New Beer Friday, Sam's Famous Kapusta Edition (Sept 15)

Customers enjoy kapusta

Preamble by Steve Siciliano

It's tradition here at Siciliano's to treat our customers to German wieners and draft root beer on the Saturdays of our annual, week-long Customer Appreciation sales. There are many who would agree that nothing goes better with German wieners than homemade kapusta and for many years the kapusta that we served as a garnish for the locally sourced dogs was made by my late father Sam Siciliano.

Kapusta is the Polish word for cabbage and my father's version of this traditional Polish dish garnered universal praise. I'd like to think he came up with the kapusta recipe on his own but the more likely scenario was that he sweet-talked some lady who cooked in one of the Polish halls here in town into sharing it with him. I do know that he continually tweaked the recipe over the years and that his version of kapusta was decidedly unique.

Sam has been gone four years and there hasn’t been kapusta at our Customer Appreciation Days since his passing. This year my wife Barb and I decided it was time we revived that part of the tradition.

When I got home from the store last Friday Barb was already in the kitchen chopping onions and celery. I grabbed a big knife and a big wooden cutting board and began shredding the three big heads of fresh cabbage. I thought of my dad while I chopped. I could see him shredding the cabbage at the table in his small kitchen. I imagined him getting up every so often from his naps to stir and taste and tweak the seasonings. I remembered all the times I lugged the big roasting pan to my truck and how he would smile when I asked him how much of the kapusta he had eaten.

Barb and I got a lot of compliments for the kapusta last Saturday and more than a few customers asked if they could have the recipe. We made sure we told them whose recipe it was and that we were sure that Sam would would have been more than happy to share it with them. Here it is.

SAM SICILIANO'S HOMEMADE KAPUSTA

• 2 lbs sauerkraut, drained
• ¾ head of cabbage, shredded
• 1 ½ cup onion, diced
• 1 ½ cup celery, diced
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 15-oz cans chicken broth
• pork steak, pork roast or spare ribs
• 3 tsp brown sugar
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Saute onions, celery, garlic and pork in oil
• Add drained sauerkraut
• Add chicken broth, simmer 15 minutes
• Add bay leaves, salt and pepper
• Add shredded cabbage, simmer 1 hour
• Add additional brown sugar to taste
• Serve to friends with beer, brats, wieners, sausages and/or kielbasa

