The Craft Beer Cookbook by Jacquelyn Dodd

Just in case you need an excuse to pick up a 6-pack on your way home tonight, Jacquelyn Dodd is here to help — or perhaps, to enable! Here’s an idea: sloppy joes for dinner that have been simmered with a robust stout. Or what about a bowl of chowder with a splash of pilsner to brighten things up? Or bake a batch of pumpkin beer scones to take into work for the afternoon coffee (and beer) break! These are recipes that take beer out of the glass and put all those malty, roasty, hoppy flavors to work in the kitchen.

• Who wrote it: Jacquelyn Dodd

• Who published it: Adams Media

• Number of recipes: Around 100

• Recipes for right now: Amber Ale Pecan Cinnamon Rolls, Beer-Braised Green Beans, Soft Pretzels with Chipotle Beer Cheese Sauce, Smoky Beer Mac and Cheese, Roasted Mushroom and Brown Ale Soup, Chorizo Stout Sloppy Joes, Brown Ale-Brined Roast Turkey, IPA Apple Fritters

• Other highlights: I’ve certainly added a splash of beer to a pot of chili from time to time and even tried my hand a few chocolate stout cake recipes, but these kinds of dishes are apparently just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to cooking with beer. From breakfast to dinner, pizza night to game night, Jacquelyn Dodd shows us what we’ve been missing. Where other beer recipes often stick with mild ambers and pilsners, here we get schooled on cooking with hoppy IPAs, fruity saisons, creamy wheat beers, and all the other craft brews we beer nerds love.

A certain level of familiarity with craft brews and the flavors of the particular styles is assumed, but there’s also a guide at the beginning of the book to help you become more familiar with pairing beer flavors with particular ingredients and dishes (and vice versa!). Each recipe also describes the ideal brew for that recipe, like a citrusy white beer or a stout with fruity cherry notes. I really appreciate that Jacquelyn guides us in these pairings, but also leaves it up to us to make our own choices based on the beers we know and love best.

There are recipes for every season here, but as we head into the colder, darker months, a book of beer-based recipes seems particularly appropriate. Bring on the beer-braised roast beef and the porter-glazed chicken wings! With an extra bottle or two to drink, I’m certainly looking forward to cooking from this book all winter long.

• Who would enjoy this book? Anyone who loves beer and cooking.

Find the book at your local library, independent bookstore, or Amazon: The Craft Beer Cookbook by Jacquelyn Dodd

• Visit the author’s website: The Beeroness

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