The May Midweek Mild

...See what I did there?

Seeing as though CAMRA have deemed May the month of Mild, here's what I can recommend if you feel like sampling the wonders of that dying breed, Mild.

Personally, I've been drinking a lot of Leed's Midnight Bell. Not only is it a gorgeous pint full of dark fruit and roasted malt goodness but it's the best beer Leeds produce - in my humble opinion. Leeds are becoming more popular across the region and if you see Midnight Bell up for grabs, nab yourself a pint.

Another old standby is Timothy Taylor's Golden Best. Landlord gets the most press these days but Golden Best is a wonder - light and incredibly moreish. I waxed lyrical about TT's Dark Mild here. Again, keep an eye out, but head toward Keighley and you'll soon see all those Smith's pub signs transform into the familiar gold and green of Timothy Taylor.

I've chosen beers that should be relatively available (In Yorkshire, at least) - but take the plunge in May. Support your brewers.

Have a mild.

The Midweek: Schneider-Brooklyner Hopfenweisse

First bands, now brewers - I'm talking Supergroups.

When I first heard that Brooklyn and Schneider were brewing together and sharing each other's hops, my interest was naturally piqued - as a lover of both brewhouses. Surely this would make the brewing equivalent of Hendrix jamming with Led Zeppelin, Or Jeff Buckley duetting with Janis Joplin? (What can i say, I'm a child of Grunge...)

Maybe. I had to drink this beer; this month I managed to get my mitts on a couple of bottles (Thanks, Zak!)

Essentially, Schneider and Brooklyn have created a new beer style; and to be honest, it's a good, solid beer. The use of Halletauer hops give it a sharp edge, and a somewhat astringent aroma. However, upon tasting you see where the joins are - on one hand you get a citric, tropical burst with much less Banana and Cloves than you'd expect from a weizen - but then those hops come through and give you a high, high bitterness. It drinks really well, smooth and long - but toward the end of the glass it does become a bit of a struggle to drink - possibly simply due to its up-front flavours. This is no shrinking violet of a beer - 8.2abv with attitude to match.

Seek it out, even just to try it - it certainly is worth that. Supergroups - always interesting, but never as good as the original bands. If I can get my hands on the Brooklyn - Schneider version, I will let you know...

Braised Red Cabbage with Sausages and Bacon

I'm always on the lookout for hearty alternatives to a Sunday roast, even at this time of the year. This makes a great bank holiday meal; a slow, lazy meal packed with flavour.

Braised Red Cabbage with Sausages & Bacon with St Peter's Organic Ale. (Feeds two very well!)

You will need:

1 Medium Head of Red Cabbage, chopped

8 Pork Sausages

4 Rashers of Smoked Streaky Bacon, chopped

A knob of Unsalted Butter

2 tsp Caster Sugar

White Pepper

A little Salt

1/2pt of Chicken Stock

1. Pre-heat your oven to 160c.

2. In a large casserole that can take direct heat, melt the butter. Add the cabbage and coat in the fats and butter. Dust with the sugar, white pepper (A couple of pinches) and a little salt. Add the Bacon. Stir well, cover with stock, and bring to the boil.

3. Transfer the Casserole dish into the oven and braise for at least two hours. It's ready when the stock (or most of it) is absorbed.

4. Cook your sausages as normal, and serve on top of the cabbage.

That's it. A slow-cooked gem that tastes great. As usual, I can only advise you to buy the best-quality sausages you can get - there's no excuse for poor meat and the simple flavours of this dish rely on the quality of the ingredients. You can use whatever flavour sausages you like; by all means, experiment. And it's very cool to see your bacon turn purple!

If you don't have a casserole dish that you can use direct heat on, then do step one in a pan, and transfer to an oven-proof dish once ready to go in the oven.

For Beer, I chose a beer that for me, is fast becoming a modern classic: St Peter's Organic Ale (4.5abv). This forward-thinking brewery produce some great beers, but this is my favourite and perfect to compliment the deeply savoury tastes of the sausage and cabbage - medium bodied, low carbonation and a really malty, biscuity taste. Perfect.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Onion Soup

...Preheat your oven to 200-220c...take one halved butternut squash, a red onion, and a pound of tomatoes (halved) and arrange on a roasting tray...add 6 unpeeled cloves of garlic...drizzle with olive oil, fresh Rosemary and Thyme and roast for 35 (ish) minutes, turning the tomatoes and red onion occasionally.

When roasted and soft, stick all the vegetables in a blender, and squeeze the mushy garlic from their shells. Add this garlicky mess to your veg, along with two pints of chicken stock, and blend until pureed. Transfer to a large pan and bring to the boil; then simmer until ready to eat.

Serve with a dollop of creme fraiche and black pepper to taste.

It's not often I get excited about soup but this one, made by my long-suffering girlfriend this week, really took me by surprise. Thick, hearty and with a real depth of flavour. My old mate John waxed lyrical about simple soups here and I totally know where he's coming from. If there is one theme with this blog it is this: when it comes to good food and good beer, keep it simple.

Zak Avery: Without Beer Ritz, This Blog Wouldn't Exist

As you can read here, I've been an advocate of Beer Ritz in Leeds for some time. In fact, 99% of the beers you read about on this blog are from there; my monthly trip over, returning with a large box full of goodies, really is one of life's pleasures.

A chance meeting over on Beer Advocate with a knowledgable chap called Zak, and then seeing the name again (funny how life works, innit...) in Beers of The World Magazine led to the dawning realisation that Zak actually manages Beer Ritz, and he's up for doing a little interview for TGS

Not only that, but he hosts beer-tasting evenings on his site The Beer Boy (Link over there on the right) which also contains some snippets of his top-notch beer writing. We enjoyed a virtual pint:

