Time to use up the last of my garden goodies. I set to work this morning making a new bread and an old favorite. I finished up the Zucchini Bread (old favorite) from my post yesterday and added what I think will be a new favorite; Rhubarb Beer Bread. My husband and I made a trip to a local brewery and found a lovely rhubarb beer. Now that type of beer usually wouldn’t be our thing as we prefer a good IPA or Dunkel but wow was it yummy. So, we brought home a growler and I used it in the recipe below. You can use any beer but just remember, your product is only as good as your ingredients. I served the bread topped with a strawberry rhubarb jam (recipe below) and goat cheese.
Rhubarb Beer Bread
- 3 cups flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups rhubarb- chopped
- 8 to 12 ounces beer(I used Rhubarb Beer from Firetrucker Brewery) http://www.firetrucker.com/
- 1 stick unsalted butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9- x 5-inch loaf pan or mini loaf pans.
Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Pour the beer into bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. Add chopped rhubarb and combine.
Pour enough of the melted butter into the bottom of the loaf pan.to cover. Add the batter to the pan, then pour thethe remaining butter on top. Bake on the center rack in the oven for 50 to 60 minutes, until the top is crispy golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Strawberry Rhubarb Jam (Easy Version)
6 to 8 C of rhubarb cut into 1 inch chunks
3 cups of sugar or splenda
1- 3 oz pkg strawberry Jell-O (I used sugar free)
For about an hour, over medium heat, combine the sugar and the rhubarb in a pan. The rhubarb will release its juices. Sometimes I add lemon zest to give another dimension to the jam (optional). Add the packet of jello and stir over medium high heat. I usually mash up the rhubarb a little either with the spoon or my hand blender so I have a nice consistency of some chunks and some mash. When the sauce begins to thicken, remove from heat and put in containers. Now, you can do the mason jar thing if you wish or you can use plastic containers and place in freezer.
