[Recipe] "Not Quite Korean" Short Rib Tacos

Growing up, I could sometimes feel like two different people.  On the one hand, I am, by heritage, Taiwanese.  On the other hand, I am American.  This dichotomy plays out in different areas of my life, and my parents made sure to expose me to both American and Taiwanese everything, from language to music to dance.  But there wasn't necessarily a lot of overlap.

In the last ten years or so, though, things have started to change with the onset of "Asian fusion."  It's a trend that blends East with West, and it's happening across all different platforms.  Musically, for example, Taiwanese artists such as 王力宏 Wang LeeHom, 周杰倫 Jay Chou JieLun, and 林俊傑 JJ Lin JunJie have been experimenting and yielding phenomenal hits.  On the food front, it seems like every major city has a slew of "modern Asian dining" restaurants that boost traditional Asian dishes with modern Western twists.

Korean tacos were originally the brainchild of Kogi Korean BBQ, a food truck based in L.A.  They rank among the most successful and certainly the most recognizable of the Asian fusion foods.  They've been making their way slowly across the U.S., but a surprising number of East Coasters have never even heard of them, let alone had them.  I myself have only had them once at a house party in California.

So what's a girl to do when she's craving this crazy comfort food and can't get any?  Make it herself, of course.

And so my latest food adventure with KiKi was a long time in coming, at least for me.  It was a relatively short wait for her (just two weeks), but I'm happy I was able to introduce her (and you, dear readers) to this food.

"Not Quite Korean" Short Rib Tacos
an original recipe by tammiest (the Passionfruit Fashionista)

First, the "Not Quite Korean" Short Ribs: 

The traditional Korean taco uses Korean barbecue meat.  But I didn't want to barbecue the meat—it can dry out if it's not eaten right away (though it is amazing in the moment), and KiKi and I are partial to braising our short ribs.  So I had to improvise a braising recipe instead and couldn't fall back on the storebought Korean barbecue sauce.

The resulting sauce probably isn't all that Korean.  Most of the base draws from a marinade my Taiwanese mother passed on to me, and then I added hoisin (to give it that sweet taste Korean short ribs have) and Sriracha, which is Vietnamese, not Korean.  So these are clearly "Not Quite Korean" Short Rib Tacos, so fusion they draw from all parts of the East.

Ingredients
4 lbs. beef short ribs
1 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup mirin
1/3 cup rice wine
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 quart water
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ginger, peeled and minced
1/2 cup diced green onions, white part only
(at least) 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1-1/2 tablespoons Sriracha hot sauce

Directions
In a wide stockpot or Dutch oven, combine the soy sauce, mirin, sake, brown sugar, water, garlic, gingergreen onion bottoms, hoisin sauce, and Sriracha, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then add the short ribs, cover, and turn down the heat to a low simmer for 3 hours, checking and turning the ribs every 45 minutes or so.  At the end of 3 hours, the meat should be falling off the bone.

Then, the Asian Salsa: 

The way I understand it, Korean tacos are typically accompanied by a sour and spicy pickled vegetable salsa.  I wanted our salsa, though, to be more subdued-- a little more similar in flavor profile to a Mexican-style vegetable (non-tomato) salsa but with an Asian twist.  I thought this recipe, courtesy of The Year in Food, was exactly what I was looking for.  I took it and tweaked it for my purposes.

Ingredients
1 large avocado, diced
1 small bunch radishes, sliced into thin strips
1/2 cup Asian mung bean sprouts, each cut in two or three pieces to match the size of the radish strips
1/2 small yellow onion, minced
1/4 cup minced cilantro
1 jalapeno, minced
juice of 1 lime
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
2 tablespoons sesame oil
(at least) 2 tablespoons Sriracha hot sauce

Directions
Slice and mince all the vegetables, as applicable, then combine with the lime juice, minced cilantro, salt, sesame oil, and Sriracha.  Adjust taste as necessary.

