Beer Bread
By Tom Andersen
I grew up in the 60s in south Felton. My mom, having four kids, had a culinary routine of baking bread twice a week; mostly standard white bread and occasionally whole wheat. In addition to these, dad liked odd stuff — dark breads, nut breads, and rye breads. Mom ran this routine until we were all off to college.
When I moved back to the area years later, she had almost completely stopped making standard loaves. “It’s too hard on my arms, takes too long, bread machines aren’t right, and your dad doesn’t like to eat that much white bread.” So she pivoted to making quick and easy breads like banana bread and beer bread. And the beer bread ended up as her new standard.
The first time I encountered beer bread was in Miss Wolfe’s home economics class at San Lorenzo Valley High School. The beer was guarded of course, and she did the pouring. The recipe she used is very simple and similar to mom’s. Mom’s recipe is for one loaf, which lasts a couple days, takes about an hour to make, doesn’t need to be kneaded, doesn’t make a mess, and the only potential leftovers are the remaining four beers. (She swears the recipe calls for one beer but why are there four left in the pack — hmm? Apparently, one bottle must be sacrificed to verify the characteristics of the others.)
If Miss Wolfe could get a bunch of high school freshmen to be successful, and my mom could make it well into her late eighties, beer bread can become an easy tradition in your home. The predominant variable is the type of beer you use.
Beer Bread
1 12-oz beer of your choice
3 cups self-rising flour
½ cup sugar
4 tbsp butter
Shortening or lard for greasing the pan
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a regular loaf pan.
Mix the beer, flour, and sugar in a big bowl. It should not be runny, but not stiff either. Don’t overmix. Pour it all into the greased loaf pan and smooth it out. Bake in the center of the oven for 50 minutes then slather with butter. Cook for another ten minutes or until a toothpick or skewer comes out clean. Set it out for a few minutes then place onto a cooling rack.
Beer bread is a great accompaniment to any meal. I like to slice it up thin and make grilled cheese sandwiches. I also like to fry up thick slices in butter and serve with soup. Or add it to a charcuterie board. It goes great with those remaining beers. I would say refrigerate after it cools, but it rarely lasts more than a day at my house.
Tom Andersen is a writer, cook, martial arts instructor, and lifelong Felton resident. He explores the world of fermented food and drinks in print and online at FB @FeltonFementer.
Featured photo adobe.com
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