Jackson Free Press

Hard cider has to be one of my favorite types of alcohol, and I've wanted to try incorporating it into a bread recipe for a while. I had seen recipes for soft apple cider bread, but not many for the alcoholic kind. So, I decided to use a basic recipe and replace the liquid with hard apple cider. I was nervous—I've never made bread, this particular experiment seemed crazy. As it turned out, this loaf of quick bread was not only delicious, but it was so easy to make. Be forewarned though: it's awfully crumbly.

Hard Apple Cider Bread

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup hard apple cider

1 large egg

1/4 cup unsalted butter

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9-inch by 5-inch loaf pan.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a medium-sized bowl and whisk together. Melt the butter and combine with the egg and cider. Whisk the wet ingredients together and then pour them over the dry ingredients. Mix the batter with a rubber spatula until the ingredients are combined. This is quick bread so it's OK to have a few lumps.

Pour the batter into the pan and spread it evenly with a spatula. Hit the pan against a flat surface to get the bubbles out and make sure the batter is evenly displaced. Bake the bread for 45-50 minutes. After about 20 minutes, take the pan out of the oven and gently run a sharp knife 1/8 of an inch into the surface. This should help with cracking, and is also a good way to watch the bread for doneness. Place the pan back in the oven and watch it for another 25 minutes.

When time is up, or when the bread looks ready, take it out of the oven and stick a sharp knife or toothpick into each corner. If you see no batter, the bread is done. Let it cool for 15 minutes.

Serves: 8-10