Finally, put it all together: 

Additional Ingredients
Queso Fresco, crumbled
Mini corn tortillas
Sriracha hot sauce (optional)

Directions
1.  Crumble the queso fresco.
2.  Shred the beef short ribs with a knife or a fork.
3.  Heat the tortillas in a pan.
4.  Once all the components have been prepared, assemble the tacos to your liking (we recommend adding a touch of Sriracha), and enjoy.

[Recipe] "Stay With Me" Pretzel Rolls

Soft pretzels are German.  Right?  But somehow I tend to associate them, especially in their soft bun variety, with America.  Maybe it's because I grew up in Pennsylvania Dutch country, which, according to this entry on the history of pretzels, was/is the epicenter of American pretzels.  Or maybe it's because I can't remember what I think of as quintessentially "American" things like baseball and football games or amusement parks without a soft pretzel in one hand and a soda in the other.

American or German, soft pretzels are an amazing comfort food.  In roll form, they're even more so.  Their texture changes, and the rolls are more pillow-y and can be almost-but-not-quite like a croissant.  The granules of salt (speaking of which, I really need to figure out where I can buy those thick granules of pretzel salt for my own purposes) satisfy every guilty salt craving I've ever had.   They're actually addictive.

I'm fond of this recipe, courtesy of Codychop of Food.com.  The following recipe yields 12 rolls, so double or triple accordingly for your needs.

"Stay With Me" Pretzel Rolls
a recipe by Codychop (Food.com)

The original inspiration for these was actually a vision of pretzel roll croutons as a topping for my Oktoberfest Mac, but I obviously "overbaked" on purpose so we'd have extra for our dinner guests and ourselves to snack on.  They proved perfect both plain and with a side of honey mustard.  KiKi and I had originally planned to improvise a recipe for honey mustard butter, but we were a little overambitious with our cooking schedule, so that experiment will have to happen at a later date.

My friends Vonnie and Apollo were the first to try these rolls.  We had made a quick pitstop at my apartment Saturday night for a change of clothes (me), a drink (everyone), and, of course, the pretzel rolls.

They impressed my friends.  We really couldn't stop eating them.  In fact, they were so addictive that my friend Vonnie's advice to me upon tasting them was, "You've got to feed these to Henri (a Frenchman, if it's not obvious).  They say 'stay with me' better than anything else.  One taste, and he'll never want to leave America."

For the curious, my pretzel rolls, while tasty, are not quite good enough to keep someone from ever going home.  But they're certainly good enough for another, and another, and another... 

Ingredients
1 cup warm water
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup oil
3 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon yeast
6 cups water
3 tablespoons baking soda
1 egg white
1 tablespoon kosher salt

Directions
1.  Mix together brown sugar, salt, and yeast in a big bowl.
2.  Mix together oil and water.  Add to the sugar and yeast mixture.
3.  Add the flour and mix to a nice doughy (not sticky) consistency.  Knead with mixer for a few minutes.
4.  Divide dough into 12 balls and shape into rolls and let rise on greased foil cover sheet for 20–30 minutes, until nice and puffy.  Codychop recommends raising in a warmed oven-- preheated to the lowest setting, then turned off, at which point the dough can be put in to rise.

5.  While the dough is rising, bring water and baking soda to a simmer in a wide pan with straight sides.
6.  Once dough has finished rising, remove from the warmed oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  Place 4 rolls in the water and simmer 1 minute, than flip and simmer for an additional minute.  Drain and place the rolls on a cookie sheet.  Repeat with the remaining rolls.

7.  Brush rolls with egg white and sprinkle generously with kosher salt.  Slash decoratively with a sharp blade.

8.  Bake until "pretzel" brown, about 12–15 minutes.

[Fashion] Kate Spade "Eat Cake for Breakfast" Tote

Every once in a while, I indulge in a ridiculous splurge.  And by that, I mean that I break one of my shopping rules.