Leigh: How's things?
Zak : Very good, thanks. Busy with the shop, the beer tastings, the video blog, and quite a bit of freelance writing at the moment.
You've met Garret Oliver - how was that?
It was great! He's such a passionate, eloquent and intelligent chap that it would be hard not to enjoy meeting him. I met him at a beer & food lunch at Anthony's in Leeds, and then he was good enough to show me round the brewery in Brooklyn a year or so later.
Off the top of your head, whats popular Beeritz at the moment?
Well, our best selling bottled ales are Copper Dragon Golden Pippin and Saltaire Cascade, so it's nice to be doing our bit for local producers. We also stock the hard-to-find Sam Smith's beers, which go well, and generally, the American "craft" beers are doing well. We get through about a pallet of specialist bottled beer a week, so happily the response to "what's popular?" is "good beer!"
...Any beers you still haven't been able to get your hands on?
Not really, we will try to source anything,a nd are pretty good at it too. We've just sourced Kasteel Cru, the "champagne lager", and we sell Deus, the "champagne beer". We get asked for the rare Trappist beer Westvleteren sometimes, but that is really pushing it - by which I mean, I have some at home, and it's mine!
What's coming up for Beer Ritz in the next few months?
It sounds very geeky, but we're going to re-arrange the British beers by colour (light to dark, left to right) and strength (strong to weak, top to bottom). That way, beers near each other will be broadly in the same style, and hopefully will give people confidence to try something next to their favourite beer. Now I've written it down, I have to admit that it looks mad, but I'm sure it will encourage people to try soemthing a little different.
We both espouse beer and food matching - whats your all-time perfect matchup? I'm not really a fruit beer person, but I think that Belgian kriek (cherry beer) and chocolate torte is pretty hard to beat - actually, on the local front, Sam Smith have just starting doing fruit beers, and their cherry beer is pretty good too. Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout and vanilla ice cream is mind-blowing. Vintage Lincolnshire Poacher cheese and a good strong, hoppy ale is pretty high up there too.
Where do you drink?
I run a specialist beer shop selling about 600 bottled beers, so mostly at home! But when I do haul myself off the couch, The Rosebud in Carlton (I live in Rothwell) is a fifteen minute walk - it's a good, traditional public house, in the old sense of the phrase, that always has a good range of ales on. In Leeds, North Bar, the Cross Keys, the Palace, the Scarborough Taps. I like the fact that you can still walk into North and they'll have something new and exciting on tap.
Running a beer specialist supplier seems to many like a dream job - is it? Have you noticed any trends in trade of late?
I always say to people that apart from the hours and the pay, it's the best job in the world. Trends - hmm, people generally seem to be getting more interested in the idea of good quality bottled beers, and maybe drinking less but better quality, stronger and more flavoursome beers, although that might be wishful thinking on my part.
Ever tried brewing yourself?
It's very close to the top of my "To Do" list. I'm going all out for a full-grain mash rather than using an extract kit - I guess that's the foodie in me - so I want to make sure that I've researched everything carefully.
Go on then - Favourite beer of all time?
No chance! And my top ten has about fifty beers in it!

Zak can be contacted via The Beer Boy.

Bistro Classics: Scallops wrapped in Ham with Alhambra Reserva 1925

I've been really getting into 'Bistro' style food recently, which for me means a really hot pan or griddle, some unadulterated meat and lots of Garlic. Maximum flavour, minimum effort. For the ham, I have opted for Serrano - Prosciutto seems to be the 'classic' but I sometimes find it a little salty. Smoked, streaky bacon would also give a new variant on this.

Pan-Fried Scallops wrapped in Ham (Serves two)

You will need:

6 Fresh Scallops

50/60g of Parma or Serrano ham

6 Cocktail sticks

1. Heat your pan, with a little olive oil and if you want, some crushed garlic.

2. Carefully wrap each scallop in the ham and secure with the cocktail stick. This is often harder than it looks but persevere!

3. If you have put garlic in the pan , scoop it out (it would have burned off by now) and throw in the scallops. They'll need about 4-5 minutes on each side. Season with a grind or three of black pepper.

4. Serve with some crusty bread rubbed with garlic and oil.

I had a few large prawns in reserve, so I simply chucked them into the hot pan and dolloped on a spoonful of chili jam - after spitting furiously at me for a couple of seconds the prawns took on that coating really well - sticky sweet with a lethal chilli aftertaste!

A great tapas-style supper, and you can instantly see why this is a Bistro classic. The creamy, firm scallops don't need much other that the sweet, slightly salty ham to set them off.

With this in mind, my beer choice was Alhambra's Reserva 1925 - a lofty title for possibly the most complex 'lager' I have ever tasted. In fact, to call it a lager doesn't really do it justice; below the dry, super-resiny hoppy tang lies a much darker, boiled-sweet body that disguises its hefty abv (6.4) well. Really moreish and thirst-quenching, I'll be reaching for this great beer again this year, and I recommend you do the same if you're serious about having a home beer cellar.

The Midweek - Dunham's White Amarillo

...This week's midweek pint is a real thirstquencher; served in Arcadia in Headingley, Leeds.

When you get a beer named after the hop it contains you know what you're going to get, and Dunham's White Amarillo is no exception; not a lot of head, pale straw colour and as for flavour - citrus, citrus, citrus. At 4.1abv it mixed the floral, orangey flavours of an IPA without anwhere near the strength. The only downside was...it disappeared in about ten minutes. This is dangerously easy-drinking beer; however, another was soon ordered to restore balance to this idyllic scene. One I'll be keeping an eye out for in the Summer.

Belgian Bier Fest @ North, Leeds

Regular TGS loafers will know that North is one of my favoured beer-palaces, and it simply wouldn't be right to let one of thier famous Belgian bier-fests slip by without dropping in. North do this sort of thing very well indeed; over 100 different beers to try, most of them bottled, with a few exceptions on tap - whilst keeping thier standbys such as Sierra Nevada Pale and Roosters YPA (possibly one of my favourite brews of all time) in case the Belgians got too much for you...

So, we kicked back and worked our way through the menu. First up was Blanche De Bruxelles (draft, 4.5abv), which I enjoyed immensely; pale straw colour, a familiar witbier aroma but a very light, long taste with a massive citrus kick. Lemons and Oranges cut through this one and result in one of the most refreshing beers I've had in a long time, and I'll be seeking out again.

Picking purely by name now, the Zinnebir (bottled, 5.5abv) by the Brasserie De La Senne caught my eye. Much darker in colour but another good choice - woody, piney aromas with a spicy yet hoppy flavour initially; although after a few sips that Belgian frutiness popped up again. This would be great with some formidable cheeses! I've picked up a bottle of thier stout for the beer-cellar.

Finally, for balance, it was the turn of Bacchus' Frambozenbier (draft, 5.0abv). I'm partial to a Frambozen or Kriek on occasion, but this one left me a little flat. The beer looked amazing - deep purple-red colour with a massive strawberry jam/redberry nose - but for me, lacked a little body. If you're looking for a thirst-quenching summer frambozen then this is for you - but I prefer a little more depth.

It was then time for some food. Another excellent, different evening from North, who should keep these festivals coming. What about an American/Canadian Beer Fest next, boys?

The Midweek: Titanic Lifeboat

When office work is your bread and butter, 'The Midweek Pint' is what keeps you going. So, I'm going to start letting you know about any gems that serve as a midweek lifter and reminder that life is not all spreadsheets and deadlines.

