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Ready for a bread that practically screams comfort and flavor? This Mini Beer Bread is a true winner, combining the hearty textures and rich aromas of cheddar cheese and sausage. The best part? No fussing with yeast or waiting for dough to rise. Simply mix your ingredients, pour into a pan, and bake. In just 30 minutes, you’ll have a warm, savory loaf that perfectly complements any meal or stands alone as a satisfying snack.
This small beer bread is fantastic by itself, but it’s also great when paired with other dishes. Try it with a comforting bowl of tomato soup or chicken tortellini soup, adding a hearty touch to your meal. Or, for a fresher option, enjoy it alongside a crisp, Italian chopped salad. The bread’s rich, malty flavor complements these dishes beautifully.
Why You’ll Love This Beer Bread Recipe
- Simple: With few ingredients and a simple process, this recipe is beginner-friendly.
- Flavorful: The combination of sausage, cheese, and beer offers a rich and savory taste.
- Versatile: Suitable for any meal – be it breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
- Quick: Ready in under an hour, perfect for spontaneous cravings.
- Personal: Single serving ensures every bite is freshly baked just for you.
Beer Bread: Beyond The Basics
While beer bread might sound like a complex recipe, it’s actually a quick bread that uses beer instead of yeast for leavening. This substitution creates a unique twist: the beer adds a subtle malty flavor and a delightful moistness to the bread. Traditionally enjoyed warm as a side dish or a snack, beer bread’s versatility also allows it to be used for sandwiches or wraps.
Our recipe is designed for single servings, perfect for satisfying a bread craving without leftovers. It comes together in minutes with minimal ingredients, making it a breeze to whip up whenever the mood strikes.
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Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this easy beer bread recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
- Flour: This recipe uses all-purpose flour. To make beer bread with self-rising flour instead, omit the baking powder and salt.
- Sugar: Use granulated sugar or honey.
- Baking powder: Baking powder works with the beer to help the bread rise and get fluffy.
- Salt: This ingredient adds flavor.
- Garlic powder: This ingredient is optional but a truly delicious addition.
- Beer: Beer is the star of this recipe! Beer adds to the leavening and the flavor profile of the bread. I recommend using a beer you enjoy drinking. See the “Frequently Asked Questions” section below for more tips.
- Shredded cheddar cheese: Feel free to use a different kind of cheese instead. I love using shredded Monterey jack, pepper jack, or gouda too. Consider using leftover cheese in a Mini Squash Casserole, Chicken Tetrazzini, or Shrimp and Grits.
- Cooked sausage: I recommend using simple breakfast sausage like Jimmy Dean, Johnsonville, or Owens. Use any extra sausage to make a Biscuit and Gravy.
- Butter: A small amount of melted butter is added to the batter which contributes to the richness of the bread. We also drizzle melted butter over the top of the bread batter before baking which results in a crispy crust and gives the bread a beautiful color.
Recipe Variations
Want to play around with the flavors? Here are some variations:
- Classic Cheese Beer Bread: Leave out the sausage and use 1/4 cup of shredded cheese. Try pepper jack, gouda, fontina, or sharp cheddar.
- Herb Beer Bread: Fold in 1/2 teaspoon of dried herbs or 1 tablespoon of fresh. Try basil, rosemary, or thyme. Add in 2 tablespoons of finely grated Parmesan cheese for a nice touch.
- Spicy Beer Bread: Fold in 1 teaspoon (or more) of chopped jalapenos and 1/4 cup of shredded pepper jack cheese.
- Traditional Beer Bread: Make this recipe without sausage and cheese.
How To Make Beer Bread
These step-by-step photos and instructions help you visualize how to make sausage and cheese beer bread. See the recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.
- Heat a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat (put a few drops of water in the pan, when they evaporate, you know the pan is ready). Crumble the sausage into the pan, breaking up chunks with a spatula. Cook until the meat is crumbled and completely browned through. Transfer the cooked sausage to a paper towel-lined plate and set it aside.
- Heat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Lightly butter a 10-ounce ramekin and set it aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and garlic powder.
- Stir in the beer, melted butter, shredded cheese, and cooked sausage.
- Spoon the batter into the ramekin.
- Pour melted butter over the top of the beer bread batter.
- Bake the bread for 30-35 minutes, until the top is golden. Remove from the oven and let the bread cool for 10 minutes. Enjoy immediately.
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Expert Tips
- Beer substitutes: If you don’t have beer on hand, replace the beer with seltzer water or ginger ale.
- Look for single bottles: If you aren’t a beer drinker, some stores carry single bottles available for purchase or use a substitute as mentioned above.
- Alcohol in beer bread: Most, if not all of the alcohol cooks out, leaving behind the savory flavors.
