Amber Ale

Another amazing use for a Bell's classic! Ingredients 8-12 oz. Bell's Amber Ale (depending on your glass size) Chili lime salt (enough to rim the glass and a pinch to flavor the drink) Juice from 1 -1/2 limes (about 1.5 oz.)  Worcestershire sauce (4 dashes) Your favorite hot sauce (2 dashes) Instructions Wet the edge of a pint glass with lime and dip it into a plate with chili lime salt to create a nice salt rim.  Squeeze lime juice into the glass, add Worcestershire, hot sauce and a bit of chili lime salt. Stir well.  Pour your Amber Ale and be careful not to have it make contact with the salted rim so it does not fizz up excessively and overflow. Stir. Add a couple of ice cubes and enjoy!  

Thanksgiving is a day-long marathon of family, beer and food. As you put together your holiday shopping list, keep in mind that your selection can help make that Thanksgiving Day Parade your cousin wants to watch a little less painful, but can also complement your menu and even help take it to another level. Here are some pointers to pair our “family” of American craft beers with your family traditions. Amber Ale will compliment everything on your table. It offers a great balance between sweet caramel malts, moderate alcohol and a touch of hop bitterness. Greet everyone with a glass of Amber to ready their taste buds for the meal to come. You can pair our classic ale with a wide range of appetizers, main plates, side dishes and desserts. Plus, the low ABV will hopefully fend off any sleepiness. Lager of the Lakes: Sage and Onion stuffing will complement the traditional style of our Lager by offering a combination of firm malt and herbal hop bitterness and crisp drinkablity. Have it in your fridge for those that might not be familiar with craft beer. Start them on that journey with Lager or Amber Ale. Great with Brussel sprouts! Official Hazy IPA perfectly pairs with homemade cranberry relish with a zest of orange. Beautiful pungent American hops with stone fruit and tropical notes, Official is a refined beer for both those who love hops or prefer wheat beers. If you're frying a turkey, this is the beer for you! Bright White pairs with your Turkey and cranberry. Our seasonal beer’s fruity aromas, moderate body and alcohol will nicely compliment tart cranberries and turkey, especially for white meat lovers. Bright White also pairs well with lighter dishes like a salad or a shrimp cocktail. This is also a great beer to pair with fruit desserts like apple cobbler or blueberry trifle. Two Hearted Ale — Stuffing or dressing? How about our delicious IPA with a classic oyster dressing? It's the best way to showcase the singular and simple flavor of oysters in a great Thanksgiving pairing. Also great with garlic mashed potatoes and sublime with green bean casserole. Bell’s Porter pairs well with glazed ham. It will also pair well with anything on the chocolatey side of desserts as its slight bitterness, roast and coffee characteristics will complement the sweetness. Kalamazoo Stout — Pecan, sweet potato or pumpkin pie? Let Kalamazoo Stout pair amazingly with these desserts. The roasted malt flavors and bitter hop additions will counter and help balance these sweet treats nicely. Expedition Stout is a great as a compliment to rich, decadent dessert dishes. Its roasted malt character, sturdy hop bitterness, and high alcohol balances nicely and helps cut through the sweetness and heaviness that most desserts tend to have. Or, skip the dessert and indulge in one on its own. Bell’s Christmas Ale — End the meal with a selection of cheeses, especially with some Gruyere, an aged white cheddar or some Asiago. Allow our traditional Scotch Ale with its rich and malty body, notes of caramel and a warm finish settle you in for that after-dinner nap. Check out some of these great food pairing suggestions and recipes for your Thanksgiving. Cheers! Winter White with Turkey Craftbeer.com Two Hearted paired with cranberry sauce Outside Expedition Stout paired with Pumpkin Pie Craftbeer.com Thanksgiving Stuffing pairing suggestions Craftbeer.com Chocolate Stout Truffle recipe from The Beeroness Deep Dish Porter Pecan Pie recipe from The Beeroness

You can really make a dish stand out with a custom sauce, such as our Amber Ale Mustard BBQ Sauce. Bell’s Amber Ale Mustard BBQ Sauce Developed by Bell’s Eccentric Café Executive Chef Kris McDonough Ingredients 1 cup of your favorite grainy mustard ½ cup Dijon mustard 1 cup Bell’s Amber Ale ½ cup brown sugar ½ cup apple cider vinegar ¼ cup soy sauce 1 cup melted butter (warm) Salt and pepper to taste Directions In the base of a blender, add both mustards, Amber Ale, brown sugar, vinegar and soy sauce. Pulse to combine. While blender is running, slowly pour in the warm, melted butter so that the mustard mixture and the butter mix together and fully emulsify. If your butter is too cool, it will start to solidify and you’ll have a grainy bbq sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper and pour over your favorite meats and vegetables (we recommend the Amber Ale Pulled Pork)!

