Beer bread is a genius recipe. All it takes is 4 ingredients to make the basic recipe: Self-rising flour, beer, butter and sugar. Jump to the Easy Cheddar Beer Bread Recipe with Scallions or read on to see our tips for making it.
For this cheesy beer bread, we add sharp cheddar cheese, scallions and a little salt and pepper.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Easy, not too greasy garlic bread with fresh garlic, basil, and a soft buttery center. Jump to the Easy, Homemade Garlic Cheese Bread Recipe.
How to Make Beer Bread
Beer bread is such a simple recipe to make — all you need is a bowl, a spoon, and a loaf pan. No mixer, no fancy ingredients and it is a great excuse to buy your favorite beer.
When it comes to choosing the beer for this, you have free reign. There are so many fantastic options out there. For the loaf you see in our photos, we used one of our favorites — Guinness.
A simple light beer, pumpkin ale, hoppy versions or even hard ciders would all work. It all depends on what flavors you want represented in the bread. You could even try seltzer water or ginger beer for a non-alcoholic version.
We add sharp cheddar cheese and scallions to the batter, but you could go a different direction when it comes to the add-ins. Switch out cheddar cheese for brie, gruyere or add some type of meat like ham or bacon. Switching it from a savory bread to something on the sweeter side is an option, too. Try adding cooked, diced apples or raisins and cinnamon.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: How to make the best Guinness beef stew with carrots and potatoes. Jump to the Guinness Beef Stew Recipe.
Recipe updated, originally posted April 2015. Since posting this in 2015, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear. – Adam and Joanne
Easy Cheddar Beer Bread Recipe
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
Beer bread is such a simple recipe to make — all you need is a bowl, a spoon and a loaf pan. Feel free to use your favorite beer in this — we used a stout beer, but light beers, pumpkin ale, hoppy beers or even hard cider would be great. By placing the loaf pan on an insulated baking sheet (or two stacked baking sheets), the loaf bakes evenly and the bottom doesn’t over-brown. We use an 8 1/2- x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan for this. If you are using a 9- x 5-inch pan, check for doneness 5 minutes before the baking time stated below.
You Will Need
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, divided
3 cups (390 grams) self-rising flour
3 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, cut into small cubes (about 3/4 cup)
2 scallions, ends and tops trimmed and thinly sliced
2 teaspoons granulated sugar, see notes
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
12 ounces stout beer, or beer of your choice (1 1/2 cups)
Directions
- Prepare Batter
1Center a rack in the oven and heat to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease an 8 1/2- x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan. Place the pan on an insulated baking sheet or on two regular baking sheets stacked on top of each other.
2Set around 10 pieces of cheese and a small handful of sliced scallions aside for the top of the bread.
3Mix the flour, the remaining cheese and green onion, sugar, salt and black pepper in a large bowl until well blended. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and add the beer. Stir until fairly smooth. Stir in two-thirds of the butter, leaving the remaining third for the top of the loaf.
4Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Scatter with the reserved cheese and scallion, and then drizzle with the remaining third of butter.
- Bake Bread
1Bake the bread until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean, or with only a few crumbs attached; 45 to 50 minutes. Cool the loaf in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Store the bread in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator, where it will last a little longer.
- Homemade self-raising flour: To make 3 cups of self-rising flour, whisk 3 cups of all-purpose flour with 4 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and a 3/4 teaspoon of salt until well blended.
- Beer Substitute: If you are not a fan of beer, replace the beer with 12 ounces of seltzer water.
- Sugar: There are beer bread recipes that call for quite a bit more sugar than we do — up to a 1/4-cup. By calling for 2 teaspoons, we find the bread has a slight sweetness. You can increase the amount of sugar based on what you think you will like — 1 to 2 tablespoons will result in a sweeter bread, but one that can still be used for sandwiches.
- This recipe was inspired by and adapted from King Arthur Flour’s Classic Beer Bread Recipe.
- Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA Supertracker recipe calculator to calculate approximate values.
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste
How long does the bread last? Love this recipe!!!
Hi Jess, Glad you enjoy the recipe! The bread lasts for a few days on the counter or wrapped well in the freezer for about a month.
I only use whole wheat flour and am not familiar with w.w. self rising flour. If there is such a thing I doubt I’d buy it only to make this. Can you suggest how much baking powder or powder and soda would be required to substitute flour for self rising flour ?
To make 1 cup of self-rising flour, whisk 1 cup of all-purpose flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and a 1/4 teaspoon of salt together until well blended. For this recipe, you will need 3 cups of self-rising flour.
I made the cheesy beer bread recipe and used Blue Moon Gingerbread Spiced Ale, it was delicious! I served it with Irrisistable Guiness Beef Stew With Carrots (it was New Year’s day, I had a theme!), and wow, what a great combination these two made!
Thanks for two easy, fool-proof recipes. I did have to finish the stew on the stove, two hours in my oven (which normally runs hot) was just not enough, but another 45 minutes on the stove top produced an amazingly savory beef stew!
Looking forward to making this combo again!
Anna