Beer Bread!

[fretlessman71]

I love making this stuff and using different beers for different effects. Here's my basic recipe, and if anyone has improvements or other ideas, feel free! I'm not a traditionalist, but it sure turns out good!

3 cups flour (your choice; I go back and forth from reg. to wheat to oat)
1 heaping tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sugar (I wonder what DME would do....?)
One 12 oz. beer of your choice
1 egg

Mix dry ingredients, then add wet and mix well. Pour into greased breadpan and bake at 350 for one hour. You can melt a little butter and brush it on top for the last 5 minutes of baking if you wish.

[HogieWan]

I will have to make this before the end of the week!!!

[Xaos]

Hmmm that sounds quite nice. This will ber a nice reason to try the oven in my new appartment.

[brewmonkey]

You can also make spent grain (or whole grain) bread. The recipe is similar, I subtract 1/2 cup flour and add 1/2 cup spent grains. You might also have to adjust your water as the grains retain water from the mash. Any grains work but I found that I liked Stout/Porter and Pale based grist better.

[HogieWan]

Originally posted by brewmonkey
Any grains work but I found that I liked Stout/Porter and Pale based grist better.

I'm brewing an extract recipe tomorrow with a pound of crystal 60* - will that work? - how do I prepare the grains?

[SoxyinMO]

1/2 cup sugar (I wonder what DME would do....?)

Don't know about that, Fret, but I've substituted liquid malt extract for sugar in bread before & it's been great.

[brewmonkey]

Originally posted by HogieWan
I'm brewing an extract recipe tomorrow with a pound of crystal 60* - will that work? - how do I prepare the grains?

When you are done steeping the grains put them aside and let them drain as much as possible and then just sub them 1/2 cup grains for 1/2 cup flour.

[chefmegan]

Might I suggest using Young's Waggledance for your beer, and replace the sugar in the recipe with honey.

If you decided to try this, use a mild honey like clover or wildflower. Also, it helps to warm honey slightly so it incorporates with your liquid ingredients. This way you can avoid over mixing your flour. (Over mixing flour develops gluten. You want this when you make yeast breads and pasta, but not when you make pancakes, cookies, or quick breads.)

I know there is a factor for replacing sugar with honey or other liquid sweeteners. Because this is a quick bread, however, I don't think it would really matter.

[fretlessman71]

Hmmmm... don't get Waggledance here (at least not that I've seen). What makes it your first choice?

Thanks for the idea of using warm honey. I used to have a jar of barley malt sweetener (I'll have to look for it again at Whole Foods) that might do even better for the bread!

[BluesHarp]

Originally posted by SoxyinMO
Don't know about that, Fret, but I've substituted liquid malt extract for sugar in bread before & it's been great.

In what proportions??? (malt for sugar)

(I may have to dig that bread machine out again!)

[fretlessman71]

Not sure about the proportions... that barley malt syrup is some sweet stuff!

And don't bother with the bread machine... this is supposed to be EASY! :)

[kevin]

speaking of bread my bil is a sales manager for a large bakery outfit. He told me he had five pounds of all grain at his house and asked me if I could use it to make beer. So should I try a mini mash and see if I get any sugars?

For Christmas he got me a beer bottle with flour etc inside that was for beer bread, nice label on the front.

[HogieWan]

Originally posted by brewmonkey
When you are done steeping the grains put them aside and let them drain as much as possible and then just sub them 1/2 cup grains for 1/2 cup flour.


Husk and all?

[Payson]

Yeah, husk and all. I just made some a few nights ago and it was excellent. You can also finely crush some un-spent crystal malt and add it for a sweet, texturey (I know it's not a real word by the way!) bread.

[fretlessman71]

Originally posted by kevin
speaking of bread my bil is a sales manager for a large bakery outfit. He told me he had five pounds of all grain at his house and asked me if I could use it to make beer. So should I try a mini mash and see if I get any sugars?

