I generally have a hard time feigning interest in topics in which I am wholly disinterested.
As previously discussed, I pretty much let it all hang out. So, if I don’t care about something, it becomes apparent pretty quickly. I abandoned Happy Potter (and countless other books) about 50 pages in. One semester in college, a semester where I had a schedule packed with boring mandatory courses, I received 2 Ds and a C. I could not even pretend to care about geology. My mind often wanders in the middle of bland and uninspiring conversations until I snap out of my haze, panicked I will be asked a question or be expected to participate in a meaningful way. Life is too short to be bored; while I may not understand the complex relationship between Hermione and Ron or have the best college transcript, at least I never feel like I am wasting my time.
Another endeavor I have never been particularly inspired to undertake is bread making. Yes, I have made the Lahey No Knead Bread, but that is pretty much the extent of it. I just feel like…it is a lot of work. Every time I eat homemade bread I realize it is definitely worth the work, but I just ain’t feeling it. The kneading, the rising, the waiting…I am just not patient enough and I am woman enough to admit it. Luckily, I can still be supremely lazy and still manage to throw together some homemade bread. This beer bread is impossibly easy to throw together and comes together in about two minutes. You really cannot get much simplerer than dumping a bottle of beer in to some flour. I added some cheddar to the bread mix, but it would taste just as good without the cheese. Served with some beef stew, this dense and hearty bread was the perfect compliment to a homey fall meal.
It is definitely worth your time….
Beer Bread
Slightly Adapted from Dine and Dish
3 cups flour (sifted)
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 (12 ounce) can/bottle beer
1/4 cup butter
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I used reduced fat)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix dry ingredients and beer. Pour into a greased loaf pan. Pour melted butter over mixture. Bake 1 hour, remove from pan and cool for at least 15 minutes.
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{ 37 comments… read them below or add one }
Well, I support pretty much anything that has to do with beer, so this gets my vote.
You are steadfast with your support, friend.
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I can attest that it was just that good!! =-)
Thanks! And the beef stew you brought was awesome.
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Similiar to the beer biscuits I make – mine rock with country ham – yummmy
Country ham…yum. Sounds great.
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I try to care about bread. I love really good bread but still kinda feel like eating bread takes room that could be better used for real food or booze.
yeah, bread is real food, but a pain in the ass sometimes. A good cornbread though? Heaven.
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I hated making bread and then I got a bread maker. I’m lazy and I can still have yummy bread. Basically, I win.
You definitely win, but is it really as good?
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I have a chocolate chip banana bread recipe that is TOTALLY worth the time. And my family recipe for cornbread is delicious and SUPER easy.
Then again, I much prefer baking to any other food making. People say you’re either in one boat or the other – although, not sure I completely agree with that.
Quick breads are much easier and way more my style.
I think people have preferences, for sure, and you are generally better at what you prefer. I have gotten MUCH better at baking since I have forced myself to work at it, but I like the flexibility of cooking much more.
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Mmmmm… cooking with beer…. you always know the way to my heart.
It’s good to be back.
I am so happy to have you back I almost peed when I saw you on gchat this am. Just sayin’.
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I can’t help but be sort of troubled by the pee comment, Lem. And at the same time it makes me think of that line from a Biggie song “girls pee-pee when they see me”. Thanks. Now that’s going to be in my head all day.
I’m rambling…Thoughts, shuttin’ it down.
yeah, sorry. Just keeping it real is all.
And that Biggie line is INSANITY. I never got it.
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Oh, I felt it too. And it wasn’t PEE pee. It was like a tiny, excited trickle. A tinkle, if you will.
You are one classy broad.
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Dunno … last week there was some comment about outdoor urination, now this “I almost peed” bit … this site might be getting a little kinky …
Peter
Might be getting? Apparently, I am not testing limits enough.
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You’ve made me question my love of making bread. Why do all the work when you don’t have to. One of my favs is my mom’s Irish soda bread. Nothing simple there, it requires a good kneading, but it’s soooo worth it.
yes, Irish soda bread is another really easy one that is worth it.
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I used to make bread before presentations in grad school so that everyone would be so distracted by the delicious bread that they wouldn’t notice my shitty presentations.
