Thanksgiving Food and Drink

It's that time of year again. All the food and dining sections are preparing us for Thanksgiving. I hope you like stuffing... and which wine should it be? Beaujolais Village or Zinfandel?

If I had my way this Thanksgiving, I'd be drinking some really good German beers at Jimmy' s No. 43. Mahr's unfiltered lager 'Ungespundet" to name one. I'd like to dig into some slow roasted porchetta, pulled pork style, with a nice root vegetable pureee. Maybe I'd go all out and try a big porchetta sandwich at Sarah Jenkin's new Porchetta down the block at 7th St and 1st Ave!

Slow Roasting a Pig?

The other day I was chatting with John Taylor - aka Hoppin' John - low country cook, author, and purveyor of heirloom corn grits. I've looked at his blog a few times. I love the recipes. When I mentioned that pork was slow roasting in the Jimmy' s No. 43 kitchen, Hoppin' John offered this tasty fall chutney recipe as a proper accompaniment. Try this for Thanksgiving.

John Taylor's Fall Chutney
This recipe is easy and everyone loves it. I usually use 3 lbs of pears and make 5 pints and process them for 15 minutes, but I put this on my blog for folks who won't can and like small batches:

1 pound hard, underripe pears, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 lightly packd cup light or dark brown sugar
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup crystallized ginger, chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2/3 cup light or dark raisins or a mixture of the two
2/3 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Cook the pears in water to cover until they are medium-soft. Drain, saving the water, then make a syrup of the water in which they were cooked and the brown sugar by boiling in a nonreactive pot until thick, about 20 to 30 minutes.

Add the pears and the remaining ingredients to the pot and cook for another 30 minutes, or until the raisins are soft, the onions are clear, and the chutney is thick.

The chutney will keep in the refrigerator for months.
Makes about 3 1/2 cups

Kudos for Bacon!

The Tasting Room at Jimmy's No. 43 is a happy place for those who love to savor their food. A happy participant of our recent Beer, Bacon and Chutney tasting said "It was pretty awesome." You can read more of his comments if you click here. Keep checking here and at the Jimmy's No. 43 website for information about future tastings, including the upcoming Beer and Pickle pairing. Don't forget, tonight is the Queens Historical Farm Benefit featuring Sixpoint beers on draft.

We'll see you there.

Top 10 Bars for Beer Snobs

New York Observer writer Michael Anstendig has a hot new list of Top 10 Bars for Beer Snobs. Jimmy's No. 43 lands at number 8 for it's "underground vibe" and "eclectic pints". Click here to read the full article.

Chew On This.

Two ambitious food lovers have designed interactive wheels to help users select local, seasonal foods at their peak. Perhaps a Beer Wheel should be next? Read more about this interesting product here.

Local Food Events at Jimmy's No. 43

Friends and Americans! Oh-bamn!

Let's celebrate with some local food events, AND WALK THE TALK:

Don't forget Monday, November 10 at 7:00 PM- Josh Ozersky (aka Mr. Cutlets) joins Wendy Smith of Schoolhouse Kitchen for a Bacon, Beer and Chutney Tasting. Find out why NY Barfly said upon learning of this tasting "...our mouth started to drip in what we can only describe as Homer Simpson fashion." For tickets and information, visit the Jimmy's No. 43 website.

Wednesday, November 12- Harvest Dinner to benefit Just Food, the CSA sponsor!
All night you will find an a la carte menu, good local beers, and interesting people including Jacquie Berger of Just Food. A percentage of all sales will benefit Just Food. Call for a reservation, walk-ins welcome.

November 12- 15- Fancy Dutch Beer Week! Celebrate Dutch Arts and Culture at St. Marks Church then pop over to Jimmy's No. 43 where we are featuring small production, delicious Dutch beers like Christoffel, and 5 others.

Tuesday, November 18-Queens Historical Farm Benefit. Eat, drink, meet interesting folk who attended Slow Food's biannual Terra Madre Conference in Italy and meet Queens Farm Director Michael Robertson. Enjoy Sixpoint Craft Ales on draught! More details to come.

Friday, December 5- Lift a glass to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition!

Tuesday, December 9-Beer and Pickle Pairing. Rick's Picks and Ommegang Beers. Sample five delicious pairings. Check the Jimmy's No. 43 website for info.

Keep checking our site for more information, there's a Scandinavian Beer Party in the works and more mouthwatering events to come!

We Know Beer

Recently, The New York Times published an article about Brooklyn breweries including one of our favorites- Sixpoint Craft Ales. The New York Times reports that, "Its (Sixpoint) beers are a staple at beer lovers’ haunts like Barcade in Williamsburg and Jimmy’s No. 43 in the East Village."

That is most certainly true. We are proud to pour Sixpoint, but what if you don't know which beer will suit your tasty entree? Where can you go to find beer pairings to delight your palate? A query was posted on Chowhound just the other day: "Is there a restaurant that offers beer pairings with the menu?" Luckily, Jimmy's No. 43 is a good spot for an informal pairing, just ask for Jimmy!

Ewes Make Great Cheese

3 Corner Field Farm in Shushan, NY is all about lamb and sheep, sheep and lamb. Every week we buy their lamb chorizo sausages, which is one of the most popular menu items at Jimmy's No. 43. We serve it with a yogurt (tzatziki sauce) made from the same sheep's milk. We also frequently feature one of the sheep's milk cheeses on our cheese plate. Learn a little more about one of our favorite producers in this informative article.