I have two cardinal rules of shopping.  They're meant to be considered in tandem with each other: if something I want doesn't follow one rule, I consider the other, which can compensate for the violation of the first.  In that sense, this purchase is fine because it violates only one of my rules.

My first rule is that the value of a piece can be measured in part by how often I know (or at least predict) that I will use it.  Thus, an expensive piece can be justified if I know that I love love love it and will use it either every day or for years to come.  The second rule considers the uniqueness and/or craftsmanship and materials that went into a piece.  I hate looking like everyone else, and, though I certainly go for my fair share of common mainstream labels, I love when someone stops me on the street or in the hallway to ask me where I got something.

To be fair, this Kate Spade bag has solicited a fair amount of compliments already, even from strangers.  But it's a canvas tote bag.  Every other canvas tote bag I own was free: a free gift along with some other purchase or a party/event favor.  Sure, with one or two notable exceptions, most of these tote bags are generic and plain, displaying the logo of whatever company/event distributed them.  But that's generally fine because people (or I, at least) don't really use canvas tote bags except to go to the store or the beach.

But this bag was just so adorably cheeky and me that I took the plunge.  I can frequently be found with freshly baked goods in my bag, so why not proclaim my baking/cooking addiction, loud and clear?

Do I love this tote like whoa?  Yes.  Will I be using this tote constantly?  Yes—in fact, I already brought it with me to the farmers' market last weekend and to work several days this week, and so, I guess, in that respect, the bag is a good investment.  But do I think any canvas tote bag could possibly be worth this amount of money?  Absolutely not.  Maybe time will prove me wrong, and this canvas will somehow, miraculously, be sturdier and better than any other canvas bag I own.

I guess I already have :)

[Music] Joe Paulson (live at Joe's Pub at The Public)

Last night I went to a Jon McLaughlin show at 11:30 PM at Joe's Pub at The Public.  I bought tickets late Sunday night-- and it was the best decision I've made this month.  I found out he was playing only by chance-- I "liked" him on Facebook years ago, and he posted a status update to let his fans know that his show the next night in New York City still had a few open seats.  I went by myself and fell hopelessly in love with him and his music all over again.  But I'm gushing ahead of myself-- he'll get his own post.

Jon's opening act was Joe Paulson, a singer-songwriter from Indiana who, according to his website/Facebook page, is an accountant by day and a musician with a heart of gold (he donates the majority of the proceeds from his merchandise sales to two extremely worthy charities) by night.  He and his music are earnest in every sense of the word.  His sound is similar to Jon's and it isn't-- his music is a little less intense and complex, which isn't meant as an insult by any means.  If pressed, I'd say he's like a cross between James Blunt and Matt Nathanson (both of whom I love-- do you see a pattern here?).

Here's a short clip of him from last night playing "The Fallout," the title track off his new EP.  Loveee the instrumental for this.

Unfortunately for the lucky few who are still waiting to see Jon on the remainder of his tour to promote his latest album, last night was Joe's last show with the tour.  But the man is definitely talented and deserves some views, exposure, recognition, etc., the whole shebang.
Check him out at: http://www.joepaulsonmusic.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joepaulsoncommunity
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joepaulson

And I'll leave you with a short clip of him playing "Take Me Back Again," also from his debut EP: 

 

[Recipe] "Pick of the Harvest" Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Salad

Growing up in (kind of, not really) rural Pennsylvania, it seems like every year we would take field and day trips to nearby farms and orchards in the fall and pick apples, harvest pumpkins, and take hayrides.  I went to a private school, so it was also an excuse for us to wear jeans and adorable flannel shirts—because there's nothing worse than scratchy hay on bare legs in pleated plaid skirts.  And we would munch on apples, sip on apple cider, and bring home a small basket full of apples for our mothers.  My mother, being Taiwanese, didn't make apple pie (though she does love it) or pumpkin anything, so she was always a bit perplexed when I came home with anything other than a jug of apple cider.  We would have apples in our lunchboxes for weeks afterwards to compensate.  Not that I'm complaining—I love apples.

