Yum-this is a winner with home made pretzels. I like the Alton Brown Pretzel recipe (Did a lot of searching and it is solid)-use Fleur de Sel (French sea salt)-nice and chunky- instead of pretzel salt. (Who knows where to find pretzel salt?) Work with me, and adjust as needed. Here is the basic idea:
Ingredients: For pairing with one recipe Above Pretzels:
4 Tbl’s butter
4 Tbl’s flour
1 12 oz bottle of Belgian styled white beer (Allagash white! Saint Bernardus wit, etc-please-no Blue Moon)
A standby container of Half and Half-perhaps around a cup (more or less)
8 0z of fresh Chevre (goat cheese) the young, soft, tangy kind. Domestic or French are both Ok.
A few Tbs of Dijon-(to Taste) Don’t be shy!
Nutmeg to be grated fresh
Salt and Pepper
Method and technique:
Melt butter over medium heat
-Add flour and whisk till smooth and starchy taste has cooked out-2-3 minutes
-Add beer slowly and let come to a simmer before adding more beer.
-Check thickness of sauce and add beer slowly repeating this procedure until most of beer is gone. Save a taste for the chef. About 3 oz (chef pour)
-Add some half and half (slowly bring to a simmer) to thin sauce-around a cup more or less. Reduce until the sauce coats the back of the spoon, and forms a visible line when you run your finger across it. Bring to a simmer and add broken up goat cheese and stir over low heat to melt.
-Add Dijon mustard to taste (don’t be shy) A Tbl’s-or 2
-Add a Generous grating of fresh nutmeg, and season with salt and pepper.
-If the sauce is too thick add half and half to desired consistency. I it is too thin-reduce slowly over low heat. Or, mix equal parts soft butter with flour to form a ball, and whisk little pieces into sauce as it comes to a simmer-it will magically thicken. Check final product for seasoning.
You will become an addict when you double dip this into your steaming goat cheese/Dijon infused beer sauce with a fresh hot pretzel just out of the oven!
