I was asked by the Neighborhood Co-Op to create some beer-related classes for their upcoming cooking class schedule this season. I think we have some exciting offerings for the next couple of months!
Because of the peculiarities of the liquor laws in our area, I was unable to do my first choice, pairing beer with food. However, I think we’ve come up with something just as fun! I’ll be teaching people how to make a couple of incredibly easy brews which need no extra equipment beyond a pot and a mason jar. (If you can can, you can make beer!) We’ll learn all about the histories of these brews (which people have been making in their kitchens for centuries) and make traditional food to accompany them.
Below are descriptions of the classes. You can register for each by clicking on the link at the end of the description.
Skål!
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Russian Home Brewing
Saturday, February 11
5 PM to 8 PM
$20 for Co-Op members/$25 for non-members
Most people think that home brewing is a complicated hobby that requires a lot of expensive equipment. Not true for many traditional home brews of various national origins. Come learn how to make kvass, a Russian home brew made—incredibly—with rye bread! We’ll put together an incomparable loaf of rye, make a fantastic appetizer and entrée to accompany it, and then turn it into the national home brew of Russia. Bring a Mason jar, preferably 1 or 2 L, to bring home your Russian home brew.
(I hope to make okroshka, a cold Russian soup made with kvass, as one of the appetizers. Come try the food of the other side of the world!)
Sign up for Russian Home Brewing here.
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Finnish Home Brewing
Saturday, May 5
5 PM to 8 PM
$20 for Co-Op members/$25 for non-members
It is said about the Finns that they “don’t drink any more than anybody else—they just drink it all at once.” Come learn about Sima, the May Day drink of Finland, a sparkling lemonade with a bit of a kick; and Karpalojuoma, or Cranberry Sparkle. We’ll make Finnish doughnuts to accompany the Sima, per tradition; and a handful of appetizers to whet the palette for the coming warm weather. Bring a Mason jar, preferably 1 or 2 quarts, to bring home your Finnish home brew.
(A home brew from my ancestral home! This fantastically easy drink is a simple crowd pleaser. Get ready for a Suomi extravaganza!)
Sign up for Finnish Home Brewing here.
