Food

PROVING THEIR METAL

Julia Herz, the publisher of CraftBeer.com and the craft-beer program director for the Brewers Association, on why cans are so canny.

WHAT MAKES CANNED BEER SO GREAT? Think of beer cans like small kegs. They’re sealed, and they don’t expose the beer to light. When beer in the glass or bottle is exposed to light, the flavor can be altered. A chemical reaction occurs between the hops and sunlight, causing the beer to smell and taste like sulfur. Some also say that cans chill more quickly than glass bottles do.

SHOULD YOU POUR IT INTO A GLASS? If it’s possible, drinking a beer out of a glass allows you to better enjoy all the aromatics, because beer glasses have a wider opening than cans. You also consume less carbonation, since it escapes out of the glass more easily. This keeps you from feeling too full too quickly.

WHAT’S THE PROPER WAY TO POUR? Lift a clean glass up and tilt it to a 45-degree angle. Pour the beer so that it runs down the side of the glass, until the can is three-fourths empty. Now turn the glass so that it’s upright, then empty the can into the middle for a perfect one-inch collar of foam.

STORAGE TIP Herz recommends storing all beer cold.This helps keep it fresher longer. Ifyou don’t have enough room inyour refrigerator, keep unopened cans in the pantry or the basement (whichever is cooler).The U.S. Department ofAgriculture says beer keeps for up to nine months.

WHYNOT TRY…?

PLUOTS

Plu-whats? Thesehybrid stone fruits combine the juicy flesh of a plum with the sweetness of an apricot.They ripen quickly and are rarely mealy.And, like plums, they don’t easily bruise. Inother words: Yes! Eat them out of hand, or try them in one of the recipes here. May we recommend the pluot-of-this-world Monte Cristo?

Pluot or plumcot?

Yes, they both exist. And, no, they are not the same thing. Technically, plumcots are a 50-50 cross between a plum and an apricot, while pluots are mostly plum. In the supermarket, pluots are sometimes labeled plumcots and vice versa. Both are sweet and firm, and you can use them—or other stone fruits—interchangeably in recipes.

Give it a squeeze

That’s the best way to tell if a pluot is ripe. The fruit should give but never feel soft ( just like a ripe tomato). Alternatively, you can ripen pluots at room temperature in a single layer, stem-side down. Once they’re ripe, store them in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Recipes by

Paige Grandjean

Written by

Heath Goldman

Photographs by

Greg DuPree

Food Stylingby

Chelsea Zimmer

1

Pluot and beet salad

Bring 6 cups water and 3 medium GOLDEN BEETS to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high; cook until forktender,20 to 25 minutes. Drain and cool5minutes; peel and cut into wedges.Toss together the beets, 2

sliced PLUOTS, ¼ cup torn FRESH BASIL, and 1 Tbsp. OLIVE OIL. Top with 2 oz. crumbled GOATCHEESE, 2 Tbsp. chopped TOASTED ALMONDS, and ¼ tsp. flaky SEASALT (such as Maldon). SERVES 4

2

Pluot-cherry float

Combine 2 cups chopped PLUOTS and

⅓ cup each CHERRIES and GRANULATED SUGAR in a saucepan over medium. Cook, stirring and mashing occasionally, until soft and juicy, about 10 minutes. Coolcompletely, about 1 hour. Pour the mixture through a wire mesh strainer; reserve the syrup. Pour ½ cup SELTZER and ¼ cup of thepluotsyrupinto each of 2 glasses. Scoop ½ cup VANILLA ICE CREAM into each glass. SERVES 2

3

Pluot-and-cheese skewers

Whisk together ¼ cup OLIVE OIL, 1 tsp. chopped FRESH THYME, and ¼ tsp. each

chopped GARLIC and KOSHERSALT. Toss the marinade with 2 sliced PLUOTS and

8 oz. cubed HALLOUMI OR FETA CHEESE; chill 1 hour. Thread the pluots and cheese alternately on 8 (8-inch) skewers; reserve the marinade. Grill over medium-high until charred, 2 minutes per side. Serve, drizzled with the reserved marinadeand LEMON JUICE (optional). SERVES 4

4

Grilledpluots with white chocolate cream

Combine ¼ tsp. GROUNDCARDAMOM and 2 Tbsp. each melted BUTTER and BROWN SUGAR. Brush the mixture on 8 PLUOT halves and grill, covered, over mediumhigh, 2 minutes per side. Stir 1 oz. melted

WHITECHOCOLATE into 2 Tbsp. HEAVY CREAM. Beat ¾ cup heavy cream to soft peaks. Add the white chocolate mixture and 1 tsp. VANILLA and beat to soft peaks. Serve with the pluots. SERVES 4

5

Pluot and cucumber tabbouleh

Stir together 2 cups cooked BULGUR, 1 cup chopped PLUOTS, 1 cup chopped

ENGLISH CUCUMBER, ½ cup chopped FRESH MINT, ½ cup chopped FRESH FLATLEAF PARSLEY, ¼ cup FRESH LEMON JUICE, 2 Tbsp. EXTRA-VIRGIN OLIVEOIL, and 1 tsp. KOSHERSALT. SERVES 4

6

Pluot Monte Cristo

Spread 1 tsp. DIJONMUSTARD on 1 side of 8 slices SOURDOUGHBREAD. Top each of 4 of the bread slices with 1 slice SWISS CHEESE, 2 oz. thinly sliced TURKEY, and ½sliced PLUOT, thentopwith theremaining bread slices. Whisk together 1 cup

WHOLE MILK and 2 LARGE EGGS. Dip the sandwiches in the milk-egg mixture and cook, in batches, in melted butter, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Sprinkle with CONFEC-

TIONERS’ SUGAR (optional). SERVES 4

BETTERBREAKFAST

Potato, egg, and avocado hash

Hold the toast this A.M. Instead, useyour avocados to top this one-skillet vegetarian crowd-pleaser.

ACTIVE TIME 25 MINUTES TOTAL TIME 25 MINUTES SERVES 4

Recipe by Heath Goldman Photograph by Jen Causey

Food Stylingby

Kellie Gerber Kelley

¾lb. new potatoes, cut into ½-inch pieces 2Tbsp.extra-virgin olive oil 2small red peppers (such as Fresno), thinly sliced 1½tsp.koshersalt 1tsp. black pepper 1bunchscallions, thinly sliced 4eggs 2ripeavocados, chopped 2Tbsp.fresh lime juice ½cupchopped fresh cilantro BOIL the potatoes in salted water in a large, heavy skillet over high until forktender, about 6 minutes. Drain; reserve the potatoes. HEAT the oil in the skillet over medium. Add the potatoes, red peppers, salt, and black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are golden, 5 minutes. Stir in the scallions. MAKE 4 wells in the mixture with the back of a wooden spoon. Carefully slide 1 egg into each. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover the pan and cook until the whites are just set, 6 minutes. TOP with the avocados, lime juice, and cilantro.

AVOCADON’T

Avoid letting the avocado pieces touch the hot pan directly. (They’ll turn brown.)

FEAST YOUR EYES on more beautiful breakfasts at realsimple.com/breakfast.