I was recently selected to be a part of the FoodBuzz Tastemaker Program for New Belgium Brewing Company. I was excited to create a recipe using one of their brews – many thanks to FoodBuzz and New Belgium Brewing Company for the opportunity!
I decided to make a Monte Cristo Sandwich using beer bread I made with their Mighty Arrow Pale Ale. This product appealed to me because of its honey malt base (and who can resist a beer made in tribute to a dog?!?!?) I knew the slight sweetness of the brew would go well with the sweet-savory combo that the Monte Cristo offers.
Both Mr. Foodie and I were pleased with the results. The Mighty Arrow gave the beer bread a slightly sweet flavor and a nice, dense texture that held up well to the batter and pan frying. A winner for us!
NEW BELGIUM MIGHTY ARROW BEER BREAD MONTE CRISTO
Ingredients for Beer Bread:
3 Cups All Purpose Flour
4 TBS Granulated Sugar
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Bottle of New Belgium Mighty Arrow Pale Ale
1/4 Cup Butter, melted
Directions for beer bread:
1. Grease a standard size loaf pan and pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except melted butter.
3. Pour batter into greased loaf pan and top evenly with 1/8 cup of melted butter.
4. Bake for 45 minutes, baste with remaining butter and bake an additional 10-15 minutes.
5. Remove loaf from pan and let cool completely on wire rack before slicing fairly thin to assemble sandwiches.
Ingredients for Sandwich:
2 Thin Slices of Beer Bread
1 Tsp Mayonaise
2 Thin Slices of either Black Forest Ham or Turkey (I made sandwiches with both, Turkey is pictured above.)
1 Slice of Havarti Cheese
3 Eggs
1/3 Cup Milk
3 TBS Butter
Mascarpone Cheese
Strawberries, slices thin
Powdered Sugar
Directions for sandwich:
1. Spread each slice of beer bread lightly with mayonaise. Layer ham (or turkey) and Havarti in between the two slices.
2. Heat and melt butter in a skillet over medium heat.
3. In a small bowl, beat eggs with milk.
4. Dip assembled sandwich into the egg mixture.
5. Fry dipped sandwich in butter until golden brown on both sides.
6. Remove sandwich to plate and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Add a dollop of mascarpone cheese and sliced strawberries and serve.