- Don’t overmix the dough: Too much mixing can make the bread dough too dense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Beer bread tastes a little bit like beer. The stronger the beer you use, the more intense the bread will be.
I recommend using a beer you enjoy drinking. I usually make sausage and cheese beer bread with whatever beer is in my refrigerator.
* For a mild beer bread, use a plain, light beer like Miller Light, Michelob Ultra, or a light craft beer.
* Try using a seasonal beer like a pumpkin ale or a winter ale.
* For a nice all-around great-tasting beer bread try an Amber.
* For a delicious Irish beer bread, go for a Guinness.
Absolutely. Just ensure it’s carbonated.
Cover the bread with plastic wrap and store it in the refrigerator. It will keep well for up to 5 days.
To freeze beer bread: Store in an airtight freezer-safe storage container for up to 3 months. Let the bread thaw overnight in the refrigerator before eating.
Most of the alcohol evaporates during baking, leaving behind only the flavor.
Use a 10-ounce ramekin in this mini beer bread recipe.
If you would like to double this recipe, use a 4×6-inch baking dish with a base area of 24 square inches or a 5×5-inch baking dish with a base area of 25 square inches. These baking dishes can be found on our Store page.
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
For more information on the baking dishes I use in our “recipes for one”, please visit our FAQ page.
To see examples of the dishes used at One Dish Kitchen, please visit our Store page.
If you’ve tried this easy beer bread recipe or any recipe on One Dish Kitchen please let me know how you liked it by rating the recipe and telling me about it in the comment section below.
Also, if you take a picture please tag us on Instagram (@onedishkitchen) we’d love to see it!
Mini Beer Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 ounces cooked sausage
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅓ cup beer
- 1 tablespoon salted butter -divided
- ¼ cup shredded Cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Heat a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat (put a few drops of water in the pan, when they evaporate, you know the pan is ready). Crumble the sausage into the pan, breaking up chunks with a spatula. Cook until the meat is crumbled and completely browned through. Transfer the cooked sausage to a paper towel-lined plate and set it aside.
- Heat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Lightly butter a 10-ounce ramekin and set it aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and garlic powder.
- Stir in the beer, half of the melted butter, shredded cheese, and cooked sausage.
- Spoon the batter into the ramekin.
- Pour the remaining melted butter over the top of the beer bread batter.
- Bake the bread for 30-35 minutes, until the top is golden. Remove from the oven and let the bread cool for 10 minutes. Enjoy immediately.
Notes
- Beer substitutes: If you don’t have beer on hand, replace the beer with seltzer water or ginger ale.
- Look for single bottles: If you aren’t a beer drinker, some stores carry single bottles available for purchase or use a substitute as mentioned above.
- Alcohol in beer bread: Most, if not all of the alcohol cooks out, leaving behind the savory flavors.
- Don’t overmix the dough: Too much mixing can make the bread dough too dense.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
I made Beer Bread and Curried Butternut Squash Soup for lunch. Awesome!!! This is going to make 3 meals and the soup 2 meals for me. I going to be making more of your recipes. The biggest problem I’m having, is wasting food. You are teaching me with your suggestions about using leftover ingredients, freezing, what to serve with the recipe and long it will keep. I am eating foods that I have never ate before. Great job you are doing!!!
Jane, thank you so much for your kind note. I’m so happy to hear that you are enjoying the recipes. Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know.
This recipe is so good, I made it 3 times to use up my bottle of beer and pound of sausage. I love it sliced, heated, and with a little butter for breakfast.
It’s a good thing this only serves two. My boyfriend and I are trying to cut down our bread intake. This was so good, we would have eaten an entire loaf with no trouble.
So glad you both enjoyed the recipe! Thank you so much for letting me know!
what is the significance of the beer to the recipe? I do not drink it and would have a wasted can of beer if i were to use 1/3 cup for this recipe, what can be substituted, is it the carbonation that is essential/beneficial?
Hi Gina, The yeast in the beer interacts with the sugar to help the bread to rise.
Although I haven’t tried it, others have said that they use soda instead of beer. You just have to be careful to not use a soda that’s too sweet otherwise it will change the flavor of the bread.
Joanie, what meal does this beer bread go with?
Jane, I could eat this beer bread all by itself. It’s also wonderful with soups and stews.
This looks like it would be an easy meal to prepare for breakfasts
This is an easy bread to prepare for breakfast!
This bread is really good!
Can bacon be used instead of sausage, or will it get too dry?
Hi Tina,
I’ve never tried using bacon but I would think cooked bacon in the beer bread would be delicious. If you make it this way, please let me know how you liked it.
Have a great weekend!
Joanie
This bread is terrific, I made it with cooked bacon instead of sausage.