For Christmas he got me a beer bottle with flour etc inside that was for beer bread, nice label on the front. If you get someone to mill it first, you ought to at least get SOMETHING, right? :)

[blatant_brewer]

No active yeast in this bread?? No primary fermentation followed by division into loaves and a second rising in the bread pans?? That's how mom always did her bread.

How odd. I'll have to try this.

[chazwicke]

Originally posted by kevin

For Christmas he got me a beer bottle with flour etc inside that was for beer bread, nice label on the front.

Someone gave me one of those last year. I just found it in the pantry. Did you try making it?

[fretlessman71]

Originally posted by blatant_brewer
No active yeast in this bread?? No primary fermentation followed by division into loaves and a second rising in the bread pans?? That's how mom always did her bread.

How odd. I'll have to try this. It's called a quick bread. It's the baking powder and salt that make it rise.

[Bruno_78]

I know you shouldn't really brew with bakers yeast, but could you bake with brewers yeast?

[fretlessman71]

I've wondered that myself.... chefmegan?

[kevin]

Originally posted by chazwicke
Someone gave me one of those last year. I just found it in the pantry. Did you try making it?

Yes and I wouldn't buy it if I saw it. The texture of the bread was sticky that I only had one piece. I'll need to compare it to the recipes on this thread.

[Stodbrew]

Originally posted by Bruno_78
I know you shouldn't really brew with bakers yeast, but could you bake with brewers yeast?


Yep.

[Bruno_78]

Ooh, just think of the combinations of tastes you could get with all the different yeasts!

[fretlessman71]

Originally posted by Stodbrew
Yep. Got a recipe, Stod? You been holding out on us?

Hey - who's tried the recipe I posted at the beginning here?

[Stodbrew]

Originally posted by fretlessman71
Got a recipe, Stod? You been holding out on us?

Hey - who's tried the recipe I posted at the beginning here?

Unfortunately, I don't have a recipe. A chef buddy of mine and I were talking about it and he always wanted to get some yeast from me to make some bread in his restaurant, but we never got around to actually doing it before we closed.

[fretlessman71]

OK.... did something interesting. Took a bottle of Sam Adams Cranberry Lambic and made beer bread with it (hey - you didn't think I was gonna DRINK that stuff, didja? :D), and I followed chefmegan's suggestions and subbed out the sugar for honey. I also added 10 diced prunes - wait - we don't call them that anymore, bad press.... they were dried plums. Mixed the wet and dry ingredients seperately (diced plums went with the dry), added the wet to the dry and stirred as little as possible so I didn't get the glutens going overboard. Poured it into a breadpan that was a little bigger than I usually used, and because of this I think I could have gotten away with stirring the crap out of it as it didn't rise very much at all, and I have a very short, broad loaf of bread. Oh yeah - I also added a little powdered sugar to the dry mix (that lambic is SOUR). Turned out pretty darned good - the plums actually really make the bread! The Lambic is still a little too sour though. Chefmegan, how would you tweak this so the sourness of the lambic would shine and not spoil a sweetish type of quickbread?

[chazwicke]

It has been a long while since I had thr SACL. I thought it tasted a little syrupy last time if I remember correctly.

[fretlessman71]

I tried a little of it before I added it to the mix. Tasted like one of those Warhead sour candies, and not in a good way....

[chazwicke]

I remember it not being too good. Probably why I don't ever drink it anymore.

[fretlessman71]

I was hoping the cranberry vibe would come out in the bread. Maybe chefmegan will have some ideas on a good recipe to get that to work....

[chazwicke]

Keep us posted on future efforts.

[fretlessman71]

Will do.

[chazwicke]

I used to cook in restaurants but when I got married, I told my wife I forgot how to cook. But I might try your recipe for bread.

[fretlessman71]

It will probably turn out differently at altitude (or lack thereof). OTOH, it was probably designed with YOUR altitude in mind. Any ideas from anyone how I might alter my recipe for being at 5000 feet?