pauljwhite's posterous

Rhubarb Chilli Jam

1.3kg chopped rhubarb
1.2kg dark demerara sugar
150ml raspberry vinegar
splash of water

Put in a jam pan or other similar large pan - I used my pressure cooker - and set over a low heat while you do the next bit:

1 vanilla pod
3 habanero chillies
3 birds eye chillies
(You could use less, and/or substitute some dried smoked chillies for the fresh - mine turned out pretty hot, but that's the way I like it!)
Tablespoon of fresh cardamon
Handful of strawberries - just cos they needed using :)
Juice and zest of 1/2 lime
3 cloves garlic
1 inch cube of fresh ginger, peeled
100ml wine vinegar

Place in a hand blender and whiz until it forms a rough paste, then add to the jam pan. Bring to the boil, stirring frequently, then reduce to a simmer. You will then need to leave it until it reduces and thickens, skimming any scum from the surface, and again stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, wash some jars and put in the oven at 130C to dry and sterilise.

The time that it takes to reach setting point always varies in my experience, but test at something around 45 mins, by placing a spoonful on a cold plate. If it doesn't set when cool, give it another 15 mins simmering.

When ready, carefully spoon into your warmed jars, fix lids tightly and rinse off any splashes. I'd guess it would keep for 6 months unopened, and a good few weeks in the fridge once you start on it.

Love Hops neon sign, Brewdog Newcastle

Cuisine à la bière - Salmon with a sauce of mussels, leek, cream and Leffe

I would think nearly everyone who has wielded a hot pan has at some time cooked with wine - a splash of white in a pasta sauce, or half a bottle of red in a hearty casserole. However, cooking with beer doesn't seem to be so common in the UK.

Across the channel, it is a recognised style of cooking to the French and Belgians, people at the goegraphical meeting point of the passions for good food and fine beers. With that in mind, and Leffe on a good deal at one of our major supermarkets, I set out to cook some salmon in the Belgian style for supper.

Salmon fillets
Mussels
Leffe Blonde
Creme Fraiche
Leek - the top green bits for preference
Garlic - a couple of cloves
Butter - a knob, plus a splash of good olive oil

Lightly brush salmon with oil and season well. Place in a hot oven (220C or so) to roast, for about 20 mins. Meanwhile, boil a few baby new potatoes and make a salad with whatever crisp leaves and veg you have in the fridge.

When the salmon is a few minutes away from finished, heat your butter and oil in a heavy bottomed frying pan, add garlic and leek and stir until softened, not browned. Add a handful of mussels, a ladle of fish stock (a dash of Thai fish sauce will do, actually) and about 200ml of Leffe beer. Reduce over a fierce heat.

Remove your salmon from the oven to rest, and warm your plates. Reduce the heat to the pan and stir in enough creme fraiche to make a sauce of a rich pouring consistency. When thoroughly warmed through, plate up - sauce, a couple of potatoes, salmon - and garnish with rocket, parsley or whatever comes to hand.

Serve with the dressed salad and a glass of the remaining beer. In my case I sat back to enjoy Barcelona demolish Leverkusen in the Champions League - but you may prefer some music, or some pleasant chat with whoever is lucky enough to share this lovely food with you :)

February 28 - lunch in the garden!

It will probably be Athens at the end of March before I do outdoor food again, but let's hope this is a sign of things to come for 2012 :)

Moon, Jupiter and Venus in alignment

The two brightest planets, Venus and Jupiter, will accentuate the beauty of the slender crescent moon on Saturday and Sunday (Feb. 25 and 26). The planet Mercury may also be visible too, low on the horizon, beneath Venus depending on your sky conditions, but it will disappear quickly after sunset.

Even if your local weather brings clouds or rain, you can still watch Venus, Jupiter and the moon alignonline via online broadcasts.

The sky maps of Jupiter and Venus for this story show how the planets and the moon will appear together on Saturday and Sunday. Astronomers call this cosmic arrangement a triple conjunction.

Beer Bread

500g good strong (preferably organic) bread flour
heaped teaspoon salt
heaped teaspoon sugar
tablespoon decent olive oil
150ml/5fl oz warm water
150ml/5fl oz strong dark beer
the yeasty sediment from some bottle conditioned bitter

Mix, knead and prove in your usual way. Manually is good, but I'm lazy, so I let the bread maker do the hard work. Knock it back, turn into an oiled loaf tin, then let it rise in a warm place (on top of the oven is good) for half an hour.