Amber Ale is one of our favorite beers to cook with because it is so well balanced and accentuates so many different kinds of food perfectly. These Pulled Pork Sliders are no exception. Amber Ale Pulled Pork Sliders Developed by Bell’s Eccentric Café Executive Chef Kris McDonough Ingredients 6-8 pounds pork shoulder, cut into 2-3 inch cubes 2 tbs fennel seeds 1 large onion, large dice 1 Granny Smith apple, cored and sliced 8 cloves of garlic, minced 1 bottle (12 oz.) Bell’s Amber Ale (find some nearby) 8 cups chicken stock ½ cup apple cider vinegar 2 tsp ground mustard ½ cup brown sugar 2-3 tbs vegetable oil Salt and pepper to taste Directions In a large pot, heat the 2-3 tbs of vegetable oil until shimmering and lightly smoking. While oil is heating, toss the cubed pork in salt and pepper to season. Sear each side of the pork in the pan until nice and golden. Remove pork from the pan and set aside. In the same pot, roast the fennel seeds for about 1 minute (or until fragrant), then toss the onion, apple and garlic in to sweat. Add the ground mustard and brown sugar. Return the pork to the pot, and deglaze the pan with the Amber Ale. Add the vinegar and enough of the stock just until the pork is almost covered (if you don’t have enough stock, you can use more Amber Ale) Bring the pot to a boil and then lower to a simmer. Simmer on the stove, covered, over low heat, checking regularly, for 2 hours (or until the pork is tender enough to be pulled). You can also cook the pork covered, in the oven at 400F for 4 hours. Once pork is done, pull it apart and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with Amber Ale Mustard BBQ, pickles, and slider buns! Chef’s Note: You can also just all all ingredients into a slow cooker, cook it on medium heat for 5-6 hours, and have a nice, no-mess pulled pork. This can also be made as a wonderful vegan alternative by substituting jackfruit and vegetable stock for the pork and chicken stock.

This delicious Gouda cheese bread utilizes the toasted and sweet caramel notes from Amber Ale to create a delicious addition to any meal.  Ingredients 1 Bottle Bell's Amber Ale 3 cups flour 2 cloves minced garlic 1 Tbsp. baking powder 2 Tbsp. sugar 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. black pepper 12 oz. shredded Gouda 3 Tbsp. melted unsalted butter In the Kitchen  In a large bowl, sift flour, salt and baking powder together. Add sugar and black pepper and stir until blended. Add minced garlic and combine thoroughly with dry mixture. Fold in 8 oz. of grated Gouda to the mixture. Add Bell's Amber Ale to the mixture, using either a wooden spoon or in a mixer with a dough hook on slow. Transfer dough into a nonstick or lined loaf pan, cover with a damp cloth and let rest for 25 minutes.  Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. After resting, liberally brush on the melted butter and sprinkle with the remaining Gouda. Bake for 40-50 minutes (look for golden brown coloring on top or a hollow sound it tapping the underside of your loaf).  Enjoy with a bottle of Bell's Amber Ale!

The toasted and sweet caramel notes of Amber Ale adds a sweet twist to this savory dish. Beer, bread and cheese, a match made in heaven! Ingredients  2 bottles of Bell's Amber Ale 48 oz beef or vegetable stock 1 stick(4 oz) unsalted butter 2 oz. extra virgin olive oil 3 Tbsp. minced garlic 1 bunch of fresh sage, finely chopped 3 large Spanish onions thinly sliced 3 large red onions thinly sliced 4 large leeks, finely chopped 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce 8 oz. hand grated Derby with sage cheese, or strong cheddar  Salt and pepper to taste Croutons for topping In the Kitchen In a heavy bottomed pan melt the butter and olive oil. Add garlic and chopped sage to the pan and cook on very low heat for 15 minutes, stirring regularly.  Add sliced Spanish and red onions and chopped leaks. Add a generous pinch of salt and ground black pepper.  Stir the mixture and cook slowly with a lid for 45 minutes.  Remove lid, add both bottles of Bell's Amber Ale and bring slowly to a boil.  Simmer for 30 minutes.  Add beef or vegetable stock and Worcestershire sauce to mixture.  Bring to bowl and simmer on low for 2 hours.  Taste soup and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed.  Add additional stock or water if needed for consistency. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Place soup crocks or similar bowl on a baking sheet.  Ladle soup into crocks.  Top with croutons and generous covering of grated cheese to form a cover over the soup.  Bake for 10-15 minutes.  When cheese is bubbling and has a brown/golden coloring take out of oven and let cool.  Enjoy with Bell's Amber Ale! 

