Philly Homegrown and Honey Wheat Beer Bread

Back in the summer I received a package from Philly Homegrown. The best part was that it came exactly on my birthday. And no it wasn't Philly pretzels, cheese steaks or water ice, silly people! As much as I like them, this was even better. It was filled with wonderful things such as cheese, pickles, coffee, granola,  dried mushrooms, and pancetta.  There were plenty of ingredients to cook with. Unfortunately, the little computer virus man ate all my pictures of the wonderful box. But Allie from All I Eat Food was nice enough to share one. Doesn't it all look delicious? You can also read more about the Philly Homegrown box on her blog post.

There was also a bottle of summer ale in the box. It looked wonderful but since I am not much of a beer drinker I decided to use it to bake some bread. I also used some of the delicious honey that came in the box. The light ale and sweet honey helped me to create a delicious bread that my family loves to eat with soup or chili. The recipe is below but let me tell you a little more about Philly Homegrown.

Philly Homegrown focuses on the local food movement. The Philadelphia region is home to some of the richest and most abundant farmland in the country. From the Jersey shore to the farms and fields of Lancaster, some of the best seafood, produce, meats and dairy products come from this region. Even though I am a true Jersey girl, I love to go into Philadelphia and visit The Reading Terminal and Italian Market. These are two of my favorite markets to shop at. Everything is so fresh and I usually come home ready to cook up a storm.  The weather is starting to get chilly but you would be surprised to see what's in season right now. Escarole, turnips, apples, squash and cranberries are in season at this time of year. But you can also get onions, herbs and arugula all year round.  There is nothing better than walking around a market and coming home with fresh local food.

Much of these local products you can also find in Philly area restaurants, bakeries and taverns. Philadelphia also has numerous food tours. Next time you are in the area and visiting the Liberty Bell, don't forget that Philly is a food lover's haven!

Honey Wheat Beer Bread

1 ½ cups white flour
1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
1 TBS baking powder
12 ounces beer
¼ cup honey
3 TBS melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl combine the flours and baking powder and mix well. Stir in the beer and honey. Combine the sticky mixture. Pour the batter into a greased 8-inch loaf pan and pour the butter over the dough. Bake for about 45 to 50 minutes or until toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. Cool for at 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Cool for another 10 minutes on a wire rack before serving.

**DISCLAIMER:  Philly Homegrown provided me with free products however, I was not compensated for this post. All opinions are solely my own.