Titanic's Lifeboat (4.0abv) impressed this week; served in great condition from Foley's Cask Ale House. I've sampled Titanic's Mild before and been a little underwhelmed; but the Lifeboat i liked a lot - an amazing ruby colour, with a dry but sweet finish. Very bitter, but very satisfying indeed. The barman recommended Iceberg, which apprently will be on in the next couple of days. I'll be there.

Harpooned Venison

Oh yeah.

We made the weekly trip to the market with Duck in mind but ended up with some excellent venison that the Game Stall were promoting that week. Bearing in mind a 'winter warmer' I had languishing in the beer cellar, an idea formulated...

Harpooned Venison

You will need:

2 Venison shoulder steaks

Salt, Pepper

4 large mushrooms

5 small potatoes, sliced

Two cloves garlic

Fresh,chopped parsley

100 ml Harpoon Winter Warmer ale

Beef Stock

1. Firstly, make your potato and mushrooms to accompany the venison. Warm your oven to 180c.

2. Slice your mushroom and chop the garlic. Gently sweat the garlic in som butter in a pan, and then add the mushrooms and sweat also. Be gentle with the heat here. Too much and the garlic with scorch.

3. Peel and slice the potatoes. Don't rinse them.

4. Grease a small gratin or ovenproof dish. Arrange the potatoes in layers, with some of your buttery, garlicky mushrooms inbetween each layer. Dot the top with butter, season well and bake in the oven for at least an hour. Keep your pan.

Next, the Harpoon Gravy: simply boil up about 500ml of stock and add a little sugar to it. Add the beer, and stir. Add a little cornflour with water at the end to thicken up. Leave on a low simmer to reduce. Couldn't be easier.

Warm up the garlicky, buttery pan you used for the mushrooms. Get it smoking, then pan-cook your Venison. Simply roll the venison in salt and crushed black pepper first, and don't add any more oil or butter.Cook the venison as per steak to your liking (but please, for god's sake don't go 'well-done' - you may as well rip up your tastebuds and throw them away), serve with the gravy,mushroom and potatoes to accompany.

Easy. Enjoy the rest of the Harpoon with it. This worked out perfectly due to the cinnamon and nutmeg notes in the beer; game goes really well with these christmassy flavours. You couldn't drink a lot of the warmer - but it compliments this dish perfectly.

www.harpoonbrewery.com

Gnocchi with Ham and Chilli Sauce

...To continue what seems to be becoming my 'Pork Fortnight', I've got one final use for the Parma Ham that worked really well.

Gnocchi isn't hard to make but does take a little effort - but if you like hearty, intense flavours then this is a good place to start. Much like making pasta, making Gnocchi is worth the effort. This basic recipe is so simple; almost a Puttanesca style sauce packed with heat and punchy Garlic. Sorry my Gnocchi recipe isn't exact - I use the basic Guidelines set out in The Silver Spoon (If you like Italian, you simply must have this book), but it varies each time. Use your gut feeling - you'll be OK. This recipe serves two, or three if you want slightly smaller portions.

I recommend you make the sauce first; I made it in the morning. The flavours intensify the longer you leave it in the pan. I wouldn't consider making this and pouring straight onto the Gnocchi. It has to sit for a while.

Ham and Chilli Sauce
One tin of chopped tomatoes
2 whole chillies, de-seeded and chopped
4 cloves of Garlic, chopped, smashed, whatever.
Good Olive oil
Parma Ham - whatever you have left - at least 1oog.
Salt/Pepper/Sugar
A couple of leaves of torn, fresh, Basil.

1. Heat some olive oil in a good saucepan. Pour in your toms.
2. Add the garlic & chilli, and season with salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar.
3. Stir well and then, with a wand blender, blend the sauce to a smooth 'Passata'.
4. Simmer for about 20 minutes very low, then put the lid on and leave as long as you like.

Couldn't be easier. I find that the thinner the sauce, the better for Gnocchi, hence the blending. When you want to re-heat it, simply simmer with the Parma Ham added. Again, you don't want to cook the ham too much and kill it.

Gnocchi (very basic recipe).
Boil or steam one large potato,(huge) or two medium sized ones. Once done, mash and leave to cool. To the mash, add plain flour (about 100grams) and one beaten egg. Knead the dough, and keep working it. Add a little more flour if too wet. Soon (and keep faith with it) you will have a pliable dough. Leave to rest for five minutes, then tear off some chunks and roll into long rolls. Cut into inch-long sections, and cook like pasta in deep, salted, boiling water. When cooked, they will rise to the surface - this won't take long at all.


Then just pour on your sauce and add some Parmesan cheese. We used the rest of the Manchego and that worked really well. If you want it hotter, then add a little Tabasco. I've previously made this with Smoked Bacon - which adds yet another dimension. If you do this, just fry the bacon in the saucepan before adding the tomatoes.



We quenched the fire with Adnam's Explorer. I'm not familiar with Adnams at all (apart from the Oyster Stout, which I secretly love), and this initial brew was excellent - hops are dominant, with a lemony, grapefruit aroma running through. It was quite dry, but battled the garlic and chilli well.

Total 'Porkography'

I've spoken about 'Food Porn' in the past; the true pleasure seems to come in the smallest packages. When I opened one of these Scotch Eggs up last weekend for lunch, my jaw just about hit the floor. It was one of the best things I had ever eaten. Check out the grain and fine herbing of the Sausagemeat! See how it butts right up to that egg! Double yolk! Fried Oniony bits in the crumb!

Homemade, artisan Scotch Eggs... I got this from a random stall at Last weeks' Bingley Food Fest - the man selling them had no sign, but a big smile on his face.

Awesome. You know you want it.

Brooklyn East India Pale Ale

Or the one I'll be drinking a couple of whilst watching the England game.

In case I hadn't made it clear enough, I'm a big fan of American Brews , and although Brooklyn hardly qualifies as a micro, I'll generally treat anything they brew with interest. The East India Pale is new to me, and it doesn't disappoint. Despite my leaning for IPA's is of the 'massively hopped' variety, the East India Pale goes down well. Light, and not all 'massively hopped' - it has a light, almost fruity, grapefruit body; and the malt stays in the background, present, without overpowering. The EIIPA pours copper with almost no head, and doesn't taste anywhere near its 6.8 abv; those piney flavours you expect to linger with IPA fade pretty quick. I'd drink this again, no problem.

A Warm Salad of Mushroom and Parma Ham with Savoury Toasts

...Right, so onto what we did with those ingredients we picked up at the Bingley Food Festival. We had been inspired by TV (doesn't happen often) the night before - Thomasina Mier's show on Spain was decent watching for those into Iberian Cuisine, and her Iberico Ham and awesome-looking mushroom dish gave us inspiration. So, given what we had available, we went along the same lines...


