The obvious way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day is to go to a pub and drink a pint of Guinness.  Why not take the celebration  a step further by baking some bread made with Guinness? This hearty bread goes well with traditional Irish main courses such as shepherd’s pie or beef stew. Or, it’s a great way to have a Guinness at breakfast and not be thought of as…….well you know.

The beer serves as the yeast which makes it easy to prepare especially if you have a “fear” of cooking with yeast like I used to. The addition of cornmeal gives it a bit of a cornbread taste which works well with the beer.

Looking for a variation on this recipe? Try Whole Wheat-Rosemary Beer Bread.

 

Guinness Beer Bread

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Servings 12 pieces

Ingredients
  

  • 6 tablespoons 3/4 stick unsalted butter
  • 1 cup yellow cornmeal
  • 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 12 ounces of Guinness beer

Instructions
 

  • Place an oven rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350ºF.
  • Place the butter in a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish or pan and set it in the oven while the oven is preheating.
  • Stir together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
  • Stir in the beer until it is just incorporated (The dough will be sticky and heavy.) Pour 5 tablespoons melted butter out of the pan into a cup; tilt the pan to coat the bottom and sides with the remaining butter (1 tablespoon).
  • Spoon the bread dough into the pan and spread evenly; drizzle the 5 tablespoons melted butter over the top.
  • Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the bumpy top is golden brown.
  • Halfway through baking tilt the pan to distribute the butter (in case it has pooled).
  • Remove the bread from the oven to a cooling rack; cut the bread into rectangles and serve warm.

Notes

* Bread freezes well. I recommend heating it up wrapped in aluminum foil.
* You can substitute unbleached all-purpose flour for yellow cornmeal, if you prefer (use 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour instead of 1 cup yellow cornmeal and 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour).
Guiness Beer Bread

 

Source:  Variation of a recipe from Sara Moulton’s Everyday Family Dinners (2010)