Dust with flour, and optionally sprinkle seeds/herbs on the top. I used some pumpkin seeds and some crumbled hops! Put into a hot oven 220C/425F/Gas7 for ten minutes, then turn down to about 190 and cook for a further half hour. Test by inserting a knife or skewer, which should come out clean.

Remove from tin and leave to cool for a little while - it just makes it easier to cut, although if you're anything like me you'll want to be straight in there with some good salted butter :)

Enjoy!

The Golden Pints Beer Awards 2011

It’s the Golden Pint Awards time again. Andy over at Beerreviews.co.uk posted this,

“The 2009 and 2010 Golden Pint awards were a laugh and seemed to go down well so here’s this years list. It couldn’t be simpler, just fill in your answers to the categories below..."

So, FWIW here's my twopenn'orth:

Best UK Draught (Cask or Keg) Beer - Hardknott Vitesse Noir, but only just, as frankly we've been spoiled for choice by the Free Trade and Bacchus this year

Best UK Bottled or Canned Beer - Difficult one, maybe The Kernel IPA, maybe not...

Best Overseas Draught Beer - Odell IPA, simply a revelation

Best Overseas Bottled or Canned Beer - Mikkeller Beer Geek Bacon, mad and complex in equal measure, it really does have coffee and smoked bacon flavours

Best Overall Beer - depends if I'm in a bitter mood or a black mood!

Best Pumpclip or Label - Brewdog Old World Russian Imperial Stout, unusual and beautiful label on a world class beer.

Best UK Brewery - Summer Wine, Tempest, Hardknott, too close to call

Best Overseas Brewery - Odell with an honourable mention to Brouwerij 't IJ and Cantillon, both of which I've had the pleasure of visiting this year

Pub/Bar of the Year - Free Trade Inn, Newcastle for a stunning range of beers on keg, cask and bottle, and the best view from any pub in the world, as our Twissup visitors will attest! Honourable mentions to the Beer Temple in Amsterdam and Moeder Lambic in Brussels - seek them out if you're in either city.

Beer Festival of the Year - only went to one: Newcastle, so it wins by default

Supermarket of the Year - Waitrose for stocking Kipling and St Peter's IPA

Independent Retailer of the Year - A close call between Rehills and Coppers8till8

Online Retailer of the Year - Summer Wine for great beers at sensible prices, and super quick delivery

Best Beer Book or Magazine - currently re-reading the late great Michael Jackson's 1993 Beer Companion (signed by the author when I met him)

Best Beer Blog or Website - http://zythophile.wordpress.com/ endlessly fascinating and historically rigorous

Best Beer Twitterer - too many to mention

Best Online Brewery presence - Brewdog for sheer front, and 20% off for shareholders

Food and Beer Pairing of the Year - Tyskie porter with pork and wild mushroom Pierogi. A breakfast of champions in Rynek Starego Miasta, Warsaw

In 2012 I’d Most Like To - visit a craft brewer in France, or failing that, go back to Cantillon with a van :)

Open Category: Belgium, for introducing me to stunning beers when UK brewing was in the mid 80's doldrums

Special mention to Tyne Bank Brewery, my local brewers, who have made two truly superb beers in their first year of operation. If you get the chance, do try the Southern Star and the Cherry Oatmeal Stout

October heatwave - and a late BBQ

In spite of, or maybe because of, the disappointing weather in July/August, we've still got sunflowers blooming and hanging baskets full of colour. And walking home after an evening pint in the Free Trade, although dusk was settling in it was still almost as hot as Nice had been 4 weeks previously. Various reports said 23, 24, even 26C in Newcastle this afternoon, and pushing 30C in London and Kent!

Enjoy it while it lasts - I'm sure I'll be posting about frost, fog and falling leaves before long...

First Naga flower

(* In 2007, Guinness World Records certified the Bhut Jolokia as the world's hottest chili pepper, 401.5 times hotter than Tabasco sauce.)

This is Warsaw 2011

I liked Warsaw a lot - a place of contrasts, from the historic Old Town to the large prefabricated housing projects, typical of former Eastern Bloc cities. There was evidence of urban poverty, but also of thriving "Western" style capitalism - Nowy Swiat wouldn't look out of place in Milan with its boutiques and expensive gift shops - but this photo just summed up how far it has come in the last 20 years. Starbucks, KFC and a Lamborghini within ten yards...