I think you may be a genius, jordan.
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I’ve made the no knead bread and it’s undoubtly delicious, but in general, I’m inclined to agree on bread: I just can’t be bothered. I’d rather buy it from a bakery.
If you are going to do a bread, these quick breads are way more satisfying for us lazy folk.
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I wonder how different types of beer will effect this recipe? A Chimay Rouge has got to add a little “somethin’ somethin” compared to a warm piss tasting PBR.
I used a really embarrassing, girly beer. It was still good, but yeah…a Guiness would have a totally different effect.
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Cooks Illustrated taste tested different beers in different recipes a few years ago and they were unanimous about a couple of things:
1. Water-y American beers do, in fact, come up lacking in the taste department.
2. IPA, and particularily really hoppy ones, are generally not good for cooking as the extra bitterness tends to come through in the final results
3. Guiness can, depending on the recipe, lend an over carmel like flavor
I think they generally preferred amber-y type beers on the low end and belgian beers if economically possible, so a Chimay rouge would be a good call. They manage to be flavorful with just a hint of sweetness.
The caramel effect in the Guiness explains why it is so popular in cake batters…
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Have we gotten to the point where we actually embrace our MTV attention spans? Seriously. Get on ADD meds. Life involves dealing with boring shit sometimes… and relationships (of any kind) definitely involve pretending to care about shit you really don’t care about sometimes.
Don’t forget, you probably bore the crap out of your friends sometimes too… so we all have to find ways to fake it so we can keep the social construct alive. Alcohol’s a good one for making boring shit seem funny as hell, but that doesn’t get you through dull meetings at work. Well, if you work for a law firm or congress, it’s probably OK, but not at most jobs.
So what were we talking about again? Oooh, look! Shiny…
Wow, Jamie! Someone feels like stirring the pot.
I don’t have ADD. I know I can also be boring as hell at times. I know because I have to LIVE WITH MYSELF. I am just being honest in this post about who I am…this is allowed, yes? Also, there is a bit of a tongue in cheek element here. I can fake it when I need to…I do have a job and all.
I sense I annoy you–which is totally fine. I am, in fact, quite annoying sometimes. Just keep in mind you don’t have to visit here. Of course I can take the criticism and I don’t want people kissing my ass (my ego is already way too big), but really…if you only have cranky things to say every time you visit, why torture yourself by stopping by?
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I used a really embarrassing, girly beer.
What types of beer are girly? Lite beers?
Peter
I am gonna lose my foodie street cred (did I ever have any?) Beck’s Light. Look, it is 64 calories. I love my black and tans on the weekend, but my ass does not like it when I drink them all the time.
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I like bread. Yum.
I’m with you on the boredom thing. That’s why I blog about things that interest me… like today? Making out. I might actually blog about making out with your bread tomorrow. Mmmmm bread.
Might be a little…dry.
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1. Water-y American beers do, in fact, come up lacking in the taste department.
2. IPA, and particularily really hoppy ones, are generally not good for cooking as the extra bitterness tends to come through in the final results
3. Guiness can, depending on the recipe, lend an over carmel like flavor
I think they generally preferred amber-y type beers on the low end and belgian beers if economically possible, so a Chimay rouge would be a good call. They manage to be flavorful with just a hint of sweetness.
That’s exactly what I was thinking.
I used a really embarrassing, girly beer.
Lemm just out of curiosity, which one?
I answered ironrail above–must I relive the shame?
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You know, they SELL bread nowadays in supermarkets.
Do you know you can masturbate but it isn’t nearly as satisfying as the real thing?
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You know, bread is difficult. If done with yeast, it’s alive. The Julia Child recipe for a french baguette is 4 pages long. It’s not a simple task. You can’t just drop some ritalin and make good bread. That’s why bakers tend to self segregate from the rest of the cooking community. It’s really a completely different art and science. And doing it right is both hard and requires commitment. If your not into it, you’ll be far happier just trundling down to a good bakery and buying your bread.
Biscuits are about the simpliest thing in the world to cook and people STILL screw them up.
