#BrewBake

Friday night. Pissing down with rain (I love summer, or is it autumn now?). What's this in my beer cupboard? A bottle of BrewDog Riptide that is approaching its best before date. And it just so happens BrewDog are having a little cooking contest! Good job I'm a budding Masterchef (chortle).

From Twitter: It's The Great BrewDog Cook Off. Yes, you cook something using a BrewDog beer & the top 5 will win a batch of the beer they used! #BrewBake

Looking round the kitchen.... what do I have: some flour, sugar, fruit and spices. I have little option. It's going to be some cakes for this cooking extravaganza, muffins I think. A little internet research later and I've cobbled together a recipe (of sorts) for BrewDog Riptide fruit muffins with flaked almonds:

Ingredients:

1 banana
Dried strawberries
Dried blueberries
Dried cranberries
250g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
100g caster sugar
2 eggs
80g of butter
Flaked almonds
Icing sugar to dust
1 bottle BrewDog Riptide

Method:

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE PLENTY OF BEER TO DRINK TO KEEP YOU ENTERTAINED WHEN COOKING! FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS 'EXPERIMENT' I USED BrewDog 77 Lager.

Pre-heat oven to around 190C.

Melt butter in a pan and allow to cooooooool.

Put all the dried fruit in a bowl, and mash the living daylights out of the banana.

In yet another bowl sift in the flour, sugar, spices and other fun dried ingredients and give them a massive stir.

NOTE: I just found a bottle of hardcore IPA in the fridge.... these muffins could turn out horrific... onwards!

Where is the melted butter? Ah, in the sink. Add the eggs and Riptide and mix it all together then fire all the fruit in there, and have a little taste....

Gradually add the beer/fruit/butter/egg mix into the dry ingredients, and stir until mixed thoroughly.

I only have 1 muffin tray so had to make in 2 batches. Lightly butter the tray and fill up each compartment until almost full.

Bake for 20 odd mins. I tested them with a knife, if it comes out clean you are good to go.

Get them cooled. Sprinkle with flaked almonds and icing sugar and get stuck in.

This recipe made 12 of these. I don't really eat cakes.

Anyone for a muffin and a beer? I think I'll try them again with Alice Porter!

I'm a bit pissed.