Try out our take on chicken and waffles. The sweet, toasted, caramel malts of Amber Ale are the perfect addition to this sweet and savory favorite.  Ingredients  2 bottles of Bell's Amber Ale 1 grapefruit, zested and juiced 1 Tbsp. Sriracha (or your favorite hot sauce) 1 Tbsp. honey 2 Tbsp. minced garlic 2 sprigs fresh rosemary 2 sprigs fresh thyme 3 dried bay leaves 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. pepper 2 whole fryer chickens, cut into pieces with the bone in  32 oz. whole buttermilk 6 oz. plain flour 2 Tbsp. sweet paprika Frying oil (peanut of pure vegetable oil) In the kitchen In a large bowl combine Bell's Amber Ale, grapefruit juice and zest, Sriracha, honey, minced garlic, salt, pepper and fresh herbs. Add chicken to the mixture and use hands to coat all the pieces.  Cover and marinade overnight, turning every few hours.  Remove the chicken from the refrigerator two hours before use. Drain off the marinade.  Cover the chicken with the buttermilk and let rest for 30 minutes.  In a large bowl combine flour, sweet paprika and tsp. of salt.  Follow fryer instructions to heat the fryer to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. If you do not have a fryer use a heavy 6-8 quart pot and fill halfway with oil, heat to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Place a wire rack beside your cooking station to place cooked chicken on to drain. In cooking station, have the chicken and flour mixture next to each other.  Place chicken onto baking sheet to drain some of the buttermilk. In two or three batches, dredge the chicken pieces in flour and place in fryer. Top off the oil as needed, and return temperature to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  If needed, place wire rack on baking sheet and finish the chicken in oven at 425 degrees Fahrenheit until done. Serve with homemade waffles, sriracha infused honey and a glass of Bell's Amber Ale. 

Bell's Amber Ale with its sweet caramel and toasted malt flavors in this crock pot short ribs is a delicious, hearty meal anytime of the year.  Ingredients 1 bottle Bell's Amber Ale  .5 cups of flour 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp salt 1 tsp black pepper 1 tsp dried Italian herbs 2 oz. unsalted butter 1 oz. extra virgin olive oil 2.5 lbs. bone-in-beef short rib 1 large onion, chopped 1 Tbsp. garlic, minced 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce 1 cup beef stock .5 cup red wine vinegar .75 cup chili sauce .5 cup dark brown sugar 3 Tbsp ketchup In the Kitchen In a large bowl, sift flour and add salt, pepper, chili powder and herbs and mix together. Place short ribs in a bowl and coat with seasoned flour.  In a heavy bottomed skillet, melt butter and olive oil together. Shake excess flour off ribs, place in skillet and turn until nice and brown. Remove and place in bottom of crock pot. Add additional oil/butter if needed.  Deglaze the skillet with a knob of butter, add chopped onion, minced garlic and Worcestershire sauce, cook on low heat for 2-3 minutes. Add your bottle of Bell's Amber Ale, and bring to a boil. Add beef stock, red wine vinegar, chili sauce, brown sugar and ketchup, stir to combine and bring to a boil, simmer for 15 minutes.  Carefully pour over short ribs and coat using a spoon, seal your lid, cook on low for 7 hours. When finished the meat will fall off the bone. Enjoy with a bottle of Bell's Amber Ale.

With a perfect balance of malt and hops, Bell’s Amber Ale is a great introduction to our portfolio. Or on its own. One of the oldest Bell's recipes, it is also quite versatile when pairing with food. It is also great to cook with.  The recipe below comes from the kitchen of our Michigan Sales Manager, Derek Zomonski.  Enjoy. Ingredients ½ cup Bell’s Amber Ale 1 pound extra-sharp cheddar cheese, shredded ¼ Cup minced onion, rinsed and patted dry 2 tablespoons ketchup 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 1 tablespoon Worcestershire 1 ½ teaspoons Tabasco 1 garlic clove, minced 1 teaspoon smoked paprika Directions Bring the beer to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 minute. Transfer to a small bowl and cool to room temperature. Mix, cheese, onion, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire, Tabasco and garlic in a food processor or with a hand mixer until smooth. Slowly drizzle in the beer and mix until smooth. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.  Serves 8-10 (maybe …).  Adapted from The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook.