Tag Archives: Pumpkin Ale

Pumpkin + Beer = Winning

Posted on by

2

Beer and books.

Two of my favorite things got together for a party.

Fordham Brewing Company celebrated their fall release with a pumpkin packed event that supported the local library.

The festivities included a brewery tour, punkin’ chunkin’,  pumpkin carving, taste testing, and a pumpkin recipe contest.

I’ve been drinking working hard to come up with the perfect pumpkin dessert.

A peanut butter cookie base

meets a thick, rich spiced pumpkin filling

and gets topped with peanut butter cookie crumbles, roasted peanuts, and peanut butter chips.

.In case you weren’t aware, peanut butter and pumpkin go together like beer and books.

There are quite a few ingredients and steps to this recipe, but once you taste these squares, you will be hooked!

The layers of peanut butter cookie and pumpkin collide to make a soft bar that adds a new twist to traditional pumpkin desserts.

Peanut Butter Pumpkin Squares

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

For bottom layer:

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup butter

½ cup white sugar

¼ cup dark brown sugar

1 egg

½ cup  peanut butter

½ teaspoon vanilla

Sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl.  Add egg and mix thoroughly. Add peanut butter and vanilla. Add dry ingredients to peanut butter mixture and stir until combined. Dough will be soft. Spread half of dough in bottom of 9 X 9 inch pan.

For Pumpkin Filling:

¼ cup sugar

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1 egg

1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin puree

¼ cup maple syrup

                                                                                                   ¼ cup evaporated milk

Combine sugar and pie spice. Add egg and mix thoroughly. Stir in pumpkin and maple syrup. Gradually add evaporated milk. Pour over peanut butter crust.

 For topping:

Combine remaining half of dough with ½ cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup chopped peanut butter chips and  ¼ cup ground peanuts. Dough should be crumbly. Sprinkle over pumpkin mixture.

Bake 45 minutes or until topping starts to crisp.

The salty, buttery bars paired perfectly with the mildly spiced harvest ale and I’m proud to say they were awarded third place in the recipe contest.

It was a night of good beer, good conversation and a lot of local love.

It was a night of pure beerfection.

Happy Beer Day!

Posted on by

1

My husband just joined the “officially old” club.

It was the birthday that signifies that you can no longer blame your idiocy on being in your early 20′s.

And for one glorious month, we are the same age and I don’t feel like a cougar.

I asked husband what he wanted for his birthday dessert.

Answer: Beer.

He treated himself to a build your own six-pack.

I stole the Young’s Double Chocolate Stout and treated him to an alcohol infused cocoa cake with chocolate stout sauce.

He ate three servings just to make sure it was good.

We continued the celebration during dinner at the beach.

The real appeal for us was the extensive craft beer selection.

I started with Schlafly Pumpkin Ale.

Beerday Boy enjoyed a dark, rich Belgian Brew.

Dark and deceptively sweet, this was almost like drinking wine.

Dinner commenced with a roasted beet salad for the lady and a burger for beer boy.

Red and golden beets, crunchy pickled radish, sunflower seeds, and feta cheese drizzled with a balsamic reduction.

The henlopen city burger gets smothered with mushroom and gruyere gratin, tomato bacon jam, and locally grown lettuce. The bacon for the jam is smoked on site! Just the sight of this burger had me questioning my non-meat eating status.

For round two of the beer tour, I wanted to compare the Schlafly to Dogfish Head Punkin Ale.

Even though both brews were pumpkin ales, their flavor profiles were quite different. The Punkin Ale had an intense pumpkin flavor and a more delicate balance of spices compared to the prominantly spiced Schlafly.

Another Belgian brew was on tap for BB.

This version was much lighter and hoppier than the first one.

BB is so cute. He thought his birthday present was the chocolate stout cake.

During dinner, I surprised him with this.

A coffee and cream stout beer kit for his home brewery and custom labels.

Our delinquent dog, Stella, adorns the label.

Next time you’re visiting, ask for a Black Dog from the Stellar Brewing Company.

Then whip up a batch of Chocolate Stout Sauce to top your favorite cakes, brownies and ice creams.

Chocolate Stout Sauce

1/4 cup chocolate stout

1 tablespoon cocoa powder

1 can (14 oz.) fat-free sweetened condensed milk

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons cold water

In a small sauce pan, warm beer on low heat. Add cocoa powder and stir until dissolved.  Whisk in sweetened condensed milk. Combine cornstarch and water in small dish to make a slurry. Add  slurry to the milk and beer, increasing heat to medium. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil and boil for one minute. Transfer to jar and allow to cool completely. Refrigerate any unused portion.

Tidbit: The condesned milk will carmelize very quickly so make sure you stir constantly to avoid turning your sauce into a sticky mess.