[Update: This is a more traditional cheese loaf than the one we made last Sunday using Fran (Mrs. Hal) Linden’s recipe. This is actually cheese bread.]
Remember how I told you that I don’t make bread? Though I am a double shut-in (pandemic AND tingling leg) I did not succumb to the recent, now abandoned, homemade bread baking craze. Well, I lied somewhat. One thing I make sometimes is this cheese loaf. It’s really simple and there’s no yeast and rising involved, so even a simp like me can pull it off.
Before I begin, I have a silicone loaf pan, though I do not bake bread. They are genius. If you don’t, you’re going to have to grease a loaf pan and use a sheet of parchment paper. Cut off enough of the paper so it is wide enough to go down the long side of the loaf pan and leave some overhang on both edges.
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together 2 cups of flour, 4 tsp. baking powder, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 2 pinches of paprika. Where Barbara got this idea I don’t know. Ladies Home Journal, I’m guessing, circa 1960. With a fork, mash in 1/2 stick of cold butter. Cannot emphasize this enough. Cold. Straight from the fridge. If you have one (I don’t, and she didn’t) use a pastry cutter. Pre-slice the cold butter so it goes more easily, like cut it into quarters and halve those quarters. Next, stir in 4 oz. of shredded cheddar cheese (use the sharpest you can find) and 1 oz. of grated or shredded parmesan cheese. This is 2 tbsp., if you’re not shredding or grating yourself.
In another bowl, whisk 2 room temp eggs (not cold) into a froth and add in 1 cup of whole milk and 3 tbsp. sugar. Stir, stir, stir. Add this to the other bowl with the dry ingredients and stir but not too much, just enough that everything has reached the point of combining.
Pour this into the loaf pan and put it in the oven. This can take anywhere from 45 minutes to over an hour. The disadvantage of having my dark-red silicone loaf pan is that everything takes longer, so for me this usually goes for about an hour but for you it might go more quickly. For Aunt Barbara it took 45 minutes. In any event stick a toothpick in the center and when it comes out clean you’re done.
Lift it out of the loaf pan and let it cool a little. Eat it warm (you’ll be salivating while you smell it cooking) or room temp or cold, it’s an adaptable treat. You can butter it, or for a really hearty breakfast cut off a couple of slices and cover with scrambled eggs. It also goes well with coffee or beer, which is how Uncle Paul liked it.
This sounds delish – I much prefer savory to sweet pastries. Also, my favorite direction from you is “stir but not too much, just enough”, which makes perfect sense.
I’m a big fan of very old recipes. “Dress two pheasants. Place in hearth until cooked.”
That sounds really good.
I’m forwarding this to my Aunt Barbara.
You should submit one of her recipes and we can have a Barbara Bake-off.
My mom used to make a cheese bread that was basically this except instead of the flour, baking powder, and salt, she used Bisquick. Add paprika and a dash of garlic salt, maybe some dehydrated onion. It’s delicious toasted and buttered.
Bisquick is surprisingly good stuff. My only complaint is they could cut back on the salt a bit, but all things considered it’s remarkable what comes out of that box.