Valentine's
?Susan Nowak shares her ideas for the most romantic day of the year
So, you reckon pints and passion don't mix? That Cupid sipped Champagne, not stout? Well, let me tell you, beer is sexy.
With Valentine's Day imminent, now is the ideal time to prove that beer is an aphrodisiac on a menu that will tempt the blokes as well as the birds (and bees).
Start with chilled raspberry beer, served in Champagne flutes.
For the first course, try a delicate salmon and prawn mousse topped with smoked salmon and a whole crevette. Garnish with lemon mayonnaise and fresh dill.
To drink, something pale and interesting. Present an ice bucket containing a wire-corked wheat beer with tingling citrus edge, or Greene King's Hop, the perfect "white wine" to go with fish.
For the main course, choose chicken - but teamed with some pretty robust flavours. Take a free-range breast, make a slit along, and fill with a little creamed asparagus. Wrap round strips of Parma ham, and sauté until the chicken is golden and cooked through. Carve onto wild mushroom risotto drizzled with truffle oil, and top with a couple of steamed asparagus spears.
To drink, honey beer harmonises with chicken (and your mood) but I would throw caution to the winds with Forbidden Fruit.
A Rubensque naked Adam and Eve disport themselves on the label of this rich, dark, highly alcoholic brew (a hefty 8.8% abv) from Hoegaarden.
And so to my party piece, Sex in a Glass, an irresistible coupling of whipped cream and cherry beer. Simply whip the cream until really stiff then pour in enough cherry beer to turn it blush pink and give a "dropping" consistency. Layer in tall, stemmed glasses with de-stoned Morello cherries; leave small pockets of air.
When the glasses are nearly full, pour in a drop of cherry beer to trickle down - the deep red gives a lovely marbled effect. Top with a last dollop of cream, a couple of cherries, and sensuous chocolate twirl.
Sip with it the cherry beer - either Bacchus from West Flanders or, my own favourite, Liefmans Kriek, which boasts a Champagne-style wired cork as well.
