Cheddar Mustard Beer Bread

Another super busy day in the kitchen of mine. Its not really my kitchen, but I use it a lot. I saw this recipe on a blog that I like because she bakes things with booze, and my lab classes have taught me to love baking things with booze and "just a little bit." It is for Cheddar Mustard Beer Bread, her pictures made it look so delicious that I just had to try it.

I did have a little problem with trying to get it to rise and double in size. I think this is mostly because my house is not that warm, and its kind of a cold day today. Also eating it I kept finding pieces of pepper that didn't get cracked all the way. But I think it turned out delicious. My dad says that it is dense and wet, he thinks that it needs to be toasted, I don't suggest trying to toast it because of the cheese.

I'm also making an angel food cake for dessert so that we can eat strawberries. That is just a box cake mix though so no big deal.

See doesn't it just look delicious and that you want to make it yourself now because I can't share mine? Well here is the recipe that I got from Bake it with Booze! blog.

 

Bread

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup plus 1/3 cup beer, preferably dark
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/3 cup rye flour (you can get rye flour in the cool bin section of your market)
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
1 teaspoon fine salt (regular table salt)
2 large eggs, at room temperature

Filling

3 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon Dijon or a mustard of your choice
1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
Dash of hot sauce
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
Several grinds black pepper
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar

Make dough: In a small saucepan, heat the 4 tablespoons butter and 1/4 cup of beer, just until the butter has melted. Remove from heat and add the remaining 1/3 cup beer. Set aside to cool down slightly. You want the mixture warm (110 to 116 degrees).  Be anal, use a thermometer.

Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer, stir together 2 cups of the all-purpose flour, sugar, yeast and salt. With the mixer on low, pour in the butter-beer mixture, mixing only until the flour is moistened. Add eggs, one at a time, and mix until combined. The batter will look lumpy, but will become smooth when you add in the rest of the flours. Add the remaining 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and all of the rye flour, mixing until just combined. Replace paddle with a dough hook and let the machine knead the dough for 3 to 4 minutes on low.

Oil a medium bowl and transfer dough to it. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and set aside for 50 to 60 minutes, until doubled. 

Make fillings: In the same small saucepan you used for the butter and beer, melt the 3 tablespoons butter. Remove from heat and whisk in mustard, Worcestershire and hot sauce until smooth. Set aside.  You want an emulsion, trust me.

On wax paper, where you grated your cheese, sprinkle over the cheese: the mustard powder, paprika, salt and several grinds of black pepper. Toss with your hands on the wax paper until the grated strands are evenly coated with spices.  Wrap it up in a little package and put it in the fridge until you're about 20 minutes away from rolling out the dough.  If it gets too warm, it'll get too clumpy.

Assemble bread: Coat a 9-by-5 loaf pan lightly with butter or a nonstick spray.  Set aside.

Turn dough out onto a well-floured counter and roll the dough into a 18-by-9-inch rectangle, making sure it doesn’t stick to the counter by re-flouring the counter as needed. Brush the butter-mustard-Worcestershire mixture evenly over the whole surface, right up to the edges. Sprinkle with the cheese spice mixture, evenly distributing all the way to the edges.  Press the cheese into the dough a bit.  Starting at the short end, roll up like a jelly roll.  Press the seams together and turn the seam side down.

With the sharpest knife you own (or a serrated one), gently and with the lightest sawing motions cut your bread into 12 equal pieces.  I cut it in half, then quarters, then each quarter into thirds.  

Arrange stacks of dough down the length of your prepared loaf pan in an offset pattern.  Almost simulating a braid look.  

 

Loosely cover the pan with more plastic wrap and set it aside to rise again for 45-50 more minutes. Let it come to the top of the pan at least and get kinda plump.

Preheat your over to 350 degrees.  Bake loaf for 25 to 35 minutes, until puffed and brown. You want it to sound hollow when rapped with a wooden spoon, or so I'm told.  Transfer it to a wire rack and let it cool for 5 minutes before flipping it out onto a serving plate/cutting board.