Home Brew

Two years ago, I gave James wine making supplies for Christmas. That winter we made our fist batch of homemade wine. I blogged about it here. Well, it turns out you can use those same supplies to make homemade beer. Mmmmm, beer. So this winter, that's just what we did. James and I headed back up to the Beer & Wine Maker's Warehouse, a little shop in Hartford owned by my godmother and her husband, to pick up all the ingredients and to get a few tips and tricks on how to brew (good) homemade beer. We came home and James got right to work on our home brew that very night.

Aunt Di and Adrian's Beer & Wine Makers Warehouse

It took about five weeks for our beer to be ready to drink. I have to say, I was pretty skeptical about this whole endeavor at first, but not any more! We made a light-bodied cream ale for our first brew and it turned out great. It's fun to be able to bring some of our own home brewed beer to a party with us and share it with friends. So far we've gotten lots of good feedback and many beer requests for our future brews. We'll have to see if we decide to make another batch or go back to wine making for awhile. Pretty soon our entire basement is going to be split between a brewery and a wine cellar - and James and I don't even drink that much!

The whole family taking part in the bottling process

"99 bottles of beer"

To go with our newly brewed beer, we made some homemade veggie burgers and sweet potato and squash soup for dinner on Sunday night. As many of you veg heads know, it's not easy finding a great veggie burger recipe. This one is one of my favorites. The soup's not bad either, as long as you have 6 hours to spare. And they both go perfectly with beer.

mmm...beer and burgers

Ultimate Veggie Burger
(from 101Cookbooks.com)

2 1/2 cups sprouted garbanzo beans (chickpeas) OR canned garbanzos, drained and rinsed
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 onion, chopped
Grated zest of one large lemon
1 cup micro sprouts, chopped (try broccoli, onion, or alfalfa sprouts - optional)
1 cup toasted (whole-grain) bread crumbs
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (or clarified butter)

If you are using sprouted garbanzos, steam them until just tender, about 10 minutes (I just used canned beans). Combine the garbanzos, eggs, and salt in a food processor. Puree until the mixture is the consistency of a very thick, slightly chunky hummus. Pour into a mixing bowl and stir in the cilantro, onion, zest, and sprouts. Add the breadcrumbs, stir, and let sit for a couple of minutes so the crumbs can absorb some of the moisture. At this point, you should have a moist mixture that you can easily form into twelve 1 1/2-inch-thick patties.

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium low, add 4 patties, cover, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the bottoms begin to brown. Turn up the heat if there is no browning after 10 minutes. Flip the patties and cook the second side for 7 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the skillet and cool on a wire rack while you cook the remaining patties. Carefully cut each patty in half, insert your favorite fillings, and enjoy immediately.

Winter Squash and Sweet Potato Soup
(from "Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker")

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 butternut squash, peeled and diced
4 cups vegetable stock
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and celery, cover and cook until soften, about 5 minutes. Transfer the cooked vegetables to a 4-to 6-quart slow cooker. Add the sweet potatoes, squash, stock, thyme, and sage; season with salt and peeper, cover an cook on Low for 6 hours. Puree the soup in a blender or food processor or directly in the slow cooker using an immersion blender (I kind of regret this - it made the soup too mushy, next time I'll just leave it as-is). Taste to adjust seasonings and serve hot.

I realize these aren't the best pictures - I mostly forgot to photograph the cooking part!