beerish bread

this is beer bread. want to make it yourself? it's easy, and quite delightful to eat.

ingredients:

3 1/4 cups flour (i use 2 cups plain flour, 1 1/4 cup whole wheat)
3 tsp baking powder
1 Tbs sugar (Tbs = tablespoon. not sure if that's the correct abbrevation, but i'm usin it)
1 3/4 ounce (just under 1/4 cup. or 50 grams) butter, chopped
1 1/2 cups beer

directions:

• preheat oven: 415 F
  
• mix together the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt. cut in the butter until crumbly. (alternatively: process all those things in a food processor. i don't have one)
• add the beer slowly, and mix it in. i just use a wooden spoon and i mix until it comes together to form a soft dough.
• knead dough on floured surface until smooth.
• divide dough, into 4 or 6 portions, and form ovals or spheres. place on a greased pan, slash the tops with a knife, brush with a bit of water (or milk or whisked egg).
• bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350F and bake for another 10 minutes. bread is usually ready when you can tap the bottom and it sounds hollow (please use an oven mitt when holding the bread. otherwise you will scald your hand and it will probably be quite painful).
  

love this recipe. (which i got from the book baking: a common sense guide) it's quick, easy, hard to mess up. no fussy yeast, no waiting for the yeast to do its magic, no worries. instead of yeast as a rising agent, this recipe uses beer, and beer has its own yeast already in it. the only downside to this bread recipe is the slight taste of beer, but i noticed that using a honey lager instead of a pale ale helped lessen the beeryness of it. makes fantastic sandwich bread, and goes great with mustard and pickles and all things savory. however, does not go as well with jam or peanut butter or other sweeter bread toppings. try it at home and let me know how it works out for you!