This is a 'Yorkshire Tapas' sort of dish - but where Tapas conjures images of heat, lightness and simple but punchy flavours, this is an altogether earthier affair. The Mushrooms and ham combine perfectly, and the simple cheese toasties bring smoke and bite. The 'Morcilla' tapas is a Spanish classic and an excellent showcase for good-quality blood sausage. We bought our Parma Ham from the ever-excellent Salvo's Salumeria in Headingley, Leeds.

Savoury Toasts
You will need:
Two Cheeses - we used Smoked Goats' Cheese and Manchego. These are interchangeable according to taste, but I really recommend one smoked cheese in there.
Good Olive Oil
Ciabatta
Black Pudding, sliced.
Red Onion Chutney - available in most stores, but you could make your own sticky onions if you prefer.

1. Preheat your oven to about 150.
2. Heat a griddle pan, and lightly wipe with olive oil and season the surface with black pepper.
3. Slice your cheeses into chunks, and slice your ciabatta into mini-crostini chunks.
4. In another pan, lightly fry your black pudding slices until crisped on each side.
5. Lightly toast the toasts on the griddle pan.
6. On a baking tray, arrange the lightly toasted toasts and drizzle with olive oil. Arrange cheese on some, and a teaspoon of chutney and a slice of black pudding on others.
7. Place the assembled toasts on a low heat in the oven - this is only to keep them warm and to melt the cheeses.

While they are holding, make your Salad:

You will need;
Three Garlic Cloves
Fresh Parsley, chopped/torn
Two Large Mushrooms, sliced
Some Sliced Parma Ham, shredded
Half a small bag of Spinach Leaves, washed & drained

1. In a pestle & mortar, pound the garlic and then add the chopped parsley and some cracked black pepper. Cover in Olive Oil. This will become your dressing.
2. Heat a large pan. Drop in a little olive oil, and add your sliced mushrooms.
3. When they have soaked up the oil, add the ham. Don't be tempted to turn the heat up too much; you want the ham to release a little fat, but not to overcook it and destroy the flavour.
4. Add half the dressing; the mushrooms will soak that up too.
5. Toss in the spinach, wilt, then serve onto warmed plates.
6. Finish the dish with the rest of the dressing.

Serve with the toasts!


It may seem like a lot of work but it's not - just have the oven heated and you can hold the toasts while you make the salad. The smoky cheese brings loads of depth to the toasts, and the sweet/savoury taste of the black pudding toasts complements the ham and mushroom salad in an amazing way. Don't add salt, by the way - the ham's got enough to round!





In terms of beer, I paired this with Breconshire Breweries' Red Dragon. Despite the slightly Dungeons & Dragons label, this bottle-conditioned gem is a serious beer - a complex, malt body, with a lively, unashamedly bitter aftertaste, it complements the autumnal flavours of the meal with ease.

Bank Holiday Shenanigans - Bingley Food Festival/Haworth

...So Good Friday finally comes; the start of four free days that work cannot spoil. The weather can (curse the snow!!!) - but the office cannot. So it's off to the Food Festival at Bingley to pick up something good for dinner, then onto Haworth for a little lunch and a few beers.

Size Isn't Everything....

...But in the case of the Bingley Food Festival, it is. By the time we got there - about 11ish - the tent was rammed. And I mean rammed. I don't know wether Bingley Council (or whoever organised this event) seriously underestimated the pull of a food festival these days, or just ran out of space, but this was not a pleasant environment to browse round. However, the hungry and determined are a force to be reckoned with and we managed to grab some gems before our patience finally ran out.

We were pleased to see Salt's Deli running a stall - Salt's are a long-time fave of TGS, and thier fresh, crisp Ciabatta was just what we needed. We sampled one of their Chorizo Parcels, too, and a lovely little treat it was - crisp filo rolls, filled with chunks of piquant Chorizo, peppers and red onion. So simple, yet so delicious. Glad to see them doing a roaring trade.

The cheese stall provided a couple of coups, too - once we fought our way to the front. We picked up some amazing smoked goats cheese, along with a good chunk of one of our favourites, Manchego. After a quick stop at the veg stand to pick up some huge mushooms and some fresh spinach from H Baxter & Son of Preston, we made our getaway - but not before picking up a log each of black and white pudding from RS Ireland. I'm a stickler for blood sausage and Ireland's are fantastic.

An honourable mention goes to the man with no sign, selling homemade pies and pasties. His Scotch Eggs were, quite simply, a revelation, and will warrant their own post very soon....

Haworth

...After that frantic hour, some lunch and a couple of beers were definately needed. So on it was to Haworth - half an hour up the road from Bingley. We are overly familar with Haworth - my mother lives ten minutes away in Oakworth and we spend a lot of time there. So in the respect it's a failsafe, a no-brainer. You can always get a good pint there.

Is that you, Branwell?

First up, at the top of the main street, sits the famous Black Bull; reputedly haunted by Branwell Bronte, brother of the famous literary sisters whose image and story you can't escape in the village of their birth. A large, stone-flagged pub, it can always be relied on for a decent sandwich and a pint. Deuchars IPA and Copper Dragon Golden Pippin seem to be the regulars and there is always a guest - this time, Osset's Fine Fettle, which I opted for. Crisp, dry and very hoppy with a familar floral aroma, Fine Fettle was a good call indeed and made light work of a Roast Beef and Horseradish Baguette. I like The Black Bull a lot; it's reliable, it's somewhere you know is going to have a good beer and a corner table waiting for you. My first pint of Moorhouse's Pendle Witch was drunk here, and that went on to become a firm favourite of mine.

Gotta Be A Taylors...

In terms of sheer quality and consistency, Taylor's is up there, in my opinion; and The Fleece, at the bottom of the main street, serves the best TT's in Haworth; and I noticed they had spruced up thier bottled range, too, offering Warsteiner, Duvel, Cooper's, Goose Island and Quilmes to name a few. I was disappointed that the Celebration Ale has long sold out - a testament to the high regard Taylor's is paid here Instead I opted for a pint of Dark Mild, which had to be - and no hyperbole here - one of the best pints I have for a long time. Dark with a tight, coffee-coloured head, the Dark Mild was roasted malt all the way, with a light treacley finish. Perfection(Come on...when in Rome!),it was time to go. We figured out what to make with the produce we picked up that morning on the way home, and the results of that will be coming up this weekend.


The shot on the right shows the hand of a very contented man...and the reason
for that contented feeling!

Quick Honey & Mustard Chicken with A Simple Potato Gratin

As you all know, I recently hit yet another Beer Festival and made this super-simple dish to eat when we got back. The main reason for choosing this was one that I have been discussing with John recently - Inebriation. Half - Cutness. Merriness. A side effect, albeit an entirely pleasant one (in moderation) of a weekend's Beer tasting. The simplicity lies in the make-ahead feel of the meal, and the fact that cutting a few corners never hurt anyone.