I don’t like Tom Wolfe. I find Bonfire of the Vanities boring. Shoot me. It doesn’t make me a less person because I won’t read it.
bh, I think you are a lesser person.
For real though, I agree. It is a high form of art and I just don’t think I have it in me.
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Buying bread and masturbation! Ladies and Gentlemen, this blog now has it all. Sheer genius I tell you. I dare say this is my secret yet delightful shame. LOL!
I don’t know if I would say genius, but I am glad you can appreciate it.
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Sorry Lemmonex! I was really trying to just talk smack. I think I unintentionally smacked you down instead. You don’t annoy me at all, I actually find your ramblings highly entertaining. And I wouldn’t read and comment here if that was not the case. I fully subscribe to the “if you don’t like it why the hell are you wasting your time here” philosophy of blogging.
Upon re-reading my comment, I realize it’s a bit dry. Too dry. Like a bone dry martini. Well, that’s not too dry. But anyway, I can see that it doesn’t come across especially nicely and that wasn’t my intent.
Anyway, what were we talking about?
Glad we cleared that up! I have issues with tone all the time, so I feel your pain.
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Yes, but what about buying masturbation?
I don’t really feign interest, because I find it dishonest. I try to ask questions and find something interesting about the topic at hand, and, if that’s impossible, I try to change the subject. The subject is usually me, because I’m always fascinating.
The topic of you has never bored me. I like your approach.
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Masturbation, Narcissism, Instant Gratification.
This thread just became a show on VH1.
Has anyone seen “Real Chance at Love”? Oh, man. When Real asks some woman “Did you give my brother a lap dizzle?”…well, I damn near lost it.
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Yes, but what about buying masturbation?
Readily available at your local rub ‘n’ tug massage parlor.
Peter
That was going to be my response, but you beat me to it.
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By the way, do I really come across as cranky every time I comment? I’ve been going to “snarky but self-deprecating.” Apparently the technique needs a little refinement.
The last few times, yes. Its ok. Do you need a hug?
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A VH1 show? I’m waiting for “Behind the Blog,” a portentously narrated account of Lemmonex’s life.
Hm, how would I lose my money?
Also, I fear what my exes would say…
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Oh! Bread is my weakness. I got spoiled for a bit in Russia with all the fresh-baked delicious black breads. I would seriously make mayonnaise sandwiches for dinner sometimes. It may sound disgusting (and perhaps it objectively is), but if Russians know anything its bread and mayo. It goes so well with booze and oppression. Sigh, I miss it.
I hear the bread makes the oppression easier to stomach.
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I just made this and popped it in the oven, what a bitch to stir! I used Dominion Ale and full fat cheese… I’ll let ya know how it turns out after my friends and I dig inito it Tuesday for dinner!
A bitch, really? Weird. Pop it in the oven to heat it up before serving…hope you like it.
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beer makes everything better. this looks like a must try. i don’t own a sifter…which is pretty shocking…can i get away without it?
Yes, you def can…but do you have a mesh colander? That would work to sift…
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One of the excellent things about bread is that you don’t even have to make it yourself, you can program a machine to churn it up and bake it on demand. It’s like starting your morning by having Rosie the Robot throw up on you.
Wait, is this blog getting kinky?
Getting?
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Just to report back on the bread… It was awesome, even despite the fact that I completely forgot about the butter, so I left it out. It was tastiest when it was still warm for sure. Once the bread cooled I no longer tasted the beer flavor, which was crucial so I def. agree with you about serving it warm!
Oh wow, good despite the butter! That is an endorsement.
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Wow, I can now have a multi-course meal made with beer. My stew: made with beer. My chili: made with beer. Ice cream: beer. Bread: beer. For an apperitif: a beer! Mmmmm….beerrrrr…..
And then you can check in to the clinic!
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What needed changes
Would you recommend for bread
To use wheat flour?
yes, I think wheat flour would do well here, but I would MAYBE try white whole wheat….
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You might have not intended to do so, but I think you’ve managed to express the state of mind that a lot of people are in. The sense of wanting to help, but not knowing how or where, is something a lot of us are going via.
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it is very wonderful ,i like it vey muchvibram five fingers
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