The Midwest’s largest canned craft beer festival is back! The 6th annual Sun King CANvitational will return to downtown Indianapolis on Saturday, September 8 from 1 – 5 p.m. on the west block of Georgia Street, known for Super Bowl XLVI festivities and the famed Pan Am Plaza. This year’s CANvitational will showcase more than 55 craft breweries from across America that can their beers. Award-winning breweries will offer samples of craft beer, and patrons can enjoy local food trucks and music, all in an urban downtown atmosphere. All proceeds from the event will benefit six central Indiana not-for-profits.Chef Steven Unrue shares a pasta dish and cocktail recipe ahead of this weekend’s festivities. 

Sun King Brewing Company is the brainchild of Dave Colt and Clay Robinson. With the help of family and friends, the first keg of Sun King beer rolled out the door for delivery in July 2009. Now available on tap and in cans at hundreds of locations statewide, Sun King has grown into a leader in the craft brewing movement in Indiana. Sun King’s brewers handcraft flagship, seasonal and specialty beers that have been rewarded with multiple medals at the Indiana Brewers Cup, the Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup competitions, and the brewery donates to hundreds of community organizations throughout Indiana.Sun King has three locations: a downtown Indianapolis brewery and tasting room; a small batch brewery and tasting room in Fishers; and Sun King Spirits, a distillery in Carmel that opened in July 2018. 

Get more from Sun King at www.sunkingbrewing.com, and purchase tickets for the CANvitational at canvitational.com. 

Putanesca Verde

Pasta Ingredients: 
170 g Durum Flour
170 g Semolina
175 ml Riding the Rails
1/2 t Ground Sumac

Pasta Directions: 
– Mix durum and semolina together into a mound. Using the bottom of a bowl or cup, create a small well—this will help you slowly incorporate the wet with the dry ingredients. Add sumac to the beer and slowly add the beer to the flour a little at a time.

– Using your hands, knead the dough to fully hydrate it. Rotate the dough while kneading it to work different angles. Wrap the dough with plastic to seal in moisture, and let it rest for 20 minutes.

– Cut off a 125 g portion of the pasta dough. Roll the portion into a rope, spreading your fingers as you roll, until it’s about a yard long. Slice the dough into sections roughly 3 cm long. Then round them out to 5 cm—they should look like doughy little bean pods. For a more traditional, rustic approach to capunti, use your fingers to roll out the pasta. Roll the dough beneath the tips of two fingers, using slight pressure to create an indentation. The finished product should look like an open peapod.

– Boil capunti for roughly two minutes—they will float to the top when done. Then hit that plate with whatever sauce you like.

Sauce Ingredients: 
6 oz Nduja Verde
2-3 Anchovies
1 pint Cherry Tomatoes, roasted
4 oz Castelvetrano Olives, pitted and chopped
2-3 Garlic Cloves, grated
1/2 cup Pasta cooking water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tspn crushed red pepper
1/2 cup pecorino romano

Sauce Directions: 
In 1/4 cup olive oil, toast garlic and anchovies until light brown. Add Nduja, tomatoes, and olives, sautee for 3-4 min to combine. Add crushed red pepper and pasta water to finish sauce, add cooked pasta and finish with cheese.

Boston Coolest
Servings: 2 / Active Prep Time: 5 min / Total Time: 5 min

Ingredients:
4 oz Riding the Rails
4 oz Vernors Ginger Ale
2 oz Barrel Aged Gin
1 oz Ginger Liquor
Dash Angostura Bitters
2 oz Heavy Cream
Dash Vanilla Syrup

Directions:
In a mixing glass, chill gin, ginger liquor and bitters. Divide into 2 glasses and top with ginger ale and Riding the Rails. Whip cream with vanilla to soft peaks and gently lay on top of each drink with a spoon.