Where have I been for the last couple of years? I saw a bottle of Young’s Double Chocolate Stout in the local market recently and I was intrigued. Being a teetotaler I didn’t plan to drink it, but my mind conjured up all kinds of ideas for cooking with it. I did a little research online and realized that I am way behind the curve. I found several recipes using chocolate stout dating back several years. I decided not to re-invent the wheel and make a couple of the recipes found online. I settled on a Cowboy Rubbed Rib Eye with Chocolate Stout Pan Sauce from Food52, my new favorite cooking website. I would have half a bottle of stout leftover after making the pan sauce, so I decided to make cupcakes for dessert. I found a recipe for Chocolate Stout Cake at Epicurious and planned to use it to make cupcakes with my own Bailey’s Buttercream frosting.
Lets talk first about the rib eye.
Oh my goodness, this was so good. Michael, who has never really cared for rib eye, described the steak as “very good” using the word “very” multiple times. My only regret is not taking the advice of reviewers and cutting the salt in the rub by half. Even so, it was delicious and not all that salty. This dish starts with a thick slab of ribeye steak, large enough to serve two. By special request, my local market cut a steak about two inches thick. Perfect. The first step in preparing the recipe was to make a rub. The rub is delicious and includes such ingredients as ground coffee, cumin, and brown sugar. The spices are toasted in a hot pan before being added to the rub. I put the rub on the meat about four hours before cooking but it can be done overnight as well. The rub was excellent. The recipe makes a lot more than needed but I plan to save it and use it again. This may be my go-to rub from now on.
The recipe calls for searing the meat in a very hot cast iron skillet and finishing it under the broiler.
I need to check the batteries in my smoke detector and clean the oven now.
The pan drippings, along with the chocolate stout, beef broth and butter combine to make the pan sauce.
Now, let’s discuss the cupcakes.
The online reviews reported that the cake recipe made more batter than was needed for a three layer cake. I decided to cut the recipe in half and it made eighteen cupcakes. The result was a moist, dark chocolate cake. I made my own version of buttercream frosting by mixing 1 cup room temperature butter, 3 cups confectioner’s sugar, and 5 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream coffee creamer. The cupcakes were even better this morning with a cup of hot coffee.
Today, my obsession with Chocolate Stout continued.
I remembered a recipe I saw online for Chocolate Stout BBQ Sauce. I decided to go out with a bang and make burgers featuring the chocolate stout barbecue sauce courtesy of The Recipe Circus.
A trip to the market was required as the recipe called for chili sauce and grape jelly, items I don’t usually keep on hand. I was a little put off by using the familiar concord grape jelly eaten by kids on peanut butter sandwiches. I thought it would be a bit sweet. I lucked across Muscat Grape Jelly made by Bonne Maman. It was perfect for this sauce. My only detour from the original recipe was to put the cooked sauce in a blender after it cooled. I used a gourmet chili sauce that had tomato chunks in it and I wanted a smooth sauce. I grilled the patties on my indoor grill with the barbecue sauce liberally applied. I topped the burgers with thinly sliced sweet onion, sunflower sprouts, mayonnaise, and extra sauce. I also used the sauce for dipping French fries. It was delicious, although not to Michael’s liking with the fries. He’s a hardcore ketchup man. The sauce recipe makes quite a lot. I plan to place it in small zipper bags and freeze it for use later. I think this sauce would be fabulous with smoked brisket.
For now, my obsession with Young’s Double Chocolate Stout has run its course, except for the fact that I still have a half bottle left over. I saw a recipe for Chocolate stout brownies. Hmmm. Maybe one more time.