National Lager Day

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By Chef Diane

When I went to my parents for Thanksgiving, my son had already arrived.  He was sitting outside with my father and aunt and uncle, and was drinking a beer.  I was a bit surprised.  Not that he was drinking, he is over the age of 21, but the fact that he was grown up.  I have never been a beer drinker, but my father has one occasionally, and keeps them outside in his shop and has them available for any guests who care for one.

I have a cousin who's friend makes their own brew.  He tries different ingredients to change the flavor, and is always taking pictures to send to my cousin.  I remember when I was in high school, we learned about making beer, and the process of fermentation, and hops and yeast.

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According to punchbowl.com, lager is a type of German beer that is bottom fermented and lightly hopped. It is usually stored for at least three weeks after brewing before it is served.  Lager is the dominant style of beer throughout the world, except in England where ale is the favorite style. The only real difference between ale and lager is that ales ferment and age quickly at warm temperatures, while lagers ferment and age slowly at cool temperatures. These different types of fermentation allow for a vast difference in flavor and aroma.

Today is National Lager Day.  So to celebrate why not blow the froth off a couple of cool ones at your local pub, or in the comfort of your own home.  If you don't want to down a few, you can use it to make some bread.  Below is a recipe from food.com for beer bread that is the latest rage these days.

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Beer Bread

Ingredients

• 3 cups flour (sifted)
• 3 teaspoons baking powder (omit if using Self-Rising Flour)
• 1 teaspoon salt (omit if using Self-Rising Flour)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 (12 ounce) can beer
• 1/2 cup melted butter (1/4 cup will do just fine)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix dry ingredients and beer.
3. Pour into a greased loaf pan.
4. Pour melted butter over mixture.
5. Bake 1 hour, remove from pan and cool for at least 15 minutes.