This Christmas is going to be very special. We will be able to meet with the family but we will have to follow some rules: restrictions on the number of guests, curfew, hydroalcoholic gel at home...
It's clear that it will be a very different party. So why not organize a different dinner for the people we love the most? If 2020 has taught us anything, it is that we have to innovate, adapt and enjoy every detail to the fullest.
That is why we would like to propose that you surprise your guests with a lunch or dinner paired with craft beer. Beer is a great companion to enhance flavors, and changing the drink for each course can turn a dinner into a true gastronomic experience.
Here you can find two options of starters, main course and dessert with the craft beers that best combine with each dish. Bon appetit!
Spicy nuts
Every good celebration should start with a snack. Give a twist to the traditional canapés and offer your guests some spicy nuts. They are very easy to make, you just have to put almonds, hazelnuts and cashews in a baking tray with a mixture of salt, pepper, oil, two tablespoons of flower honey, a teaspoon of cayenne powder, another of cinnamon and thyme. Try to spread them out in a single layer on the tray and bake until golden brown. To enhance its flavor, we recommend offering beers with a malt/cereal flavor, such as American Brown Ale
Cheese and onion tarts
Another easy, quick and delicious starter! You can make the shortcrust pastry yourself or buy the ready-made tartlets. The important thing is the combination of cheeses. Sauté onion and garlic, add mushrooms and a soft cheese, such as brie. Fill the tartlets and cover them with a strong cheese, for example cured Manchego or roquefort for the most daring. It should be baked at 200º for 15 minutes. Serve warm with beers such as German Weizen, Witbier or Kölsch (all are wheat beers). As in this dish the cheese is cooked in the oven and its flavor is balanced, it complements very well the notes of bread or cake of this type of beer.
Stuffed capon
This typical dish in Galicia and Castilla y León has been gaining popularity in recent years. Free-range chicken, weighing about three kilos, can be stuffed with bacon, minced meat, pine nuts, apples and raisins. The accompanying sauce has carrots, leek and apple. The interesting thing about this dish is the combination of soft meat with the sweet flavors of the filling. Here we are going to look for the contrast of these flavors with beers with a medium-high level of bitterness: style APA or Amber Lagers, for example. The combination of sweet and sour with bitter brings out the flavors a lot!
Toledan-style stewed partridge
Traditionally, you had to cook real game birds, but today partridge is more likely to come from the supermarket. This does not detract from the charm of this Castilian-La Mancha recipe, with simple ingredients (vegetables, aromatic herbs, broth) where the wine and white vinegar pickle the meat over a low heat. And the marinade pairs perfectly with beers Light Lager, Pilsner, European Amber Lager, which they are softer styles with notes of malt, so as not to overpower the complex flavor of the dish.
Chocolate Roasted Pears
Another typical Christmas dessert, with the addition that it is very easy to prepare. All you have to do is place some cored and buttered pears in the oven for about 40 minutes. When you take them out of the oven, soak the fruit with the cooking juices, a tablespoon of brown sugar and grated dark chocolate, so that it melts with the residual heat. Delicious. This is another dish that we suggest you combine in a complementary way. Dark chocolate in particular, and sweet chocolate in general, pair well with high-alcohol beers, because they add a warm sensation and help melt the chocolate in your mouth: Stout-style beers .
Nougat and banana mille-feuille
Instead of the typical nougat tray, we suggest you use this typical Spanish sweet as one more ingredient. The preparation is very simple: melt the nougat in 200 ml of hot cream, add four sheets of neutral gelatin and put it in a pastry bag. You can serve it in simple cups, in layers: a layer of crushed biscuits, another layer of crushed ripe banana, then the nougat and to finish, whipped cream with a mint leaf. Combine it with wheat beers that carry banana aromas and/or flavors such as German Weizen or German Weizenbock, or try it with a elegant BarleyWine.
In addition to preparing a special menu and dazzling your guests with explanations of each beer (who doesn't like to be told what they're going to eat and drink before they get down to it?), you'll be helping to local craft beer producers. And these little details also make Christmas.
Happy and Responsible Holidays!
Author: Laura García de Lucas
.