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Awake at the Whisk

Sunday, February 27, 2011

 

Honey Whole Wheat Micro-Brew Bread Recipe

I seem to be drawn to things made of yeast: bread, beer, pastries. As my fair city celebrates Sacramento Beer Week with a host of yeasty festivities, I thought I’d throw in my support with a tasty combo using micro-brew ale in a honey-sweetened whole wheat bread recipe.

Honey Whole Wheat Micro-Brew Bread

Growing up, my parents stretched the food bill by serving bread with every meal. We would slather each slice in butter and some of Dad’s homemade jams (grape most often, cherry if Dad felt like sharing, and raspberry—all made from fruit we grew in our yard).

Our bread of choice: Hillbilly Bread. I kid you not. It’s a real brand—and apparently, they still sell it in Ohio. It’s whole wheat bread, and I’m sure Mom picked it because it had more nutrients than some of the other breads at the store. (She never bought any of the bright white kind.) And it was cheap.

Image found at: danielebrady.blogspot.com

I no longer eat Hillbilly Bread (haven’t seen it in the stores since I was a kid), but I do still love bread of any kind. I stumbled upon the following recipe, which I adapted slightly, from my King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking cookbook. As soon as I saw the word “micro-brew,” I was ready to start baking!

This loaf is soft and slightly sweet. I cut it into thick slices, toast them for a warm breakfast, and spoon on honey from my farmers’ market.

This bread is wonderful when served warm. Even when toasted for breakfast, it stays soft.

Honey Whole Wheat Micro-Brew Bread Recipe

¾ cup amber ale (I used Real McCoy Amber from Mammoth Brewing Company)
¼ cup orange juice
3 Tablespoons mountain wildflower honey (or other dark honey)
2 ½ teaspoons instant yeast
1 ¾ cups whole wheat flour
½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup all-purpose flour (unbleached)
1 ½ teaspoons salt
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 Tablespoon walnut oil

Farmers’ Market ingredients: honey, whole wheat flour, butter
Garden Grown ingredients: oranges for o.j.
California-made or Locally-made ingredients: amber ale
Supermarket ingredients: yeast, oats, all-purpose flour, salt


Pour the beer, o.j., and honey into the bottom of a large mixing bowl. Add the instant yeast and let sit for a few minutes while you measure the flour.

Add the whole wheat flour to the yeast and liquid and stir to combine.

Add the oats, all-purpose flour, and salt to the bowl. Before mixing, use a cheese grater to grate the cold butter into the bowl. Mix all the ingredients together to form smooth bread dough. Knead for about 8-10 minutes. If the dough is a little sticky, that’s okay. Adding extra flour will dry it out.

Lightly coat the dough with a tablespoon of walnut oil and cover. Set in a warm place for 1-2 hours, until nearly doubled in size.

Grease a 9 X 4 inch loaf pan. Gently deflate the dough. Shape to fit and place it in the loaf pan. Cover and let rise again until the dough rises above the rim of the pan—about 1.5-2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Uncover and bake the bread for 35 minutes. For a softer crust, tent the pan with foil during the last 15 minutes of baking. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then remove from pan and cool for another 25 minutes before slicing.

Yield: One loaf

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# posted by Amber @ Sunday, February 27, 2011 6 Comments

Sunday, February 21, 2010

 

Beer: Is Your Beverage Green?

Thirst-quenching, delicious beer! The beverage of football players and frat parties has finally become refined. Farewell, watery light beer! Hello, American craft ales!

I am a proud beer snob. I’m not ashamed to admit it. Yet, I’ve come a long way in my journey. When I drank my first beer (a tasteless brew from a giant corporation), I doused my cup with Mt. Dew. Yes, I hated it that much. A few years later, I had the good fortune of living in Denmark, where I was introduced to a finer lager. And thus my taste for good ale blossomed.

Today, I stick to microbrews. (No Mt. Dew needed.) Smooth amber ales will win my heart over any time! I’m also quite fond of good pale ales and hoppy IPAs. I like my beer to slap me in the face with bold flavor. Or, on a hot summer day, I’ll grab a lager and throw in a twist of lime to cool the heat. And while others are clinking glasses of wine, I’ll opt instead for a frothy brew any day.

Yes, I shall forever remain a true beer fan. And in celebration of Sacramento Beer Week, which kicks off tomorrow, I’m putting my beverage-of-choice to the ultimate locavore test. Is it green enough?—and I don’t mean adding food coloring as they do on St. Patty’s Day.

All hail my green beer experiment! I have done the research for you so that you might drink in peace. Grab a pint and let’s celebrate!!

Green Beer Tips:
1) Head to the Nearest Pub (on bike!): Beer containers maximize their environmental footprint. All those bottles and cans start to add up. The greenest beer container? The keg! So, pedal on over to your local pub to keep your brew green.

2) Order Local: Now that you’re comfortably seated at your local bar, order the local brew. For those of us here in Sac Town, ordering locally is easy. From Rubicon to Hoppy, we’ve got some wonderful beers to choose from. You can even remain safely within the 100 mile locavore radius by choosing popular Sierra Nevada ales from Chico, CA. Hell, even if you’re feeling really naughty and want to order one of my favorite brews (Arrogant Bastard) out of San Diego, you’re still lightening the carbon load by not ordering that bicyclist’s beer from Colorado or that Irish brew from across the ocean. Cali’s got it going on when it comes to local beers.

3) Go Organic: Crops of hops are ubiquitously doused in fungicides. If you want to reduce the amount of pesticide use on our planet, opt for locally-brewed organic ale. Here are a few you might like, conveniently located at a brewer near you: Butte Creek (Chico, CA), Bison Brewing (Berkeley, CA), and Eel River Brewing Company (Fortuna, CA).

4) Go Solar: You can minimize your beer’s carbon footstep even further by buying from a solar-powered brewery. Boont Amber Ale is one such delightful beer, and it’s crafted in Boonville, CA—just a stone’s throw away (well, only three hours—still closer than Colorado!). Sierra Nevada Brewing Company is also solar powered. Now doesn’t that just make your favorite beer taste better!

5) Cool Your Own Beer: Cut down on the amount of energy used to keep your beer cold in the grocery store cooler. Buy room-temperature beer (as they sell it at Trader Joe’s) and throw a few bottles in your frig at home. And for Pete’s sake, don’t run an extra frig just for your cold beverages. Keep only what you need in your kitchen frig. If you’re having a party, buy some ice and throw everything in a tub to save energy.

There you have it: proof that you really can go green while drinking beer! For more reading on the matter, check out this fine article.

All this good news is making me thirsty. I hope to see you at the Colonial Theater opening event for Sacramento Beer Week tomorrow at 6pm! I’d love to raise a glass with you. I’ll also be passing out samples of my tasty Chocolate Stout Cupcakes.

Afterwards, meet me back here throughout the week for brew-inspired recipes like my aforementioned cupcakes and some tasty Purple Potato Wedges marinated in Amber Ale. Cheers!

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# posted by Amber @ Sunday, February 21, 2010 1 Comments

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