One of the first regional foods I made when I moved to Colorado over 25 years ago had nothing to do with chiles or fajitas; elk or antelope. Nope…it was for Coors Beer Bread. I had never seen nor heard of a bread made with beer and though I was not a big fan of beer I couldn’t discount the following:
- I heard it was both simple and great; two big pluses!
- It was in a local Junior League cookbook that had thus far never failed me (Colorado Cache).
- It included Coors Beer. Now way back then Coors was special. It was only shipped as far east as the Mississippi River so it had it’s own ‘cache’ as a result.
Over the years I pretty much stuck to the original recipe; the fun started when I began trying different beers. Coors is now available everywhere (probably even in China) so it has lost that ‘hard to find’ charm so I’ve had no problem swaying from the original. I’ve had fun using Guinness, Raspberry Wheat and other regional favorites over the past several years. For this season, well, it seem appropriate to do something, um, well, seasonal! What could be more perfect than Pumpkin Beer? I’m still not a big beer drinker but I sure enjoyed the bread from this beer. A little brown sugar, a lot of butter and a spread made from pumpkin, butter and honey? OK, I give…Fall is definitely here! Speaking of a lot of butter? The butter in the recipe is melted and some is poured into the pan before the batter is put in and the rest is poured over the top of the bread and sort of bakes in. Do you know how amazing it is that these photos do not have little chunks I thought you would not notice picked off the top? I behaved…or at least I can say I did since my photos don’t say otherwise!
I just bought some Pumpkin Butter from a local farmers market; it’s not the same as the spread I made but it was sure good on the bread too. Thinking it’s time I tried making my own now, right?
I’ve included this recipe in this weeks Food Network #FallFest; take a moment to peek at all of the other wonderful pumpkin dishes lined up for you today:
Napa Farmhouse 1885: Thai Pumpkin and Coconut Soup
Red or Green: Pizza with Red Chile Pumpkin Sauce, Black Beans and Fresh Corn
Devour: Easy Pumpkin Cream Sauce
Feed Me Phoebe: Creamy Vegan Pumpkin Soup
Virtually Homemade: Starbuck’s Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino
Weelicious: Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
The Lemon Bowl: Healthy Baked Mac and Cheese with Pumpkin
The Heritage Cook: Chile-Pumpkin Hummus
Dishing: Pumpkin Browns/ Pumpkin Hash Browns
In Jennie’s Kitchen: Pumpkin Scones
Cooking With Elise: Hearty Pumpkin Pasta
And Love It Too: Paleo Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal
Blue Apron Blog: Baked Pumpkin Stuffed with Millet and Caponata
Dishin & Dishes: Pumpkin Pancakes with Maple Cinnamon Pecan Syrup
Domesticate Me: Harvest Pumpkin Soup with Candied Bacon
The Sensitive Epicure: Pumpkin Panna Cotta with Pumpkin Seed Brittle
FN Dish: Cook Pumpkin from the Patch
Taste With The Eyes: Sweet and Spicy Pumpkin Apple Soup with Dried Fruit, Pine Nuts and Ancho Chile
Creative Culinary: Pumpkin Beer Bread with Pumpkin Butter Spread
Serves 1
15 minPrep Time
60 minCook Time
1 hr, 15 Total Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 1/2 C butter
- 3 cups flour
- 4 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp Honey
- 3 Tbsp Brown Sugar
- 1 (12oz.) bottle of beer (Pumpkin Ale)
- 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted, cooled and coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup softened butter
- 1/4 cup pumpkin
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Melt butter and pour enough into 9 x 5 inch loaf pan to coat bottom.
- In large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, honey, sugar and beer. Add chopped nuts and just briefly combine.
- Spoon dough into butter coated loaf pan. Pour remaining butter over the top.
- Bake until bread is a light golden color (50-60 minutes).
- Let stand 10 minutes before cutting with a serrated knife.
- Try not to eat the entire loaf while standing in front of the stove.
- Serve with the Pumpkin and Honey Butter Spread
- Beat the butter until soft and fluffy. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Spoon into crock to serve. Refrigerate leftovers.
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