Recipe: Dip into Birdsong Brewing’s beer cheese for a must-have football season snack
It’s football season, and snacks are on the menu. You know we like to keep it local — and tasty — here at CharlotteFive, so we’re sharing a recipe from Birdsong Brewing Co.
Fun fact: The brewery does not serve food; it has a lineup of food trucks instead. But thankfully someone there realized that its Jalapeño Pale Ale would make for a pretty good beer cheese dip, did some tinkering in the kitchen and the rest is history.
Now we’re hungry, so let’s get into it. Here’s Birdsong Brewing Co.’s recipe for Jalapeño Beer Cheese:
Ingredients
- 1 cup Birdsong Jalapeño Pale Ale
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 16 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 2 large, fresh jalapeño peppers, seeded and diced
- 2 Tbsp. all purpose flour
- ⅛ tsp. cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp. salt
Instructions
In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and diced jalapeño pepper, and stir until fragrant. Add 2 tablespoons of all purpose flour, ⅛ teaspoon cayenne and ½ teaspoon salt, then stir constantly for one minute.
Slowly whisk in the Jalapeno Pale Ale and heavy cream. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and begin adding the shredded cheese a half cup at a time, slowly stirring it in as it melts.
Season to taste with salt and pepper and transfer to a serving dish or a small slow cooker to keep it warm. Optional garnishes include freshly sliced jalapenos and sliced green onion.
Now you can snack, friends. The brewery recommends you serve the jalapeno beer cheese immediately with soft pretzels or tortilla chips. Veggies work, too!
Birdsong Brewing Co.
Location: 1016 North Davidson St. Charlotte, NC 28206
Instagram: @birdsongbrewing
