Rosemary Beer Bread

Trader Joe’s just unveiled a boxed Beer Bread recipe, and I although I love TJs, I was juuuuust a bit skeptical. Whenever box mixes say “just add XX and XX!” I immediately think I can replicate the mix at home, and probably make it simpler and better. So I grabbed a box, scanned the ingredients and was like “oh, okay duh, we can totally make this!” So this is Part IV of my Trader Joe’s Remake series where I remake some of their favorite products, and today we are doing an affordable, easy and insanely delicious remake of their boxed Beer Bread mix. (But no shade, Trader Joes, I still love you!)

Now beer bread itself is nothing new. It’s an insanely easy way to make a fluffy, crusty, slightly sweet bread that is addictive when slathered with butter. And the genius is in its simplicity. You just can’t beat how quick and easy it is to whip up beer bread.

Now the flavor does depend on the beer you use, but I’ve found that with the cooking process, you can use any beer and still end up with a great result. But as I was creating this recipe I thought, ok what will give this some extra umph? And that’s how rosemary got added! Rosemary and beer? Match made in heaven! Rosemary and a yeasty, chewy, hearty beer bread? Match made in heavennnnnnn.

Plus I threw in a recipe for rosemary butter just for fun, I’ll explain the full recipe below!

Oh my god, WAIT. I forgot the best part: which is this bread can be made vegan SO easily. It’s the best vegan beer bread out there because we really don’t change much, just a simple swap of regular butter to a vegan alternative.

The one thing you will miss when using a vegan butter is you won’t get the classic browning that a normal beer bread has, but the crust will still come out thick and crunchy with the inside soft and chewy, so it’s really a win all around!

I use Country Crock’s olive oil based plant-based butter as my go-to, but really there are tons of options to choose from. Miyokos creamery is great but can be pricey, and Earth Balance sticks will also work for this one!

A classic beer bread uses sugar in the mix, but I opted for maple syrup because:

1) maple syrup is my life and
2) I think it brings a different kind of moisture and texture to the bread that wasn’t there before!

But if you’re in a pinch, you can totally swap out the maple syrup for regular sugar.

And now to the most important ingredient – THE BEER. Well, ok, let’s back up. It’s an important ingredient, but it is not the be-all-end-all of your beer bread recipe. Is this bread delicious with an expensive milk stout? Heck yes. Is it also delicious with a Coors Light (which I am guilty of using) – helll yes. The beer choice is really all about what is in your budget, what you have on hand and what your preference is. If you have no idea what to choose, I recommend going with a standard brand name lager (think Budweiser) and you’ll be good to go!

And the mixing of this recipe is insanely easy. Since this is similar to a soda bread, you don’t need to knead it, but you do need to give it a good stir to help it develop a bit of gluten.

Here’s a bit of background on the gluten thing: Whenever flour mixes with moisture, it automatically begins to develop the gluten protein structure, which is what helps bread keep its height, chew and spring. The more you mix something, the more gluten structure it has. This can be a great thing in breads, but a not-so-great things in other baked goods (think: cookies).

So what is the ideal mixing time for this beer bread? Well, whisk together the dry ingredients first, then add the maple syrup and beer and give it a good stir until all the dry ingredients are combined with the wet. The dough should be thick, but give it a mix for another minute or so. You’ll start to feel it really come together, even though it will still be slack compared to a normal loaf. That means it’s ready to be put in the loaf pan to bake!

Now for the buttahhhh – aka butter. This is the BEST part because it is what makes the beer bread so crusty, hearty, and for lack of a better word….buttery. You truly can’t skimp on the butter for this one. It’s what makes the loaf!

Start this step by pouring 2 tbsp of the melted butter in the bottom of the loaf pan, give it a little swirl to coat most of the edges and then just ~plop~ the dough in. Press the dough down until it reaches all the corners, and then take a glaze brush and brush any excess butter that has seeped up around the corners and brush it over the top of the bread. You might not need the extra tablespoon of butter for the top, depending on how much butter comes up on the edges. You just want to make sure every outside section of the bread has a nice buttery glaze on it.

The rosemary in this recipe goes directly into the dough, but also on top if you are feeling ~fancy af~

Baking the rosemary on top is more for look and aromatics than anything, and I remove the sprigs after baking. They aren’t a necessity to the recipe, but I do love them for that extra *jenesequa*

But the best part is the rosemary butter. It’s just a combo of dried rosemary (which should be a pantry staple imo), flakey salt and softened butter. Mixed with this easy beer bread recipe, it is a total game changer.

I like to let my bread cool a bit when it’s out of the oven. Only after its had a few minutes to ~simmer down~ do I take it out of the loaf pan.

This is because, just like any bread, if you cut it too soon, it won’t have the crumb structure you’d like. Breads need to cool (just a tiny bit! Like 15-30 minutes) to get the optimal slice.

But I know, I know, when this bread comes out of the oven it will feel like you are waiting foreverrrrrr to dive in, but it is totally worth it, I promise!

After it is slightly cooled, I like to slice my bread into 12 pieces, slather it with rosemary butter and serve alongside a hearty soup or warm dinner. But of course, it’s perfect just on its own! It’s also an amazing breakfast idea if you lightly toast it and top with butter and jam, or you could even throw it on the griddle for some crunch and then add avocado and an egg on top. Serve it alongside a protein-y salad and you have an amazing lunch. You can really do anything with this one!

Let me know what you think in the comments, and as always, happy baking!!