1-hour breads

I don't know anyone who doesn't love the smell of bread baking. There's something about it that's so comforting, and it's really hard to wait for the bread to cool a little before cutting off a chunk, slathering it with butter and taking a bite.

I grew up within smelling distance of a bread factory, and the smell of bread in the oven brings back especially fond memories for me. Before kids I would plan ahead and make loaves of fresh bread just about every week. But now with three kids, three dogs, a cat, a part-time job and a partridge in a pear tree, I rarely have time -- or have thought ahead enough -- to bake a fresh loaf of yeast bread, which can take hours to proof and rise, and often rise again.

But who doesn't have time to make a quick bread. Both of these recipes go from dry flour to bread in about an hour -- which means you can have fresh bread for breakfast, lunch or dinner.


Pesto beer bread
3 cups flour (I like unbleached)
3 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 12-oz. can/bottle beer
1 Tablespoon prepared pesto, bottled or homemade (see note below)
Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and add beer, stirring to combine to make a thick batter. Add pesto and stir to combine. Spray a loaf pan with non-stick spray and pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until cooked through and toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 45 to 60 minutes.
Note -- For other flavors, omit pesto and substitute:
1 tsp. caraway seeds and 1/3 cup finely grated cheddar cheese
1 tsp. finely chopped rosemary and 1/3 cup finely shredded Parm.
Nothing.


Soda Bread
1 1/2 cups milk
1 Tablespoon plus 1 1/2 tsp. white vinegar
3 1/2 cups unbleached flour (plus more for board)
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 plus 1 tsp. kosher salt, divided
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
2 Tablespoons caraway seeds (optional)
Preheat oven to 400 F. Mix together milk and vinegar and set aside. Mix flour, baking soda and 3/4 tsp. salt. Add milk mixture mix until starts to form a ball (I like to do this in my Kitchen Aid mixer). Turn dough onto counter (covered with flour) and knead until fully combined. Form dough into a ball, pat down top to make a flat round and cut a deep X into the top of the dough. Brush with melted butter, sprinkle with remaining salt and bake until cooked through, about 40 to 50 minutes.