Rosemary Cheddar Cheese Bread

In the battle of yeast breads vs. quick breads, yeast will always win with me. That said, I can't deny the convenience of a quick bread when you're strapped for time. I made this rosemary cheddar loaf to have with cocktails and appetizers one night, and it definitely didn't disappoint! It was an impromptu dinner, and this bread really delivered! The recipe is from the King Arthur Baker's Companion cookbook, and I have a sticky note on the page for the next time that I need a quick bread to have with wine and other sundries. It makes two very good sized loaves, and I promptly stuck one in the freezer for later. I was a little worried about the flavor combination, rosemary plus a spicy cheddar seemed a little odd to me, but it really, really works. The rosemary whole wheat is on the sweetish-side (by no means sweet, just sweeter than the cheddar) and it really compliments the savory cheddar bread.

Here are some things that I made note of for next time:

1. This is a great recipe, but get ready to dirty some dishes! The double batter aspect means twice the bowls. It's worth it, though.
2. Make sure that your milk is room temp, and buzz it in the microwave for a few seconds if you have to. Room temperature butter hardens quickly when you add cold milk, and it's ridiculously hard to whisk the liquid ingredients when you have giant chunks of butter floating around.
3. I didn't have dried rosemary so I used herbs de Provence -- this was a great substitution!


Rosemary Cheddar Cheese Bread
The King Arthur Baker's Companion

Rosemary Whole Wheat Batter
1 large egg
1 1/4 cups milk
4 tablespoons softened butter
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups whole wheat flour or white whole wheat flour

Cheddar Cheese Batter
1 large egg
1 cup milk
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups grated cheddar cheese


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 8 1/2 x 4 1/2" loaf pans.

For the Rosemary Batter: (In a medium bowl) Beat the egg and add the milk and softened butter. Stir well. (In a large bowl) Mix together the dry ingredients with a whisk. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Put half of the batter into each of the two prepared pans.

For the Cheese Batter: In a medium-sized bowl, beat the egg, then stir in the milk and butter. In a separate bowl, whisk together the baking powder, salt, cayenne, black pepper, and flour. Stir in the cheese, then the milk mixture, stirring until just combined.

Pour half of the cheddar batter into each pan on top of the rosemary batter. Use a table knife and stick it, point down, all the way through the batter to the bottom of the pan. Keep the tip touching the bottom of the pan and drag the knife through the batter in curving motions until the loaf is marbled. Repeat with the second loaf.

Bake the loaves for 50 to 60 minutes, or until nicely browned and a cake tester inserted in the middle of a loaf comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let them rest for 5 to 10 minutes before turning out and cooling on a rack.