Quick Honey & Mustard Chicken (Serves two)

You will need:

Two medium sized Chicken Breasts

A tablespoon of Grain Mustard, such as Gray Poupon

Two Tablespoons of good, thick, runny honey

1. Mix the honey and mustard well in a dish, then cover tightly with cling film. Refrigerate and go to the Beer Festival.

2. When you return, 'Butterfly' the breasts and then pour over the Mustard Honey. Place under a pre-heated grill and cook. (About 20 minutes).

Now, that's pretty easy, and to be honest you could stop right there. Put the meat in a warmed , buttered baguette and you've got a tasty sandwich right there with which to soak up that good booze. If you want to make something more of it (and are up to it) - then:

A Simple Potato Gratin

You will need:

One large waxy potato, peeled, sliced as thin as you like it

One pot of double cream (about 350ml)

3 crushed Garlic Cloves

Shake of Black Pepper, Shake of Nutmeg

2 teaspoons of olive oil

1. Preheat your oven to about 2ooc.

2. Gently saute your sliced potato in large pan in the olive oil (not too much heat;not too much oil), and then when colouring slightly, pour over your cream and discard the Garlic. This par-cooking shortens the oven time - something your grumbling belly wants.

3. Let it bubble away for about 20 minutes to soften further, on a low, low heat.

4. Finally, transfer into gratin or deep dish and place in the oven to brown. That'll take about 20 minutes.

Not complex cooking, I know, but this dish is big on flavour and fills your belly; soaking up beer as it goes. Or, like me, you could sink a pint of Springhead's Roaring Meg as you go. What can I say? I wanted another beer, and Meg's citrussy style and huge floral aromas cut through the cream, complimented the sweet/hot chicken but didn't add any more weight to the meal. In some ways, a perfect match-up.

Beats a Doner pizza anyday.

CAMRA's Leeds Beer,Cider & Perry Festival 2008

It had been a long time coming but finally the Beer Festival programme hit my neck of the woods. Pudsey Civic Hall is also about ten minutes away from where I live, so I personally couldn't think of anything better to do on a Saturday lunchtime than go see what's happening.

I can understand why some enthusiasts steer clear of Beer Fests like this - there's nothing in the way of atmosphere; unless you count the uneasy apprehension between the older veterans of the brewing scene and young enthusiasts like myself. Some really don't like this split; this faction in the brewing world, and simply avoid it - for me, it's a great opportunity to taste some great beers in one place. Simple as that.

Art and Beer? Beer and Art?

No sooner had I arrived at the North-sponsored 'Global Beer Bar' than we were greeted by a cheery young lady from Bare Arts Brewery. Thier pumps were, quite cutely, in the shape of pigs, and tasters were soon offered of their Bitter. Very nice it was too; quite light and easy- going for a dark bitter. Bare Arts had already won kudos for the friendliest stand of the weekend; how many breweries have a fully-functioning art gallery attached?

Let's Get Down to Brass Tacks...

Armed with the obligatory souvenir pint glass and beer tokens and a remit of 'I'm not trying anything I have drunk before...' , a quick glance at the programme gave me some idea of what I wanted to try. And try i did, over the course of a thoroughly enjoyable early afternoon. My picks of the weekend? Well, I was very impressed by Naylor's Brewer's Choice Special Brown Ale - 4.6% - sweetish, but with a firm, biscuit-malt body. Gorgeous. So that becomes my Beer of the day. Also sampled were:

Anglo Dutch's Devil's Knell - 4.8% - Slight carbonation, but with a long, hoppy finish. Great amber colour. Solid entry from this talented and forward-thinking brewery.
Boggart Hole Clough's Farmer's Stout - 4.5% - I only picked one stout, and was glad it was this one. Light in body but with a complexity of flavour, rounded with a treacley finish. Great session stout.
Church End's Goat's Milk - 3.8% - Straw-yellow in colour, light bodied. Typical hoppy golden ale, again would be good session beer on a warm day. Refreshing.
Old Spot's Beer Stalker - 4.1% - Again, very similar as the Church End inasmuch that it's an entirely refreshing, hoppy ale. Maybe a little light for my taste; grapefruit aromas.
Purple Moose's Dark Side of The Moose - 4.6% - Dark ale, foamy head and a long,long bitter finish. Very moreish, very impressive indeed.
Slaughterhouse Saddle Back - 3.8% - Impressive showing; had to be tried - any brewery that's based in a ex-slaughterhouse gets my vote. Traditional bitter with a huge malty body and gentle hop finish. Really solid - could drink a lot of this. My 'Session beer' recomendation of the weekend.
Windie Goat Fisherman's Pride - 5.0% - All the way from Ayrshire, Fisherman's Pride poured red and malty, although with practically no head. A slightly vegetal aroma gave way to a long bitter finish. Quite sweet.

Phew. Needless to say, great pleasure was to be had tasting all those.

I Coulda Been A Contender...

There was a little disappointment; some beers that I were looking forward to had either sold out or weren't available. I had heard great things about Glencoe's Wild Oat Stout, and Skinner's Helegan Honey sounded interesting too. Leeds Brewery had a brand-new beer on, Leap of Faith, but I gave that a miss. I'm no stranger to Leeds and their excellent wares. Favoured drinking spots The Fox & Newt and Foley's had beers on show, the latter brewed by York Brewery. Other great brewers such as Goose Eye, Cotleigh, Purity and Elland all were represented.

After a stop at the Global Beer bar to pick up some of Left Hand Breweries' JuJu Ginger (Been after some of this for a while), it was time to go. I could have happily gone back today and started again; such was the quality of the ales on offer.

Next fest; Skipton!

You Know You Are Food & Beer Obsessed When:

1. Your holiday destination is chosen by 'regional speciality' and not weather/location/kudos/price. In fact, travel is completely justified by food, rather than experiences or sights.

2. You read blogs like this one. All the time. And by that, I mean 'When you should be working'.

3. You're walking down the street. Two charity-box wielding volunteers corner you outside Borders. One is for 'Rescue the Children/Dogs From An Awful Life (delete as appropriate), and the other represents 'Save our Local Microbrewery'. Your immediate response is 'Mine's a Pint, Barkeep.'

4. Your 'Top Ten Greatest Films in The World Ever' List includes 'Big Night', 'Sideways', 'La Grande Bouffe' and 'Babette's Feast'. Or, if you're female, 'Chocolat.' (The book was better).