New and Returning Beer

• Arcadia Jaw-Jacker, $1.79/12oz - "This spiced amber ale is our celebration of the arrival of Autumn. Brewed with cinnamon, all-spice, and nutmeg (a riff on Grandma Davies’ pumpkin pie recipe), and additions of Caramel and Crystal malt for balanced flavor, drinkability, and a brilliant orange-amber color, despite the absence of pumpkin in the recipe. A refreshingly spicy, season brew" (source).
• Bell's Expedition Stout, $3.09/12oz - "One of the earliest examples of Russian Imperial Stouts in the United States, Expedition Stout offers immensely complex flavors crafted specifically with aging in mind. A huge malt body is matched with a heady blend of chocolate, dark fruit and other aromas. The flavors will slowly meld and grow in depth as the beer ages in your cellar" (source).
• Bell's Roundhouse, $1.89/12oz - "Substantial amounts of late-kettle hop additions and dry-hopping yields a heady blend of fruity aromas of pineapple, peach and citrus. Those aromas continue into a crisply bitter hop presence across the tongue, but the judicious use of toasted and caramel specialty malts prevents the hop intensity from overwhelming the palate. Locally sourced Michigan honey creates a smooth, dry finish that pulls everything together" (source).
• Port Brewing Mongo, $7.19/22oz - "Our flagship Double IPA, Mongo harnesses the flavor of Columbus, Cascade, Centennial, and Simcoe hops. Massive resinous aroma leads to citrus notes with a piney bitterness on the finish" (source).
• Port Brewing Whipeout, $4.79/22oz - "Brewed to celebrate anyone and everyone who has ever paddled out into the best wave of the day, only to blow it and Wipeout in a blaze of glory" (source).
• Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat, $1.69/12oz - "Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat Beer is a lively, refreshing ale with a natural citrusy flavor and distinctive cloudy appearance. This easy drinking American-style wheat beer has become our most popular offering, and the best-selling craft beer in the Midwest" (source).
• Czechvar Dark, $1.69/12oz - "Czechvar uses the noble Saaz hop variety, which contributes spicy and herbal aromas and flavours. Deep brown in appearance, with a thick, long-lasting head. Malt aromas are in the foreground, with notes of toasted nut, molasses, mocha and a hint of smoke. On the palate, it is full-bodied, with chocolate and coffee flavours" (source).
• Czechvar, $1.69/12oz - "The result of our careful selection of ingredients, our traditional brewing process and the care we take during production is Czechvar’s irreplaceable and inimitable flavour" (source).
• Lost Abbey Lost and Found, $8.39/750ml - "Lost and Found- Modeled after the great Trappist and Monastic beers that inspired the founding of our brewery. A richly deep garnet colored ale created from a blend of Domestic and imported malts. As part of our commitment to interesting brewing endeavors, Chef Vince created a special raisin puree for this beer. Malts, raisins and a fantastic yeast strain working in harmony produce a beer of amazing complexity and depth. Available in 750ml bottles and on draft at select inspired locations" (source).
• Lost Abbey Devotion, $8.39/750ml - "A lighter bodied beer that immediately makes an initial hop impression followed by a brief thinning layer of malt which is swallowed in the driest finish by a driven hop expression" (source).
• Southern Tier Rum Barrel Aged Pumking, $15.99/22oz - "rum barrel aged imperial pumpkin ale with notes of pumpkin pie spice" (source).
• Beards Deez Nutz, $2.89/12oz - "Smooth and chewy with nutty caramel flavors and a medium body" (source).
• High Water Campfire Stout, $10.19/22oz - "Stout brewed with graham crackers, molasses with natural flavor added. Campfire Stout evokes fond memories of wilderness and camping adventures. Notes of chocolate and graham cracker topped with a hint of marshmallow will leave you wanting s’more. Like any campfire experience, this beer is best shared with a warm circle of family and friends" (source).
• High Water Aphotic Imperial Porter with Coffee, $10.19/12oz - "Formally defined as the depths in water beyond which less than one percent of sunlight penetrates. Aphotic is a beer with a very dark side. Just one sip and you will understand the true depths of its darkness as the deep, luxurious layers of malt rich-ness tantalize and tease your taste buds. Cold pressed coffee adds a slight citrusy, earthy flavor with floral aromas" (source).
• High Water Breakfast Sour, $15.39/500ml - "Central Valley Breakfast Sour is aged in used wine barrels for one year with the finest fruit from the Central Valley of California. It is a bright and beautiful golden sour with an abundance of fresh pressed white grapefruit juice. The tart beginnings are rounded by the lusciousness from the pears and the delicate, exotic perfume of the lychee fruit. A pleasurable ale to enjoy with brunch or anytime of the day" (source).
• Stillwater Shoegaze, $2.89/16oz - "Distorted farmhouse pale ale" (source).
• Stillwater/Dugges Tropical Punch, $4.99/12oz - "Tropic Punch Ale is a joint effort with nomadic brewer Brian Strumke of Stillwater Artisanal. We brewed this sour ale with lactobacillus and let it ferment with plentiful mango, passion fruit and peach" (source).
• Stillwater/Dugges Cocoa Cacao, $7.19/12oz - "In collaborating with Stillwater Artisanal we always focus on distinct, clear, punchy flavors. This beer is no exception. Inspired by everyone’s favorite candy, this is a chocolate bar in a bottle" (source).
• Evil Twin/Jackie O's You're in the Jungle Baby, $4.99/12oz - "Imperial stout with Pasilla chili, honey, tangerine peel and cocoa nibs added" (source).

Video of the Week | Jaw-Jacker

Now available at Siciliano's.

Cheers!