Tolkien, Chesterton, Books, Beer...

First Things has a great little review of a book by Alison Milbank entitled Chesterton and Tolkien as Theologians: The Fantasy of the Real. I’ll include a short little excerpt from the review:

This final acclamation lies at the heart of Alison Milbank’s fine book. With clarity and wit and verve, she shows that the gift-quality of Tolkien’s and Chesterton’s art is premised on the gift-character of the universe itself. Their work, as she splendidly verifies, has profound moral implications. For in a gift-giving and gift-receiving world, we are not meant to seek our own advantage at the expense of others. Rather we are meant to create gifts—like those presents into which Galadriel has woven her own character before she gives them to the Company—that serve to free their recipients rather than putting them into our debt. Milbank has gifted us with what may well become our finest study of these Catholic artists in their unique relation not only to each other but also to our imagination-starved churches and culture.

As a huge fan and devourer of all things Tolkien and Chesterton, I’ll have to be adding this one to the wish list. My night table might collapse with all of the tomes sitting on deck.

Speaking of my night table, my current read is The Brewmaster’s Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food. It has been a fantastic read, highlighting the history and qualities of just about every style of beer and how they work to enhance the foods you pair them with. Mr. Oliver is wonderful in his descriptions and I find myself constantly salivating as I read page after page of wonderful culinary combinations. Just the other night the wife and I cooked up a wonderful homemade soup and paired it with both freshly baked bread right out of the oven and an awesome Saison Dupont. This was my first experience with a Saison and I absolutely loved it. Each sip and bite was heaven. At only $7.00 for a large bottle (enough for 2), the Saison was a heck of a lot cheaper than a decent wine and the synergy between beer and food beats wine hands down in my book. By the way, the Saison goes with just about anything so pick up a bottle if you can find it in your neck of the woods and enjoy a great meal!

St. Christopher Wassail

I've been scouring the World Wide Web looking for good wassail recipes to try out this season. There are so many variations on this drink that finding the perfect recipe is a lot harder than I thought. I like to keep things simple so I combined aspects of a few different recipes into the one I'll use for our Christmas party in a few weeks. If it's a hit I'll let you know. I'm dubbing this one St. Christopher Wassail for the family namesake as well as the much deserved winter warmer after long traveling to reach family and friends.

St. Christopher Wassail

Ingredients

- 6 apples, cored and peeled
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2/3 cup dark brown sugar
- 4 (12 fluid ounce) bottles brown ale
- 300 ml (½ pint) dry sherry
- 1 tablespoon mulling spices

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine 1 bottle of ale, brown sugar, butter and apples in oven-proof enamel pot and bake for 25-30 minutes or until apples are tender.
3. Transfer pot to stove and add remaining ale, sherry and mulling spices (tie spices in a cloth bag or use an infuser).
4. Simmer gently for 5 minutes, remove from heat and let steep for 5 minutes. Remove mulling spices and serve immediately.

Beer Cheese Soup

Cool weather is coming and it's hearty soup time in the Christopher household. In college I fell in love with a local alehouse that made a wicked beer cheese soup. This is as close as I can get at the moment, just a simple internet recipe that I've modified a little to my taste. It's quite easy and very tasty if you're a beer and cheese nut like me. It does wonders paired with a good steak in the autumn months.

Beer Cheese Soup

Ingredients

- 6 strips of bacon, chopped
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 (12 fluid ounce) bottles of beer (Amber Ale recommended)
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
- Sliced green onion for garnish

Directions

1. Pour 1 bottle of beer into a separate container and sit it on the counter to flatten and come to room temperature. Open up the second bottle and consume it while following the remaining steps.
2. Cook bacon in a heavy soup pot until browned and crispy, remove and set aside for garnish.
3. Add the butter, onion, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce to the bacon fat and sauté over medium heat until the onion is translucent.
4. Add the beer and raise the heat to high and boil for 3 minutes to evaporate the alcohol.
5. Add the chicken broth and bring the soup back to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer while preparing the corn starch mixture.
6. Combine the cornstarch with 3 tablespoons water and stir until smooth. Set aside.
7. Add the half-and-half and shredded cheese to the soup. Stir constantly until the cheese melts. Then stir in the cornstarch mixture. Stir constantly until the soup is thick, about 2 minutes.
8. Serve garnished with bacon and sliced green onion.