Blue Moon Recipe: Holiday Meal, part 2

With the Pot Roast nailed down as the centerpiece of the Holiday Meal offering, Blue Moon wanted to create a balanced meal using the other beers in the Holiday Variety pack.  Pale Moon was one of the beers I was asked to use to bridge into a recipe.  My mind went directly to appetizers, as it would be tough to use a bitter beer for a dessert.  The lightness and citrus notes of the beer would pair well with a mild goat cheese.  So, I constructed a simple crostini using whole wheat crackers and prosciutto.  To make this app a little more complex, I added a tablespoon of the beer into the goat cheese, along with some fresh chopped chives, orange zest, and some clover honey.  This was mixed well until soft, and then generously spread over the crackers.  Topped with prosciutto, these tasty bites went over very well with my guests!

The next portion of the meal was a pairing with the signature Belgian White.  Consensus among the team was that a salad was in order.  I used the orange notes of the beer as my guide and decided on a fairly simple spring salad with a hand crafted dressing.  The salad was made with Arugula, thinly sliced red onions, slivered almonds, and orange supremes (just the flesh!).  The salad dressing came together way better than I anticipated.  Using fresh squeezed orange juice, Dijon mustard, a touch of honey, fresh cracked pepper, and a little white balsamic along with a high quality olive oil, this dressing was a hit! It paired awesome with the Belgian White.

The holiday dinner went extremely well! Heavy encouragements to try these recipes soon!!

BMBW Orange Salad
Ingredients:
1 6oz box of Arugula
2 oranges, supremed (slices without the pith)
6 oz sliced almonds
½ red onion, sliced thin

Orange vinaigrette
2 oranges, juiced
2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp honey
Fresh cracked pepper

Method:
Combine all ingredients except the olive oil and mix well.  Slowly add olive oil in while mixing; this will create an emulsion. Chill until service.
Makes 500ml

BMBW Goat Cheese Crostini
Ingredients:
5 oz Goat Cheese
¼ cup fresh chopped chives
1tbsp BMBW beer
1 tbsp Clover Honey
Orange Zest
Prosciutto
Whole wheat crackers or Crostini pieces

Method:
In a small mixing bowl, combine goat cheese, chives, orange zest, beer and honey.  Mix until all ingredients are fully combined and cheese becomes soft.  Spread cheese mixture over crackers (about 1 tbsp).  Top with prosciutto and serve.