Sunday, March 13, 2011

Beer Bread



Need homemade bread but don't have time to wait for it to rise? Beer bread to the rescue! This is delicious and SO versatile - this time I made a cheesy garlic herb version but you can add in almost anything you want, or make it plain. (I usually make it plain actually!)

The beer provides the leavening agent so you don't need to use any yeast, and you can stir it up and have it in the oven in less than 5 minutes! I love having beer bread with soups and stews and it's delicious used for grilled cheese too.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder



sugar and salt. Pour in the beer



and stir well to combine.



The batter will be very thick. At this point, you can mix in whatever additions you'd like. (Below I give you several options to get you thinking, but almost anything you can think of would work.)

In this case I added garlic



and some herbs: rosemary



oregano, and thyme.



I crushed the herbs then added them to the batter.



Then I added shredded cheddar.



When you've combined the batter with all the additions, turn into a greased loaf pan.



Bake for about 45 minutes then cool in the pan for 10 minutes



before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Get more ideas at Mouthwatering Monday, Let's Do Brunch.

Beer Bread

Basic mix:
3 cups flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 - 12 oz. bottle or can of beer

Variations for mixing in:

Dill and cheddar:
2 tsp. dried dill
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Cheesy Garlic and Herb:
1 tsp. rosemary
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. dill
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Italian:
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. basil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Dill and Chive:
2 Tbsp. fresh dill
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Pour in the beer and stir well with a wooden spoon until well combined. The batter will be thick.

Stir in any additions you have chosen.

Transfer dough to a greased 9x5 loaf pan. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes. Cool in the pan 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 1 loaf.

4 comments:

  1. Sounds yummy! Do you think I could substitute white whole wheat flour?

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  2. I don't see why not - you might want to try first using 1/2 all purpose and 1/2 white whole wheat, but I think it would work fine.

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  3. After I made beer bread at the end of last year, I was surprised how easy and tasty it was! Adding cheese is sooo yummy, and with beer, you don't have to worry about yeast expiring before you have time to use it! Yay beer! You can dip it in balsamic vinegar and oil, and it tastes amazing!

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  4. What a fantastic idea! I'll definitely give this a try. I can just imagine how delicious it is with soups and stews. Thank you for sharing this with Let's Do Brunch, Sara. The linky is now up for this week so please do come along and join in if you haven't already :)

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