It's been years since I've been apple picking, but I've been feeling pretty nostalgic lately.  I've toyed with the idea of organizing a trip up with co-workers, but until I work out those logistics, I satisfy myself with recipes that remind and taste like fall.  At my local farmers' market this Saturday, I spotted fresh whole butternut squash (one of my favorites—it's slightly sweet and nutty and so hearty, a perfect, perfect autumn comfort food) and resolved to use it in my cooking for the weekend.

First up: something both light and filling for my workweek lunchbox: butternut squash salad.  I modified this recipe by Ina Garten, better known as the Barefoot Contessa, to include a few more autumn flavors and a bit more protein.

"Pick of the Harvest" Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Salad

a recipe inspired by Ina Garten

The star of this dish is definitely the butternut squash—just like I wanted.  I could eat a big bowl of it (shh... I may already have): the maple syrup glaze brings out all of its best flavors.  The slight tartness of the dried cranberries and the apple cider vinaigrette are the perfect complement to the sweetness of the butternut squash and the slight pepper taste of the arugula.  The avocado adds creaminess, and the nuts add crunch and highlight the slight nuttiness of the butternut squash.  I suggest adding Rotisserie chicken below but didn't actually use any in my version—I think it could be great, though (mm... salt), and would make the salad even more substantial.

Ingredients

1 (1-1/2 pound) butternut squash, peeled and diced

olive oil

2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3/4 cup apple cider or apple juice

1 minced shallot (should be approximately 2 tablespoons)

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

4 ounces baby arugula, washed and spun dry

2 ounces mixed salad greens, washed and spun dry

1 avocado, diced (optional)

1 Fuji apple, diced

3 tablespoons dried cranberries

1/2 cups walnut halves, toasted

Rotisserie chicken, shredded (optional)

3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

1.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

2.  Place the diced butternut squash on a sheet pan.  Add 4 tablespoons olive oil, the maple syrup, at least 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and toss.  Roast the squash for 15 to 20 minutes, turning once, until tender.  Add the cranberries to the pan for the last 5 minutes.

3.  While the squash is roasting, combine the apple cider, vinegar, and shallots in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the cider is reduced to about 1/4 cup.  Remove from heat and whisk in the mustard, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper.

4.  Place the arugula and mixed greens in a large salad bowl and add the roasted butternut squash, cranberries, walnuts, avocado, apple, chicken, and grated Parmesan.  Spoon just enough apple cider vinaigrette over the salad to moisten and toss well.  Sprinkle with sale and pepper.

[Recipe] Mac and Cheese Cook-off: Fall-tastic Mac, Attempt #3

KiKi and I have very different cooking styles, so it's interesting when we get in the kitchen together.  I chalk it up to my upbringing—I'm 100% Taiwanese, and my parents made very little Western food growing up.  And when my mom started teaching me to cook, albeit reluctantly, I became comfortable with moving, spicing, and all sorts of other things in the kitchen in a very Asian way.  Meaning that, now that I'm older and have bought a ton of cooking books and am working my way through them slowly, I can safely say that the way you cook Western food is just very different from the way you cook Asian food, and it requires a different skill set.

All this to say, I'm not as comfortable as she is with Western sauces and foods, like bechamel, because I've never encountered them in cooking prior to the past two or fewer years.  I'm much more likely to look up and then stick to (largely) a recipe when cooking Western.  KiKi, on the other hand, is constantly subbing out ingredients that she already knows goes into things, not measuring anything, and sometimes not looking at recipes at all—which impresses me.  It's exactly how I cook Asian food.  It's something that comes with time and experience (and good instincts help, of course), and I've successfully been doing that in my baking for a few years now, so I'm hoping I'll step out of my comfort zone in Western cooking soon, too.  In the meantime, though, I just watch and follow KiKi's lead.

