A recipe in memory of Copa, Too!

Jack Curtin recently reported that Philadephia’s Copa, Too! has closed, and wrote about that restaurant/bar’s place in history. I added a few details at Beer Travelers, but since we seem to have slipped into beer-and-food mode here I’ll use the news as an excuse to post another recipe (a dessert, of course).

Tom Peters managed some extraordinary beer dinners almost every month before leaving Copa to start Monk’s Cafe. The recipe comes from one in July of 1994 when the theme was “Tom’s Favorite Beers.” The full menu follows.

Peters started hosting beer dinners in 1994, and began serving dishes prepared with beer by the third one. In the beginning most of those who showed up were homebrewers, but soon there were lawyers, stockbrokers, art students, just about anybody.

It was always a hands-on event for Peters, starting at 4 a.m. with a visit to local markets. Grouper might have been on the menu when he laid out the menu but if the rainbow trout looked better that’s what ended up on the plates. Although he wasn’t a regular in the Copa kitchen, on beer dinner days you’d hardly find him anyplace else.

So here you go . . .

Angel Food Cake
w/ framboise-scented cream anglaise

Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

10 egg whites, room temperature (save yolks)
1¼ t. cream of tartar
1/4 t. salt
1 t. vanilla extract
1/2 t. almond extract
1¼ cups sugar
1 cup cake flour
1 cup fresh raspberries – optional

Beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt with a whisk or an electric mixer until soft peaks form.
Add vanilla and almond extracts and blend.
Add sugar and beat until egg whites are stiff and shiny (do not let them dry out).
Sift flour into stiff egg whites. Add flour in three steps and fold in carefully. Do not break the egg whites. Fold in raspberries, if desired.

Spoon mixture into ungreased nonstick tube pan.
Bake for 40 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.
Invert pan onto a cake rack and let cool in pan.
When completely cool, carefully run knife around outer and inner edges and invert pan, gently shaking until cake slides out.

Cream Anglaise
2 cups milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean
10 egg yolks
1/4 cup Boon Framboise

Heat milk, cream and sugar in a heavy saucepan.
Split vanilla bean lengthwise and heat with cream until mixture begins to boil. Remove from heat.
Whip egg yolks in bowl and gradually add hot cream very slowly, whisking continuously. When half of the cream has been added, pour yolk mixture into pan containing remaining cream.
Return to stove and cook over very low heat until custard thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Remove vanilla bean and scrape seeds into custard.
Place in food processor or blender and process until absolutely smooth.
Gently fold in Boon Framboise.
Refrigerate until well chilled.

Presentation:
1 ounce ladle of creme anglaise.
Slice of angel food cake
Sprinkle with fresh raspberries.

Copyright Tom Peters

THE MENU

Pre-dinner beer
Dock Street Frambozen.

Appetizer
See Scallops on Spicy Black Bean Cake. Served with Duvel.

Salad
Tom’s Home Grown Lettuce & Tomatoes with Basil Vinaigrette. Served with Corsendonk Brown Ale.

Entree
Chicken Breast with Rosemary, Garlic & Lemon
or
Grilled Salmon with Watercrss, Ginger & Sesame
Served with Chimay Grande Reserve and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

Dessert
Angel Food Cake with Framboise Scented Creme Anglaise. Served with Boon Framboise and Scaldis.