss and then to add more awesomeness I sprinkled them with some Turbinado Sugar. Did I mention they are FAT FREE!

Yup this was easy, fat free and sooooo good! That is a foodgasm my friends!

This is also Beer Month's LAST Recipe Round-up see links to all of my other #beermonthbloggers at the bottom of this post.

Brewery Review: Brooklyn Brewery

A Big Brewery that was a Small Disappointment

I was very excited to hit Brooklyn Brewery, I have seen their beer everywhere and I liked a few that I tried. They were right in Brooklyn and they were pretty big so I thought, wow this is perfect for beer month! My expectation is that you could try everything, like you do other places and kind of take your time with it, but the whole world knows about Brooklyn Brewery now since they are widely distributed. So it was pretty packed and the whole set up was just not as I expected.

Shock Top Belgian White Citrus Cupcakes

Why is this a Foodgasm?

For Beer Month so far I have done a whole lotta Guinness recipes, I knew it was time for something different. On a recent shopping trip I picked up some of these Shock Top Belgian White beers and I really like this type of beer. This is a Belgian style wheat ale with real orange, lemon and lime peel and spiced with coriander. I love a little twist on a classic and a good fruity beer. I knew I had to try a cupcake with this one, it screams dessert!

So to make this EASY I used a cake mix. To reduce the fat I used egg whites for the cupcakes and used a 50/50 blend of butter and smart balance for the frosting.

Imagine- just imagine...cupcakes made with this beer and then infused with orange and lemon zest, whip on some lemon frosting and then sprinkle with some orange zest. This is sweet, creamy, with the nice acidity of the lemon and the creaminess of the icing with the occasional zing from orange zest in the cake and sprinkled on top.

So not only does this baby have beer, it is reduced fat, creamy and easy to make- YUP this is a definite foodgasm!