Fall-tastic Mac 3.0 is fairly different from Fall-tastic Mac 1.0.  In a lot of ways, it's better, but it can definitely use more tweaking.  More on that later.

As before, there are three major components to this mac 'n' cheese: the brussels sprouts, the pumpkin-beer-braised short ribs, and the actual pumpkin mac 'n' cheese.

"Fall-tastic" Mac - Iteration #3
an original recipe by tammiest (the Passionfruit Fashionista)

First, the Pumpkin-Beer-Braised Short Ribs:

This batch of short ribs was better than the previous one.  We used Blue Moon's special pumpkin beer, which was infinitely better than the pumpkin ale I used in version 1.0, for starters, and we also used beef stock instead of vegetable this time—though I did have to run to the grocery store down the street at the last minute because I, again, forgot that I didn't have any on hand.  It's funny because I love vegetables and don't mind cooking or eating vegetarian every once in a while, but meat really makes a big difference in taste, especially when it comes to stock.

Ingredients
2-1/2 lbs. beef short ribs
2+ tablespoons unsalted butter
3 garlic cloves, crushed
3 bottles pumpkin beer
5 cups beef stock
4 bay leaves
kosher salt
black pepper
cayenne pepper

Directions
1.  Season the ribs with salt and pepper.  In a large pot, melt 2 or more tablespoons of butter.  Add the ribs and brown them in the melted butter.

2.  Once the ribs have finished browning, add the bay leaves and crushed garlic cloves, along with a bit of cayenne pepper.  Add the pumpkin beer and beef stock before covering the pan with the lid.  Bring the pot to a boil before bringing down to a simmer on low for 3 hours, at which point the meat should be falling off the bone.

Second, the Brussels Sprouts: 

For version 3.0, we decided to go with KiKi's tactic of using brussels sprouts as a topping to the mac 'n' cheese as opposed to a mixer.  This ensures that the vegetables stay crunchy (and thus texturally interesting) because we bake and broil the mac 'n' cheese just before serving.

Something else KiKi does differently is that she actually slices the brussels sprouts before baking them.  I think, for purposes of the mac 'n' cheese, this is a smart thing to do—again with the textural interest—but, for purposes of snacking, it was less satisfying.  Their distinct nutty flavor is diminished a bit by the slicing because there's more browning and charring that occurs, and I think I must love brussels sprouts too much for them to taste like anything else!

Ingredients
1-1/2 lbs. brussels sprouts
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2.  Cut off the brown ends of the brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves.  Slice them as thinly as possible.  Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Pour them on a sheet pan or in a roasting pan, then dab the unsalted butter on top.  Roast for 30-40 minutes, mixing every 5-7 minutes, until slightly crisp.

Third, the Pumpkin Mac 'n' Cheese:

You'll see that the cheese this time around was very, very different from 1.0.  In some ways, it's much better—the easiest reason is that it was much cheesier overall.  And I loved the little kick of cayenne pepper we added, and I'm a big fan of the mascarpone we chose to use this time.  But I also think that the type and amount of cheddar cheese we used was a little too overwhelming for my tastes.  KiKi's blog states we added smoked gouda to the cheese mixture—but she's wrong.  We didn't.  We forgot and had to add it to the topping.  To me, this cheese was a little one dimensional, and you could barely taste the pumpkin.  We're planning to remedy that in the next round, though.  Suggestions listed below in the "Verdict."

Ingredients

3-1/2 cups milk

1 cup pumpkin puree

(at least) 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

(at least) 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

1 lb. elbow macaroni

7 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

10-14 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded

8 oz. mascarpone cheese

kosher salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1.  In a medium-sized pot or saucepan, melt and brown the butter over medium-high heat.  This is a process that takes longer than mere melting (and so you'll have to watch the stove), but it gives the butter (and consequently whatever you're making) a deeper, complex, almost nutty flavor.  You want to melt the butter past its melting point-- it will start to foam before it subsides and begins to brown.

