Beer Bread: Simple and Tasty

I have been craving beer bread for a couple of weeks now, and we finally had a can of beer in the house. So, I decided that chili and beer bread would make a nice, tasty meal for Andrew's return home.

This recipe is so simple, and it's really, really good. I will be making it again soon!

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

3 teaspoons baking power

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup of sugar

12 ounces beer

1/4 cup butter, melted

Tips:

If you actually have self-rising flour in your house, you can use that. Omit the baking powder and salt if you are using self-rising flour though.

If you want a sweeter bread, add a little more sugar.

It does not matter what kind of beer you use. I like darker beers in beer bread, but I used a light beer for this one. It was still good!

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Mix dry ingredients and beer

Pour into greased loaf pan

Pour melted butter over dough

Bake for 55 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and let cool.

Tips:

Sifting the flour is a must! Without sifting, the actual bread will be like a hard biscuit. If you do not have a sifter (I used a fine-holed colander), then spoon the flour into the measuring cup a tablespoon at a time. Do not compact your flour.

This bread has a crunchy crust. If you would like a softer crust, mix the butter in with the dough instead of pouring it on top. You will be missing out though.

It is excellent served with honey- try it!

Most of all, enjoy this dense bread!

Stromboli

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, my mother-in-law gave me a recipe book with their family favorites. I was so excited to get this recipe book for many reasons. For one, I love to cook. For another, I have been wanting to cook some of Andrew's childhood favorites so he can enjoy them now. This recipe book included one of his very favorites of all times... stromboli. I was very surprised at how easy it was to make, and I was very excited at his reaction to the meal! He really enjoyed it.

Joni said that I could share this recipe, so I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Ingredients:

1 loaf frozen bread dough

1/2 pound or so of meat

Shredded cheese

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 egg

1 tsp basil

Preparation:

Thaw dough in the refrigerator.

Roll dough into 10x15 rectangle. Yes, I wrestled with the dough. Yes, I realize it's not very pretty. Yes, the imperfection bothered me. I am trying to get over that.

Beat egg and parmesan cheese, and brush over crust.

Layer meats and cheese.

Sprinkle with basil.

Roll tightly lengthwise.

Seal edges.

Place sealed side down on greased baking sheet.

Bake at 400 degrees for 13-15 minutes.

Remove.

Slice.

Serve!

Enjoy!

This recipe was very easy. I need to have a bit more practice on rolling the dough more evenly, but not bad! The looks didn't change the taste. That's really all that matters, right?

This week, I have something else planned for this basic recipe. I will share that soon... it will be good!



Simple Stroganoff

Last night, I made a fairly easy stroganoff by combining two recipes I've recently been given. My mother-in-law gave me an awesome recipe book with their family favorites (which I will share one of those recipes very soon), and my sister sent me an easy stroganoff recipe she uses. Here's what I came up with when I combined the two:

Ingredients:

Stew meat (or ground beef)

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

1 can of water

1/4 cup Sour cream

Flour

Salt & Pepper

Preparation:

Salt and pepper meat to taste

Coat meat in flour

Brown on both sides

Combine meat with remaining ingredients in crockpot

Mix well

Cook on low for 6-8 hours

Just before serving, cook 1/2 pound egg noodles as directed

Mix well

Serve and enjoy!

Side note...

After using flour yesterday, I just had to unpack these cutie-patootie canisters. I've had these since my first year of college, and I am just now able to use them. A-dor-able! Just another one of those little details that makes me smile : )