BakIng with beer

We’re baking in Norfork today. It’s still snowing here; cold and blustery to boot. I worked up a recipe for you to try. It’s a Stout Raisin Soda Bread…and it’s really good. It’s also quite easy to make. There’s no yeast and no complicated directions.

Ingredients

3 cups all purpose or equal parts whole wheat flour and all purpose flour

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup Black Oak Stout 

2 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp molasses

2 tbsp honey

5 tbsp butter

1 cup raisins or currants (if you really want to, you can omit, but it’s so good with them!)

1 cups buttermilk (or 1 cup milk with 1 t vinegar to sour)

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 t freshly grated lemon or orange peel

Here’s how to make it! Preheat oven to 350° 

Grease and flour or line with parchment paper a loaf pan.

Put Black Oak Stout into a medium pan over medium-low heat until it starts to bubble lightly. Add the brown sugar, molasses, honey and butter to the pan and stir until well combined. Add raisins and stir again. Simmer over low heat for a few minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool for about 15 minutes.

While the beer mixture is cooling, add flour and other dry ingredients to a mixing bowl and stir to combine.  

Mix milk, egg, vanilla and grated peel in a small bowl.  

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add cooled beer mixture, stirring to combine.  Add egg mixture and stir until mixed. 

Pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the loaf comes out clean.   

Cool on a wire rack until cool enough to remove from pan. Best eaten just a little warm with butter, a slice of cheddar cheese and a glass of Stout.  Or with some potato soup. Or just about anything.