2.  Once the butter has just begun to brown, add the pumpkin puree, using a whisk to combine.

3.  Add the flour slowly to the pumpkin-butter mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring and combining completely before adding each new tablespoon of flour.  This roux mixture should brown up as well (but, again, watch to make sure it doesn't overbrown or begin to blacken).

4.  Once the roux is finished and has cooked, fully mixed, for a few minutes, begin adding the whole milk in 3/4-cup increments.  Make sure to stir and combine completely, as well as bring almost to a boil, in between increments.

5.  Season to taste with the salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cayenne pepper.
6.  Let the bechamel simmer (not boil) to thicken the sauce.
7.  While the bechamel is simmering, fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  Once the water comes to a boil, add a generous amount of salt and then the pasta.  Boil pasta for 10 to 12 minutes or until al dente, stirring occasionally.  Drain pasta and set aside.
8.  Add the cheese to the drained pasta.  Combine well.
9.  Turn off the heat on the bechamel and pour it into and over the pasta and cheese mixture.  Combine well.

Finally, combine for Fall-tastic Mac:

Hats off to KiKi-- she was right.  Brussels sprouts topping was amazing.

Additional Ingredients
Panko bread crumbs, enough to cover the top of the mac 'n' cheese pan (about 1 cup)
4 oz. smoked gouda cheese, grated
unsalted butter

Directions
1.  Shred the pumpkin-beer braised short ribs (they should fall easily from the bone and shred even more easily with a fork) and mix into the pumpkin mac 'n' cheese.  Adjust seasoning as needed.
2.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
3.  Pour the combined mac 'n' cheese into a large baking pan.
4.  Sprinkle the thinly sliced brussels sprouts, Panko bread crumbs, and 4 oz. of shredded smoked gouda cheese, on top of the mac 'n' cheese.  Dot the top with small amounts of unsalted butter.

4.  Bake the mac 'n' cheese in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes.  Broil for the last 5 minutes.

 

The Verdict

Fall-tastic Mac is clearly the winner (at least over Oktoberfest Mac).  The final tally, after both the dinner party and bringing both in to the office, is 24-5.  It doesn't mean that we're done experimenting, though, or that this recipe is perfect.  Everyone loved the short ribs themselves, and it's hard to imagine improving on them, so those are good as is.  The brussels sprouts in version 3.0, similarly, are likely not going to be changed.  A lot of people—including KiKi and myself—however, did prefer the Oktoberfest cheese to the Fall-tastic cheese.

So, a few thoughts for next time: 

1.  Slightly different cheese(s).

Like I mentioned above, I think our cheese was a little one dimensional.  We can still use cheddar, but less of it—we should add smoked gouda to the actual mixture, as well as some Gruyere.  The mascarpone was great, and we should keep it.

2.  More pumpkin flavor.  But not more pumpkin.

Allow me to explain.  The cheese we used this time around overpowered the pumpkin.  We're going to fix that by using a blend of cheeses next time—plus, we're going to substitute one cup of milk for one cup of pumpkin beer.  We're also going to add more nutmeg and some sugar to highlight the taste of pumpkin without actually adding any more pumpkin.

3.  Slightly different crumble.

We both loved the pretzel rolls so much that we're going to use them in Fall-tastic Mac!, but toasted and croutoned so they stay crunchy and texturally interesting.

Until Next Time

I really think I've been bitten by the mac 'n' cheese bug.  I have three recipes circling in my head that I plan to try out for honor's sake and one more recipe KiKi and I are going to test for the contest itself.  Stay tuned—and stay enthusiastic, 1285!  You guys are the best.

