Bacon Beer Bread

A few months ago while baking beer bread, I got this crazy idea. Bacon. You know the stuff- that salty and smoky and chewy deliciousness that everyone loves so much. Bacon inside of beer bread. So here you have it.

Start with about a half of a pound of bacon. You can absolutely fry strips of bacon and then cut them up for the bread, but I like cutting it up before hand to fry little pieces.  That way each piece gets slightly crispy. Mmm, good.

Drain the bacon and put in a separate bowl for now. Now that the bacon is taken care of, time for some beer bread. 

Start with 3 cups of self-rising flour, and add one half cup of regular white sugar. Because this is a quick dough recipe and doesn't require proofing or rising, make sure that you use self-rising flour. 

Now for the beer. For this batch of bread, I used Budweiser, but I have also used Newcastle and Michelob Ultra. There obviously isn't a specific type of beer to use, but here are some basic rules of thumb:

• Don't use a light beer. Stop living in denial, the commercials are right- light beer equals light flavor. It's bad enough to drink light flavor, but if you try to cook with it, you'll get no flavor. 
• Lighter colored beer is acceptable (see above picture), however, the darker the beer, the fuller the flavor. 
• Stick to the quality factor. Yeah, I get it, the beer in question will only be used for bread, so what's the point in spending money on a good beer? Just do it. You'll have at least 5 beers to drink at your leisure.
• This brings me to my last rule of thumb: taste. If you don't drink beer (like myself) just follow the steps above when selecting your brew. However, if you are a beer connoisseur, go with what you know (as long as it isn't a light beer) use one that is high up on your favorites list. Because remember, you'll still have 5 beers to drink when it's all said and done.

Pour the beer in slowly and use your hands to mix the dough. It won't seem like you'll have enough beer until the very end, but it will work out perfectly. I recommend having the bacon close and the bread pan sprayed ahead of time because your hands will be covered in a sticky mess. 

I bet you know what's next...

I won't judge you if you need a moment of silence. When you're done, mix that deliciousness in. 

Dump the dough into a well sprayed or buttered bread pan of standard size, even though I'm not real sure what the exact dimensions of "standard" are. 

Bake the bread at 375 degrees for 50 minutes. After the bread is golden and delicious, either rub a stick of butter over it, or brush melted butter on top. Do it while it's still hot so that it forms this epically wonderful crust. The goal is to make the butter sizzle when it touches the sides of the pan. That is success.

Resist the temptation and let the bread cool completely before slicing. 

Bacon Beer Bread

• 3 Cups Self-Rising Flour
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 pound bacon, fried and chopped
• 12 oz. beer
• Butter

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Liberally butter or spray bread pan. 

Fry bacon and cut up, or cut up and fry. After the bacon is cooked, drain and set aside. Mix flour and sugar in a bowl. Slowly add beer and mix with your hands. Add and mix in bacon. Pour into bread pan and bake for 50 minutes. Coat crust in melted butter and allow to cool completely. 

There ya have it, folks. Also- I dare you to make a cheddar grilled cheese with this bread. You're welcome.