Category Archives: Dessert

Pecan Pie and Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot Barley Wine

Caroline: It’s been so cold lately I’ve been really craving some Christmas time foods. I think the reversed seasons is still the weirdest thing about living far from home for me. It’s August and it feels like there should be Christmas music playing and eggnog in the grocery store….

anyway-

I decided to make myself a pecan pie to soothe the homesickness.

Me and Kris recently got a great cookbook aptly called “The Great American Cookbook;” a revised edition of ‘How America Eats’ by Clementine Paddleford. Even the authors name screams Americana right?
It’s a great book that is divided up by states and their regional specialties.

Apparently Pecan Pie is a specialty from Georgia. Here is the recipe:

3 large eggs

2 tbs unsalted melted butter (I used salted, I like a bit of salty contrast in my sweets)

2 tbs all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/8 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups dark corn syrup (I couldn’t find this in Tasmania but you can’t, use Golden syrup, which I did, or molasses in equal measure)

1/2 cup sugar (I did 1/4 c white sugar and 1/4 c brown sugar since golden syrup isn’t as dark a sweetener as I wanted)

8 inch pie crust (store bought or home made)

1 1/2 cups broken up pecans

Preheat oven to 220C or 425F

with electric blender beat eggs.

beat in melted butter, flour, salt, sugar, vanilla, and syrup. Set aside

(make you pie crust or whip out your store bought one)

dump all of the pecan pieces into the pie crust relatively evenly across the bottom

pour the mixture gently over the pecans (I thought this step was sort of weird at first but the pecans actually float up through the syrup to distribute themselves. GENIUS)

bake for 10 minutes

reduce heat to 165C or 325 F and bake for another 40 minutes

if you notice the top starting to brown too quickly you can cover it with foil

I also recommend placing pie tin on a cookie sheet lined with baking paper incase of any spillage

when done the center should be puffed and set but still a little wobbly

(I had to bake mine for an extra 15 minutes)

let cool so it firms up and enjoy! I had mine with a scoop of wattle seed and macadamia iceream.

Kris: What a treat! I’m a lucky man. As I have said it  before, I am not a huge dessert eater, but the pecan pie was hard to resist. I l also had a bottle of Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot Barley Wine in the cupboard that I bought back from the States to enjoy with my slice of pie. It is brewed in Pennsylvania. It’s 11.1% and has a big sweet malt profile with dried fruit and fig flavours and aroma. It complimented  the pecan pie perfectly and was a great treat on a chilly winters day.

Speedway Stout Review

Kris: It was a real treat recently to try for the first time a bottle of Speedway Stout from the AleSmith Brewery in San Diego, USA. Thanks again to Mike C for bringing it back safe and sound in his luggage. It was a perfect end to a meal of Buffalo Wings and a selection of new and exciting import beers from the USA.

Kris: This is a serious stout! It is a limited release Imperial Coffee Stout and is one of the best stouts I have ever had the pleasure of tasting. It has massive aroma’s of coffee and roasted malt. The flavours range from rich, sweet chocolate and caramel to roasty, coffee and cocoa, all in balance with a massive 12% alcohol. It is available in 750ml champagne bottles and if you get the chance, grab one, it is really worth tracking down. Another beer in this style to try is Dieu du Ciel’s Peche Mortel from Quebec, Canada.

Kris: This style of beer is a great dessert on it’s own. It is, of course, also a great beer to match with rich, chocolate desserts and strong, creamy cheese. We had some Dark Chocolate coated walnuts from Nutpatch in Kettering, Tasmania. If you are ever driving past it’s worth dropping in. It is a hidden gem if hand made chocolate is your thing.A rich self saucing chocolate pudding or chocolate mousse would be an ideal match with the beer. A ripe, creamy blue goat’s cheese or Italian talleggio would be ideal if you are in the mood for cheese.