[Recipe] Mac and Cheese Cook-off: Oktoberfest Mac, Attempt #1

When KiKi first asked me to enter the Mac 'n' Cheese Cookoff with her, my feelings were tentative, lukewarm at best.  But, unsurprisingly, as time went on, I became increasingly competitive, and now I've become a little obsessed with winning.  Last year, KiKi and Junglecat J lost second place by just one vote, mainly because none of their friends (yours truly included) showed up to the event.  (In my defense, I did try to go, but my talent for getting hopelessly lost interfered, and I never made it.)

Given that I want to win, I started to get anxious that our Fall-tastic Mac—with pumpkin and brussels sprouts, two ingredients that are sadly less than universally popular—would be offputting to enough people as to jeopardize our chances for the mac 'n' cheese trophy I desperately want to display in my office.

And that's how Oktoberfest Mac* was born.  Oktoberfest Mac is beer cheese, macaroni, bratwurst with onions (the traditional way), and a topping of crumbled bacon and homemade pretzel roll croutons.  Basically, everything American, Oktoberfest, and football in one cheesy dish.  What's not to love?
* A special thank-you and shout-out to MiMi, who named this for us.

There are three major components to this mac 'n' cheese as well: the beer cheese, the bratwurst with onions, and the topping of crumbled bacon and homemade pretzel roll croutons.

Oktoberfest Mac - Iteration #1
an original recipe by tammiest (the Passionfruit Fashionista)

First, the Bratwurst with Onions:

Bratwurst is a natural choice/pairing for beer cheese, pretzels, and bacon.  This is both a good and bad thing, as our tastetesters made clear to us.  It just isn't nearly as flavorful as anything else in Oktoberfest Mac and apparently felt like a "throwaway" ingredient.  This does kind of make sense, though—I love brats, but part of the experience is definitely in the pile of condiments and not the sausage itself.  Chorizo it is not.*
* Our friend Hotpants Radio Miami ("HRM" for short) suggested swapping the bratwurst out for chorizo—which would definitely give it an extra kick—but then we couldn't in good conscience really call it an Oktoberfest Mac, could we?

Ingredients
4 bratwurst sausages
3 bottles amber ale
3 cups beef stock
2 sweet Vidalia onions, thinly sliced
2-3 tablespoons butter
kosher salt and pepper

Directions
1.  Pour the 3 bottles of amber ale and the 3 cups of beef stock into a large pot and bring to a boil.
2.  Once the liquid mixture in the pot is at a boil, drop in the thinly sliced onions and the bratwurst, still in its casing.
3.  Cook the bratwurst for the recommended cooking time (as indicated on the packaging and depending on whether the bratwurst is pre-cooked), then remove from the pot.  Allow the bratwurst to cool before thinly slicing.

4.  In a new pan, melt 2-3 tablespoons of butter.  Scoop the onions out of the beer and stock mixture and caramelize in the new pan by heating over medium-high heat and stirring occasionally.  Season with a generous amount of salt and pepper.  Cook until brown, roughly 20-30 minutes.

Second, the Beer Cheese:

It's really surprising to me the number of people who have never had or even heard of beer cheese before.  It's such a football staple!  And if it isn't yet a football staple, it will clearly have to become one, at least at any football viewing I attend—along with the homemade pretzel rolls also featured in Oktoberfest Mac (entry here).

This cheese is crazy good.  You can really taste the ale, and the mustard and cayenne give it a nice kick.  And it's not terribly difficult to make, which means I really can make it (with a few modifications, which I'll certainly blog about) for future football viewings.

