Brown Butter Beer Bread

In a medium bowl, stir together flour and sugar. Add the beer (slowly, so you don’t make a mess) and stir to combine. This is going to take some armwork; the last 1/2 cup or so of flour is going to seem like it doesn’t want to incorporate. Keep at it; I’ve found that taking my spatula and sort of smushing the flour into the batter works the best for me. When everything is mixed together, scoop into a greased 9×5 loaf pan and bake at 325°F for 45 minutes.

While the batter is cooking, melt your butter over medium low heat in a small saucepan. Whisk pretty much constantly as it’s cooking, you don’t want it to burn. First the butter will take on a tan color, and it will start to get darker and give off a very nutty aroma. Take it off the heat at this point! Just let it sit till you’re ready to use it.

After the bread has been in the oven for 45 minutes, pour the browned butter over the top and bake for another 15 minutes. Turn out immediately onto a cooling rack over a cookie sheet or wax paper.

Note: If you don’t have self-rising flour, you can make your own! For every cup of all-purpose flour, add 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir together before using. For this recipe, that would come out to 4 1/2 teaspoons (or 1.5 tablespoons) baking powder and 1 1/2 teaspoons (or 1/2 tablespoon) salt. Confused? 1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons.

Try it with different beers to try out different flavors, and try adding herbs and cheese as well. So many different ways to make delicious bread!