Cheesy Beer Bread

Cheese + beer + bread = deliciousness. 

I decided to try out this bread recipe because I was making the captain a huge batch of crockpot chili and wanted to give him a little something something as surprise to go with it. I knew I could do cornbread, but I wanted to do something a little different. I figured that cheese goes on top of chili and the captain would probably drink beer with the chili, so why not put both in a bread! Genius right? Well, I didn't come up with amazing flavor combination, but I wish I did. There's always next time.

This bread is a quick bread. No yeast needed. I love making yeasty breads, but sometimes I don't want to deal with all that kneading and waiting for things to rise, so this was just perfect. You mix the cheese, beer and other ingredients all together, place in a bread pan and bake for about 45 minutes. And don't forget to top it with melted butter. Butter makes everything better. Paula Deen would agree. The prep time is lightening fast, but the waiting for it to bake and cool is the hard part. When this bread is baking it makes your house smell like fresh baked bread, beer and mac & cheese. Strange, but delicious. I was really tempted to dive in and just take a chunk of the bread off as soon as it came out of the oven (I had to make sure it was edible for the captain!), but I resisted the urge. I waited until it was cooled and took a sample slice. This bread was moist, chewy and and the cheese and beer really stood out. I especially loved that little garlic bite too. Then again, I love garlic. The best part is that the cheese that  baked on the top of the bread got all crunchy delicious and kind of created this cheese crust. Who can say no to a cheese crust?

I forgot to take a picture of the ingredients. Oops. Guess I was too excited for cheesy beer bread!

flour + seasonings

adding in the beer!

rivers of butter

baked and cooling

Cheesy Beer Bread (Cooks Illustrated Cookbook)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup grated Gruyere cheese
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/4 cups light-bodied beer
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, divided

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease an 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl combine the flour, cheese, sugar, baking powder, salt, garlic powder and pepper. Stir in the beer and 4 tablespoons of the butter. Be careful not to over mix. Place the mixture into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the surface. Brush lightly with the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached, 40 to 45 minutes.

Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning the loaf out onto a wire rack to cool for 1 hour before serving.

You could use this bread for a super delicious sandwich, but I think it's best dunked into soup or chili!