Ingredients
6 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour
1 bottle amber ale
2-1/2 cups whole milk
kosher salt and pepper to taste
(at least) 1 teaspoon mustard power
(at least) 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 lb. elbow macaroni
10-14 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
5 oz. fontina cheese, shredded

Directions
1.  In a medium-sized pot or saucepan, melt and brown the butter over medium-high heat.  This is a process that takes longer than mere melting (and so you'll have to watch the stove), but it gives the butter (and consequently whatever you're making) a deeper, complex, almost nutty flavor.  You want to melt the butter past its melting point—it will start to foam before it subsides and begins to brown.
2.  Once the butter has just begun to brown, add the flour slowly, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring and combining completely before adding each new tablespoon of flour.  This roux mixture should brown up as well (but, again, watch to make sure it doesn't overbrown or begin to blacken).
3.  Once the roux is finished and has cooked, fully mixed, for a few minutes, add the beer.  We used Yeungling Amber, but any amber ale will do.
4.  Once the beer has been fully incorporated with the roux, begin adding the whole milk in 3/4-cup increments.  Make sure to stir and combine completely, as well as bring almost to a boil, in between increments.
5.  Season to taste with the salt, pepper, mustard powder, and cayenne pepper.
6.  Let the bechamel simmer (not boil) to thicken the sauce.
7.  While the bechamel is simmering, fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  Once the water comes to a boil, add a generous amount of salt and then the pasta.  Boil pasta for 10 to 12 minutes or until al dente, stirring occasionally.  Drain pasta and set aside.
8.  Add the cheese to the drained pasta.  Combine well.
9.  Turn off the heat on the bechamel and pour it into and over the pasta and cheese mixture.  Combine well.

Third, the Crumbled Bacon and Homemade Pretzel Roll Croutons: 

Confession: I've been obsessed with the homemade pretzel roll croutons ever since I first conceived of them.  I made the pretzel rolls themselves a day before I made them into croutons—and made extra, obviously, so KiKi and I could serve them whole to our guests.  We also initially planned to make up our own honey mustard butter, but we ran out of time.  We'll have to experiment in the future.

These pretzel rolls were so good they deserve their own post.

Once the pretzel rolls are ready, break 4 of them into 1/4-inch pieces.  These will be used for the topping, described below.

As for the crumbled bacon, heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit on broil.  They should take 15-20 minutes to brown up.  You don't want it to be too crispy, though—they'll continue baking with the mac 'n' cheese.

Finally, combine for Oktoberfest Mac:

Kiki likes toppings on her mac, and she likes to bake and broil them in the oven.  I have to admit that I concur on this method, as it melts the cheese in a very lovely way and brings all the flavors together.

Additional Ingredients
4 oz. fontina cheese, grated

Directions
1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2.  Add the sliced bratwurst and the caramelized onions to the mac 'n' cheese mixture and combine well.

2.  Pour the combined mac 'n' cheese into a large baking pan.
3.  Sprinkle croutons made from 4 pretzel rolls, the bacon crumble from 8 strips of bacon, and 4 oz. of freshly grated fontina cheese liberally on top of the mac 'n' cheese.

4.  Bake the mac 'n' cheese in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes.  This should be enough time for the bacon to crisp up, but you can also broil for the last 5 minutes.

The Verdict

KiKi and I had 8 of our friends over to my apartment for a tastetest dinner party on Sunday.  Reviews were generally positive, especially for the cheese, but every one of our friends (except one) preferred Fall-tastic Mac to Oktoberfest Mac.  The most cited reason has already been mentioned: the bratwurst seems like a bit of a throwaway ingredient, and I guess I'd have to agree.  We didn't really have to do much to it, and it kind of gets lost amongst all the other ingredients.

My biggest personal disappointment was in the pretzel roll croutons, which weren't as amazing in the Oktoberfest Mac as they are all by themselves.  Next time we could toast the pretzel rolls a bit beforehand so they also crisp up, but the reason we didn't do that in the first place is that I was worried they would lose their texture.

Ultimately, Oktoberfest Mac is losing out to Fall-tastic Mac, despite being created specifically to appeal to the "everyman."  In the words of our friend Caryn, "Think of your audience.  Who do you think is going to this Cookoff?  Probably hipsters and other types of people who love pumpkin and brussels sprouts."

Touche.

But it doesn't mean that I won't be improving on this recipe and bringing it to a house party near you.