5. Speaking of books, your cookbook collection makes up at least 20% of your home library....

6. ...In fact, a trip into Waterstone's 'Cooking' section brings on hyperventilation, insane purchases (ooh, the French Laundry book - put it on the card...', and palms that haven't been sweatier than the time you 'accidentally' ordered a Jenna Jameson flick on the missus's Amazon account.

7. A balmy weekend proposal of 'A pleasant walk in the country' translates as 'A chance to track down an awesome pub/micro that no-one else has found this side of 1975'.

8. Meals are planned. On a calendar. With Beer Matches. And this rota is fitted around re-runs of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations. Well, it wasn't going to be Delia, was it?

9. ...You see nothing wrong with this. In fact, everything you cook or drink is there to be tasted, reviewed, and discussed with your foodie chums. Everything.

10. Not only is your kitchen the most used room in the house, its the cleanest, most expensive room in the house (Yeah, we got the sofa at the charity shop but check out my Sabatier Five-Knife set...).

Would anyone else like to share? Let's get our obsession out in the open...together, we can work it out.

'Toblerone' Pancakes

Now that the pancake day blogging feast is over, here's what we did....take one pancake (i'm not gonna patronise you and tell you how to make a pancake; a) you should know, and b) there are plenty of sites/recipes out there), and sprinkle with grated, quality dark chocolate (I use Divine or Green & Blacks), Honey and chopped Almonds. Voila! Toblerone Pancakes. Enjoy.

Roasted Belly of Pork with Cain's Gravy

This is an adaptation of a Richard Fox recipe that caught my eye recently. Why? Because it involved Belly Pork, possibly my favourite cut of any meat ever. So versatile, I think Belly is starting to get the recognition it deserves. Anyway, this is basically a slow-cooked belly, perfect for slicing, and the gravy is all made in the pan. The secret ingredient is beer - in my case, Cain's Raisin Beer. Richard reccommends a full-bodied Yorkshire beer, but I found the juicy and slightly floral nature of Cain's Raisin made an excellent gravy.

Serves One Yorkshire Lass and One hungry Yorkshireman
you will need;

A good hunk of belly; about four/five ribs.
Tin of chopped tomatoes
1 stick of celery
1 leek
2 carrots, chopped and peeled
Half a bottle of Cain's Raisin Beer
300ml Chicken Stock

For the dry rub:

2 cloves garlic
Chopped parsley, Thyme, Oregano, Rosemary
Salt, Ground Black Pepper

1. Pre-Heat your oven to 150-160 degrees
2. Score your belly pork; rub the dry rub into the skin and leave to stand while:
3. ...You add all your chopped veg into a roasting tin. Over the veg, pour over the tomatoes, stock and finally the beer. Mix a little.
4. Lay the Pork on top, and roast for about 4 hours.

This is a perfect meal for putting in and forgetting about - but keep an eye on it if you don't know your oven inside-out; you don't want that juicy pork to dry out. Over time, the veg softens into the liquor; creating a tasty gravy so chunky you won't need additional accompaniments, in my opinion.
If you fancy making this and use another beer, let me know how it turns out. Any robust beer should do the trick, and you'll get different flavours every time.

Leeds Brewery...Coming Along Nicely

I was pleased to hear this week that those enterprising young chaps at Leeds Brewery are setting up their own pub. Tentativley named The Midnight Bell, the pub will be situated not too far from thier brewhouse in Leeds, and building work will start soon.
As you know, Leeds Brewery have the full backing of TGS; not least in thier recent success but also due to the fact that these lads are truly passionate about beer and this latest step is certainly 'one in the eye' for those who think that the 'pub' is dead.
The Good Stuff, along with many other Yorkshire-based beer and food blogs, will be there on opening day for certain. Good Luck.
....and on other TGS - endorsed news, The Fox & Newt are currently selling their own-brewed ales at £2 a pint. Make sure you don't miss out - thier brewhouse is producing some excellent beers right now.

Tikka-Spiced Fish...Caught Cheating

Although the mere fact that you, dear reader, are reading TGS tells me you have a healthy interest in cooking from scratch - there comes along, every once in a while, a ready-made sauce or stock or similar that surprises you and reassures that if 'cheating' is needed, then at least it can be done well.
As part of a christmas hamper, I ended up with a jar of Cottage Delight's Tikka Masala sauce; and it provided a great solution for a busy afternoon. As you will see, some prep is still needed in the recipe that I ended up throwing together, but the need for major legwork was certainly taken away by using the sauce.
Apologies to John - This will be my last fish-based post for a while, i promise!)

Tikka-Spiced Fish (Serves Two)

You will need;

1 Large Fillet of Whitby Cod
1 Pepper, chopped
1 Onion, sliced
1/2lb of Cherry Toms
1 medium Courgette, sliced
1 Jar of Cottage Delight Tikka Masala Sauce
Rub -
1tsb of grated ginger
3 large cloves garlic, mashed
2 tsps veg or corn Oil
2 tsps Tomato Puree
pinch of fenugreek
pinch of garam or gujarati masala
large pinch of chilli flakes (to your liking)
1 pinch of Panch Phoran (onion seeds, fennel seeds, mustard seeds)

Preheat the oven to 180c.
1. First, make the rub. combine all ingredients above in a ramekin and you'll end up with a pungent paste. smear this on your fish, and leave to marinate slightly while:
2. You gently saute the veg in a large pan. Use Olive Oil for this, and season with black pepper once golden. Don't use salt - it'll dry out the toms and courgette.
3. In a a large dish, place your soft, golden veg and lie your marinated fish on top.
4. Simply pour the sauce over the top, and bake for about 30-40 minutes.


As you can see, despite a long ingredients list, its not that complicated. The end result tastes great; creamy and tomatoey with a zingy kick beneath the surface. All you're doing really is pre-cooking and pre-marinating the fish to give a little extra flavour, and finishing in the oven. We served this with home-made flatbreads, but obviously rice or naan would be perfect also.
As for beer, instead of opting for an eastern beer I chose Bitburger - although not one of my favourite tipples, I wanted a clean, dry pils to counter the heat but with a little more body-and it certainly did the trick.

So there you go. A cheat's success. It's certainly made me realise that there are some great products out there that certainly warrant a position in your storecupboard.

www.cottagedelight.co.uk

In the Words of Jason Molina -

- Just be Simple. Something we sometimes lose sight of, particularly when it comes to food and drink. This morning in Leeds is glorious, sunshine throwing down and melting the overnight frost away.Even my jog this morning was not the slog it usually is. I feel good; thoughts turning to this years' projects, growing and brewing, and all those great things you can only seem to do in the lighter months. John over at John's Random Ramblings has starting planting and brewing, catching that spring-time bug.

