Food & Brew: The American Craft Beer Cookbook

Let's get right to it: this is a fun book. Whether you're a long-time craft beer connoisseur, a recent convert, or simply someone who just enjoys a good brew on occasion, you'll find something to quench your thirst – and your appetite – in The American Craft Beer Cookbook, arriving this fall.

Written by prolific beer-and-travel writer John Holl, the book celebrates the relationship between beer and food. The author, who is also editor of All About Beer magazine, has gathered more than 150 recipes from breweries, beer bars, and brew pubs from over 40 states in an effort to prove his premise that food pairs well (perhaps best?) with beer.

While a few of the recipes include beer as an ingredient, the book's main focus is on pairings. Cooking up the black cod brulee recipe shared by the Alaskan Brewing Company in Juneau? Match it with a "malty beer, such as an altbier" so as not to overpower the fish. The seared lamb tenderloin from Birch & Barley in Washington, DC? It's best served with a Belgian-style IPA, such as Captain Lawrence's Liquid Gold (NY). And Holl, who hails from New Jersey, doesn't forget his home state. His recipe stops include Barcade in Jersey City, Bolero Snort Brewery in Ridgefield Park, and Triumph Brewing Company of Princeton.

The book, however, is more than a cook's guide. Brimming with photos, anecdotes, history and insight about the beers and their makers, as well as recommended road trips and festivals, it is an ode to today's craft beer movement.

"We're living through this very exciting time in beer, with new breweries opening all the time and brewers pushing the envelope on flavors," says Holl. "There are similarities in the food world, with the movement towards eating local, eating fresh. The book brings together the best of both sensibilities and really tells the story of American beer and food." – Nancy Painter

The American Craft Beer Cookbook
John Holl
Storey Publishing, September 2013
352 pages; $19.95