Cooking with the King

Preheat oven to 350F

Sift together the flour and cocoa powder. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a bowl over boiling water.

In a small pan over medium heat, melt the butter until it just turns golden brown.

Pour the brown butter into the bowl of chocolate, scraping the pan to get the brown bits (this prevents it from overcooking), then add the beer.

Beat together the eggs and sugar until thick and shiny (2 minutes).

Continue beating on low while adding flour mixture and wet ingredients alternatively.

Finish with the vanilla. Do not over mix. Fold in the chips. Pour into a buttered and floured 9 x 13 pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes.

Cook macaroni in boiling salted water until al dente; drain and set aside.

In large Dutch oven or saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute.

Whisk in beer, Dijon, salt and pepper until smooth; cook for about 2 minutes. Whisk in milk bring mixture to a slow boil, stirring often. Off heat, stir in cheeses until melted.

Stir pasta into cheese sauce until well combined. Pour into large baking dish.

Combine about 1 cup fresh bread crumbs with 1 tablespoon melted butter. Sprinkle over top. Place under broiler until lightly browned, about 2-3 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl combine all ingredients. Knead by hand or stand mixer until dough forms a smooth elastic ball. If dough is too sticky, gradually work in a few tablespoons of flour.

Place dough in a greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap; let rest at least 1 hour. The dough should be puffy, and almost doubled in size.
Lightly grease an 8 ½” x 4 ½” loaf pan.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Press dough into a rectangle and roll into a loaf shape. Place dough in the pan; cover and let it rest for about 1 hour until it rises about 1” above the rim.

Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 375°F.

Bake the bread for 35 minutes, or golden brown. Let cool before slicing.

Combine the beer, mustard, butter, and cayenne pepper in a saucepan on medium heat until well mixed.

Gradually add the cheese, in 1 cup batches, whisking until the texture is smooth. Stop adding cheese once you have achieved your desired thickness; remove from heat and stir in minced jalapeno.

Note: for a tangier taste – reduce the shredded cheese to 8 ounces and add one 8-oz packages of cream cheese.

In a large cast-iron or other heavy skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels with a slotted spoon; drain, reserving drippings. Cook bratwurst and onion in drippings over medium heat until meat is no longer pink, breaking into crumbles. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain well.

Stir in the beer. We recommend using Persistent One Pale Ale. The beer is well balanced and marries well with all of the other ingredients. For a slightly sweeter taste, use any of King’s Road’s more malt-forward beers like King’s Gold Lager, Revolutionary Red or Ice Scraper Pilsner. For a flavor that’s just a bit richer use darker beers like Black Musket Stout or Potter Street Porter.

Now, stir in in the cream cheese, mustard and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until thickened, 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in bacon. Spoon 1/4 cup onto each roll; sprinkle with chips. Replace tops.

Place chicken in shallow pan or resealable bag. Pour ½ cup beer over chicken. Let marinate at least 1 hour.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Sprinkle chicken evenly with ¼ teaspoon each pepper and salt. Add chicken to pan; sauté about 5 minutes on each side or until almost done. May need to cook in 2 batches.

Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

Add green onions to pan; cook 2-3 minutes or until softened. Combine remaining beer and next 3 ingredients (through honey) in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Add beer mixture to pan; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook 5-7 minutes to reduce sauce. Return chicken to pan; turn to coat with sauce. Sprinkle evenly with parsley.

In a large bowl, combine flour, yeast, salt.

Add King’s Gold Lager; stir with a fork to combine. Dough will be lumpy. Mix, then knead* dough—by hand or with a stand mixer and dough hook- until you have a soft, smooth dough.

If the dough is too sticky, gradually add a very small amount of flour until the dough is just slightly tacky and elastic. To tell when the dough is done, poke it; when dough gently springs back, it’s done.

Place dough in an airtight container lightly greased with olive oil. Make sure there is enough room for the dough to double in size.
Set dough aside to rise in a warm location, about 70ºF-80F is good. After dough has doubled in size (about 1-2 hours), gently remove from container and stretch to fit on a lightly greased 12” or 14” cookie sheet or pizza pan. Dough can also be placed in the refrigerator to rise overnight (this is a cold fermentation which will allow more flavors to develop). Let dough come to room temperature before using.

Spread dough with your choice of toppings. Bake in an oven preheated to 450, on the lowest oven rack for 7-10 minutes or until cheese is bubbling and crust is lightly browned.

* Kneading means to press, stretch & fold the dough to develop the gluten in the flour. This is what gives breads their structure and texture. If the dough is not kneaded enough, the bread will be flat and dense

In medium saucepan combine beer, water, vinegar, sugar, salt, peppercorns, dill, garlic and pepper flakes. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Stir until sugar dissolves.

Allow to cool to room temperature.

Add the cucumbers in even batches to airtight containers like 16-ounce canning jars; add a few sprigs of dill.

Pour the cooled brine over the cucumbers, making sure all slices are submerged. Chill for at least 24 hours prior to serving. Keep chilled or can properly for shelf storage.