I must confess that I am a sucker for packaging, particularly
when it comes to the liquor department at my local market. I cruise those
aisles every week, even though it's not all that often that I come home with
something. Last week a bottle of Dead Guy Ale from Rogue caught my eye. I don't
drink ale, mind you, but I had to get a bottle of Dead Guy (Okay, I also
got some cans, if you must know.), because I could only imagine how delicious it would be in a soup or stew. How perfect, I thought to myself, would
it be to include this in a recipe for Halloween or Day of the Dead, and thus my
Dead Guy Stew was born.
In thinking about the Day of the Dead holiday, Mexican in origin, I knew I
wanted a stew that was not only rich in taste, but with a nod to the taste
of Mexican food rather than a good old-fashioned American variety. I rummaged
through my pantry, and pulled out every item that I would normally use
in Mexican food, and set to work creating my stew.
Here is the end result, and it is delicious!If
your family enjoys a nice hearty stew for dinner, and love the spices of
Mexico, they are going to love this too. Naturally, with the holiday in mind,
and because I tend to serve stew withcornbread, I did so using my corn my skull mold pan with
excellent results, as you can see. Then, using a smaller skull mold I made
something with which to slather that delicious cornbread that I decided to call VooDoo butter, named for the spices used.
You can find the recipes below. 
Dead Guy Stew
1 16-ounce can refried beans
1 cup Rogue Dead Guy Ale
1 3-pound chuck roast, cubed
1 large onion, diced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 package taco seasoning (or make your own)
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 10-ounce can Rotel Tomatoes with Green Chilies
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup fresh or frozen corn
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together ale and refried beans. Place all ingredients in the order listed into a greased 6-quart slow cooker; stir to combine. Cook on high six hours. Serve, garnished as you see fit.
NOTE: I seared my cubes of chuck roast before putting them into the crockpot, but I can't imagine that it made any difference, so do whatever is easier.
1 cup Rogue Dead Guy Ale
1 3-pound chuck roast, cubed
1 large onion, diced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 package taco seasoning (or make your own)
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 10-ounce can Rotel Tomatoes with Green Chilies
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup fresh or frozen corn
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together ale and refried beans. Place all ingredients in the order listed into a greased 6-quart slow cooker; stir to combine. Cook on high six hours. Serve, garnished as you see fit.
NOTE: I seared my cubes of chuck roast before putting them into the crockpot, but I can't imagine that it made any difference, so do whatever is easier.
VooDoo Butter
4 ounces unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon sweet chili sauce
1 teaspoon honey
Pinch Worcestershire powder
Place all ingredients into a medium bowl and beat with a mixer 1 to 2 minutes until combined. Place into decorative molds and freeze until set, or place into a small ramekin and serve table side.
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