What's different - apart from the weather?
Well, for me, we're not talking about complication here, we're simple pleasures. don't get me wrong, I'm all for complication in food - in moderation. The simple act of baking bread, even in a breadmaker, can give you that glow that stacking six layers of meat in a ramekin and serving with a two-day condensed and simmered jus simply cannot. Making Jam; beer; growing some tomatoes - it's all the same. These little things we miss when we cannot do them.

I was reminded of this lately when I decided that I fancied something traditional for dinner, but found it surprisingly hard to find anything that quite fitted the bill in my cookbook library. As a passing thought, I picked up a battered old Be-Ro cookbook that had been passed down to my girlfriend by her Grandmother. Archly, I sat and sifted through it, scoffing at its antiquated recipes and pictures. Then, there it was - Toad in The Hole. No herbs added to the pudding. No speciality sausages - just good ones. No flavoured oils, just dripping. Perfect. It turned out perfect too, burnished brown and sizzling... washed down with a pint of Black Sheep Riggwelter it certainly gave me that aforementioned glow.
The book? Well, lets just say it gets a little more attention these days. They are still on sale, actually. Pick one up, or something like it, and get back to your roots.

And the Winners Are....

The National Winter Ales Festival took place recently in Manchester - Here are the winners as per the Camra website, with Wickar's Station Porter taking the honours. Naturally, being a Winter festival, it was time for Stouts, Porters and Barley-wine styles to take a bow.

National Winter Ales Festival 2008: Champion Winter Beer of Britain 2008

SUPREME CHAMPIONS
Gold - Wickwar, Station Porter (Wickwar, Gloucestershire)
Silver - Robinson's, Old Tom (Stockport, Cheshire)
Bronze - Hop Back, Entire Stout (Salisbury, Wiltshire)

CATEGORY WINNERS

Old Ales & Strong Mild Category

Gold - Purple Moose, Dark Side of the Moose (Porthmadog, Gwynedd)
Silver - West Berkshire, Maggs Magnificent Mild (Thatcham, Berkshire)
Bronze - Highland, Dark Munro (Birsay, Orkney)

Stouts

Gold - Hop Back, Entire Stout (Salisbury, Wiltshire)
Silver - Spitting Feathers Old Wavertonian (Waverton, Chester)
Bronze - Spire, Sgt. Pepper Stout (Chesterfield, Derbyshire)

Porters

Gold - Wickwar, Station Porter (Wickwar, Gloucestershire)
Silver - E&S Elland, 1872 Porter (Elland, West Yorkshire)
Bronze - Acorn, Old Moor Porter (Barnsley, South Yorkshire)

Barley Wines

Gold - Robinson's Old Tom (Stockport, Cheshire)
Silver - Durham, Benedictus (Bowburn, Co Durham)
Bronze - Mighty Oak, Saxon Song (Maldon, Essex

Nice to see Acorn getting a shout - i've been a fan of thiers for a while now, and the Old Moor Porter is lovely. Strong showing from Hop Back, also.

Salmon Parcels

...Or Salmon En Croute, if you like a touch of culinary flair. I needed a dish that was easy to prepare yet looked a little flashy for a weekend supper, and this is what happened. Hardly an original idea, but a lighter option to Beef Wellington and it went down a treat. I have no qualms about using frozen pastry either - the results are excellent and it really is a time-saver. I use Jus-Rol.

Recipe for one parcel; simply replicate however many times you need.

You will need:
One good, fresh Salmon Fillet
A good bunch of Spinach, washed and dried
1 pack of flaky pastry - two sheets (one per parcel)
Black Pepper, to season
1 egg, beaten

1. Warm your oven to 180.
2. Simply lay one sheet of pastry down, and lay your salmon across the sheet however you want it.
3. Season with black pepper.
4. Top the salmon with as much or as little washed and dried spinach as you like. You could also add Fennel, too - i didn't have any but I think that would work.
5. Brush round the fish with the egg wash, and fold pastry over to form your parcel. Decorate/crimp round the edges.
6. Chill the parcels for at least an hour.
7. When ready to cook, put you baking tray in the oven to heat. I find this trick ensures a crispy base every time.
8. Egg-wash your parcels, place on the tray and bake for about half an hour, or until golden.


...And that's it. hardly any work at all and an excellent result. The spinach steams within the parcel, and the fish should be moist - serve simply with parsley sauce and new spuds.


To accompany, I chose one of my favourite Belgians, Orval. It's widely available, and being a little lighter really compliments the delicate flavour of Salmon. You certainly don't want intrusion on the flavour here from your beer choice.

Mr Foley's Cask Ale House, Leeds

I've blogged about this joint before - it used to be called Okells, and before that, Baroque. Last time around, only the sign above the front door seemed to change, with maybe a concession to the casual 'Friday Night' drinker rather than the real ale enthusiast. This time round, however, things are different, as you would have guessed from the new name.

Named after the bloke who first set up shop in the iconic building, Foley's seems to have really embraced local breweries and cask ales this time around, with the chilled beer selection taking a back seat to the taps.

10 taps present a good spread Yorkshire Brewing, with York Brewery being the most heavily represented. No problem; Thier Guzzler and Yorkshire Terrier are favourites of mine, and now i can get them in Leeds, all the better. Also available are offerings from Leeds Brewery; i was most impressed with thier Leeds Best and Midnight Bell - the first a fine session beer in the style of Timothy Taylor's Landlord but with a little more bite, the second a darker bitter with a much, much maltier body, as you would expect from a beer named 'Midnight Bell'. I've been impressed by Leeds Brewery thus far, and you'll hopefully see a fuller profile of thiers coming up on this blog.

Speaking of surprises, the Grolsch Wiezen is nice, too. Sorry, but i have to be honest. I enjoyed it, and have not seen it anywhere else in Leeds.

With Camra meetings taking place here, hopefully Foley's has recieved the endorsement from those who matter and is here to stay. It hope it does, too; I really enjoy its latest incarnation- a large, friendly boozer with staff who know thier stuff. The bar food menu even suggests simple beer pairings, and although not ground - breaking stuff, it's a step in the right direction to the layperson who wants to delve into the world of food and beer. Im not going to get snooty about that; La Gavroche it is not; but La Gavroche I would not want it to be. I'm sure i'll have many a decent pint in here in months to come.

Mr Foley's Cask Ale House

159 The Headrow

Leeds,

0113 2429674.

Tagging; oh, go on then...Marching On Together!

Ok, so at first glance this whole tagging thing seemed like one of those godawful chain emails one recieved promising untold riches should you foreard it to a billion people withinhalf an hour of recieving it, but once I had read AJ's frankly excellent effort and AEB, I figured the least I could do to is participate; a sort of 'Get to know your friendly Blogger' excercise.

