Have you ever baked desserts with craft beer? I’ve made some pretty tasty beer brownies, but that’s about the extent of my beer-baking experience. However, several weeks ago, my friends and I were inspired by some of the weird, “trendy” beers that popped up, and we had to try some things of our own.
Several weeks ago, my friends and I were discussing some of the weirder beers that have come out this year. Think the “Sour Me Unicorn Farts” from DuClaw Brewing in Maryland, and the “Saturday Morning” from Smartmouth Brewing in Virginia. Try as we might, we couldn’t get our hands on those in Tennessee, and our sources in other states had trouble finding them, too.
But I had another idea: my trusty beer guy Phil, over at Sigler’s Craft Beer, has a wide variety of beers at his shop, and I knew he’d have some weird, funky beers that would strike our interests. He selected four awesome beers for my friends and I to taste and bake with, and he did not disappoint!
The lineup included (left to right): Straight to Ale Stout at the Devil oatmeal stout; D9 Brewing Brewer’s Day Off cucumber and cantaloupe gose; New Heights Holy Mole Mexican mole milk stout; and Meridian Hive Dynamo tart cherry mead. My friend Shelly crafted four incredible desserts featuring these craft beers, and we recorded ourselves tasting the pairings for the Nooga Belle Podcast. It was quite an evening!
Scroll down for the recipes for these tasty desserts with craft beer!
First up: Peach Bread Pudding
I’d actually had this mead a year or so ago, way before we recorded the episode. It is tart, but it’s not lemonade tart. It actually tastes more like wine than beer. So if you’re not a beer drinker, this might be a good one to start with! The wine flavor is enhanced with the sweet bread pudding. The mead is used in the actual bread pudding, and the cinnamon sauce for topping.
Listen to the tasting episode here.
Peach Bread Pudding (ft. Dynamo Tart Cherry Mead)
Ingredients
- 1/2 loaf day-old bread
- 3-4 peaches, pitted & sliced (If not in season, use canned peaches, rinsed and drained)
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup Dynamo Tart Cherry Mead
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
- White sugar for dusting
CINNAMON BROWN SUGAR SAUCE
- 1/4 cup salted butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 4 tbsp Dynamo Tart Cherry Mead
- Pinch kosher salt
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and grease an 8x8 Pyrex baking dish.
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Peel and slice peaches, and set aside.
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Slice and cube bread, and place in baking dish.
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Whisk together eggs, heavy cream, milk, mead, and vanilla.
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Toss peaches with bread, making sure some peaches are on top.
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Pour half of the milk and egg mixture on top of the bread and peaches. Let stand 15 minutes to allow most of the liquid to absorb.
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Pour remaining egg mixture on top, and sprinkle with sugar.
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Place on a baking sheet and bake 30-40 minutes, until golden and center is set up.
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MAKE THE SAUCE: In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.
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Add brown sugar, cream, salt, and mead, and stir well.
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Bring to a boil; let boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat when it's done.
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Drizzle sauce over bread pudding when ready to plate and serve.
Next: Triple Chocolate Stout Brownies
Talk about rich and delicious. The addition of the Stout at the Devil oatmeal stout balances out the sweetness, but half a brownie is plenty. Dark chocolate lovers, this pair is for you!
Listen to the tasting episode here.
Stout at the Devil Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 6 tbsp butter, grated
- 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
- 3 oz unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 5 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips (mini, or coarsely chopped)
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 8 oz stout beer, at room temperature
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, for topping
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch pan (use a smaller pan for thicker brownies).
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Combine flour, cocoa powder, and salt until combined; set aside.
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Melt butter, bittersweet chocolate, and white chocolate in a double boiler on medium heat until melted and combined.
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In a large bowl (or in your stand mixer), beat eggs and sugar on high until fluffy. Add melted chocolate and beat until combined.
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Add in flour mixture and blend.
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Whisk in stout by hand; batter may be a bit runny.
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Pour into greased pan and cover evenly with semi-sweet chocolate chips.
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Bake 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick placed in center comes out clean.
Next: D9 Gose Cupcakes
Not gonna lie, I wasn’t sure I was going to like this pair. Cantaloupe isn’t one of my favorite fruits or flavors, and I usually don’t like anything sour or tart. I was pleasantly surprised with this gose, as it wasn’t overwhelmingly tart or sour, and the cantaloupe and cucumber flavors were way more mellow than I anticipated. And of course, Shelly’s cupcakes didn’t disappoint.
Listen to the tasting episode here.
D9 Gose Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp almond extract
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 2 tbsp D9 gose beer
- Cantaloupe curls for garnish
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 2 tbsp butter, softened
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 3 tbsp D9 gose beer
- 4 tbsp pureed cantaloupe
- 4-6 cups powdered sugar (depending on desired consistency)
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a cupcake tin with cupcake liners.
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Sift flour, baking powder, and salt onto parchment paper or into a bowl; set aside.
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Stir together milk, almond extract, and beer in a small bowl; set aside.
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In a stand mixer (or with a handheld mixer), cream butter until smooth; slowly add sugar until mixture is light and fluffy.
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Add eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go.
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Add dry ingredients, alternating with liquid mixture; begin and end with dry ingredients.
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Pour into lined muffin tins. Bake 20-25, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cupcake comes out clean.
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MAKE THE FROSTING: Beat together cream cheese and butter.
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Add zest, cantaloupe puree, and beer until well combined.
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Slowly add powdered sugar until desired consistency is reached.
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Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting. Frost and garnish with cantaloupe curls.
And finally: Horchata Cake.
If I had to choose the “funkiest” of the four beers, I’d have to give it to this Mexican Mole milk stout. It’s quite spicy, and since I’m a wimp for spice, I couldn’t even finish my tasting glass. That’s not to say I didn’t like the beer; it was just a little too much for my tastebuds! The Horchata cake, though…
Listen to the tasting episode here.
Horchata Stout Cake
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tbsp baking soda
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tbsp cinnamon
- 2 sticks unsalted butter
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2/3 cup sour cream
- 1 cup stout, at room temperature
FOR THE GLAZE:
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 8 oz dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 1 tbsp bourbon of choice
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray or grease a fluted bundt pan.
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In a saucepan, heat stout beer and butter over medium heat until butter is melted; whisk in cocoa powder until smooth. Set aside to cool.
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In a bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; set aside.
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In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream eggs and sour cream until smooth.
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Slowly add in the chocolate and stout mixture until just combined.
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Slowly add in flour mixture until just combined. Don’t overmix it!
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Pour batter into pan and bake 30-40 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.
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Cool completely before turning out onto a plate for glazing.
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MAKE THE GLAZE: Heat cream in a saucepan until a gentle boil begins.
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Put chocolate in glass bowl and pour hot milk over the top. Let it sit for 2-3 minutes, then whisk until smooth.
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Stir in bourbon and cinnamon.
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Drizzle over the top of cake, allowing it to run down the sides of the cake.
Thanks again to Sigler’s Craft Beer for the beers for this project! Visit them at 1309 Panorama Dr. Ste 117, right off East Brainerd Road, in Chattanooga. Listen to the tasting podcast episode HERE!