Basically, the rules are thus:

1. Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 random and/or weird things about yourself.

3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.

4. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

My blog links are not random; that would probably result in a waste of time. I have chosen ones I think you will enjoy if you're here, reading TGS. Anyways, onward and upward:

1. Apart from Food & Beer, Leeds United are a passion of mine. I have a special Leeds United Mug (pictured) that only I can use. No-one else must even look at it. This may sound strange, but I think most males do something like this in thier lifetime. Over the years many of my possessions have been adorned with that badge, and many are treated with grail-like reverence. The same rules also apply to my Sabatier Knives.

2. More obsessive behaviour; If I have a beer at home that i have not had before, the cap is

kept. I have about 70 or so caps. I dont know why I do this, as i dont look at them again; they just lie around in a big tub.

3. I also write fiction in my spare time, and have enjoyed some small-scale publishing success. My favourite writers are Henry Miller, Hunter Thompson, Charles Bukowski, and Cormac McCarthy. At the moment, I am reading 'True Tales of American Life' by Paul Auster.

4. My Foodwriting Hero is Anthony Bourdain.

5. I worked in my Grandfather's Butchers' as a teen, and learned a lot about food, meat and 'locally sourced produce' before that phrase was even coined. I learned one main thing; Family and Friendship should always be based around eating together.

6. I play Bass guitar; I listen mostly to Americana and Alt.Country music, and at the moment I am enjoying Iron & Wine, Mark Kozelek, American Music Club, Lambchop, The National and Richmond Fontaine, to name a few.

7. As a result of my obsession with Beer, my long-suffering partner not only has more beer knowledge than your average twenty-something girl, but knows what to look for, how to buy, and the brewing process. She can name a brewery at 20 paces from a pump-clip. She will make suggestions for my beer-cellar, and I trust her completely to pick up beers for me if am not able to. She can even do a pretty good job of detecting aromas when sniffing beer. In many ways she is the perfect beer-pursuing partner - and the irony is this: she can't stand the stuff. A Kriek, maybe, in the summer, but that's it.

There you go. Not as insightful as AJ's, but now you know a little more.

My "7 Blogs You Should Totally Check Out":

1. John's Random Ramblings

2. The London Review of Breakfasts

3. Soy & Pepper

4. Black.Salt

5. Toothpaste for Dinner (not food/beer based but excellent)

6. Food & Thoughts

7. ...A Swift One

- Excellent blogs, every one of them. Enjoy.

News Roundup - Jan '08

Well done to The Junction in Otley for winning CAMRA's 'Pub Of The Season-Winter' -the family owned and run pub now boasts 11 cask ales on at any time, as well as an excellent selection of malt whiskeys. If in Otley, you know where to go.
Also coming up at the end of the month is The Grove Beer Festival, which sees the Leeds stalwart joining forces with The Scarbrough Hotel to bring you a full weekend of up to 80 beers from all over the UK. The Grove will handle beers from A-L, while the Scarbrough will take on L-Z...sure to be good, wholesome fun!
The Grove Inn
Back Row, Holbeck Leeds
0113 2439254

The Scarbrough Hotel
Bishopgate Street, Leeds
0113 243 4590

Spanokopita

I came upon this recipe in Rick Stein's frankly excellent Mediterranean Escapes book and decided to give it a go. I was looking for something a bit lighter for supper this week, and had an excellent beer in mind to accompany. Spanokopita are basically Greek cheese and spinach pastries, and super-tasty ones at that. I've been meaning to make some at home since trying them in thier place of birth, Skopelos, a couple of years ago. I'm an avid carnivore, so something with no meat in it has to be seriously special to get a look in at The Good Stuff Kitchen. The recipe is essentially the same, although I have included a dipping sauce that livens up things a little, and also taken a little inspiration from Elizabeth David's version from her nigh-on essential Book of Mediterranean Cookery.

Spanokopita (makes about 6)

You will need:

Spinach, washed and shredded, a good panful.

A tbspn of Olive Oil

One Small Onion, finely chopped

100g Feta Cheese

50g Gruyere Cheese

10g Parmesan Cheese

1 Egg

Black Pepper & Mint for seasoning

About 2 Sheets of Filo Pastry (I bought the frozen stuff - works perfectly fine)

100g Melted Butter

1. Heat your Oven to about 180c.

2. Wash and slice your Spinach into strips.

3. Gently colour the onion in the olive oil, then add the spinach. Let the Spinach wilt, then take off the heat to cool. You may need to press out any excess water the spinach may produce at this stage.

4. While the veg are cooling, make the filling. Into a large Bowl, crumble the Feta, grate the Gruyere and add the Parmesan, along with the pepper and mint. Add the egg to and stir to bind.

5. Add the Spinach and onion once cooled.

6. Now you can make the parcels however you like; I used the triangle patty method, although the choice is yours. Use melted butter to seal the corners/edges, and make as many as you need. Place on a greased baking tray, and wash the tops of the patties liberally with the melted butter.

7. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes before turning over, butter-washing and then baking the underside. You may need to turn them a few times, washing with butter each time, until they are golden brown.

I think that the ones I had in Skopelos were actually deep fried, so the butter-washing kind of substitutes that. Just make sure they don't burn.

Tomato and Chilli Dipping Sauce

Into a blender place 4 chopped, large tomatoes, 3 gloves of garlic, and one whole chilli pepper (seeded if you like). Blend into a smooth paste. In a pan, heat a good tbspn of Olive Oil, and add the sauce. Stir in a good helping of tomato puree. Stir. Season with black pepper and plenty of Oregano. Simmer for as long as you like; I reduced for about half an hour and the results were great; a thick, fiery sauce that lifts the creamy, salty cheese filling of the Spanokopita.

...And To Drink....?

In Skopelos I washed these down with local white wine, as there wasnt any beer available apart from the usual fizz. But here I wanted something crisp to cut through the intense dipping sauce and creamy cheese, but also provide a complexity of its own. I opted for Weihenstephaner Kristallweissbier; a wiessbier in name but a really light, clear one at that. Chilled down it is really refreshing, but gives you all that good, yeasty taste you would expect from a Weizen without overpowering your snack.

First Beer of 2008...

...And it's a good one.

At my end of year review I mentioned The Great Divide Brewing Company, a brewer who I only became familiar with late on in 2007, but impressed me greatly. My choice of first beer of 2008 certainly deserved to be thiers.

Titan IPA is my favourite of thier current roster. I don't usually go in for massivley-hopped beers, but this is an exception. Despite the aforementioned huge hop taste, Titan has a great, grapefruity (to me, anyway) tang to it and is soooo refreshing. If you want something different, something with a little more edge, then I would definately go for this. A corker!

http://www.greatdivide.com/index.php