Peppery Cheese Quick Bread

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Laden with bits of black pepper and plenty of cheddar cheese, Peppery Cheese Quick Bread is savory, cheesy, and absolutely delicious! This zesty loaf makes a great dinner or appetizer bread.

Since this homemade bread is made without yeast, so it’s super easy to make. Bake a loaf of Peppery Cheese Quick Bread to slice and serve warm with your favorite homemade soup for a cozy, delicious meal.

This bread isn’t dense enough to hold up for sandwiches, but the leftovers are super yummy toasted and served with butter. Truth be told, I could probably eat half the loaf all on my own!

Peppery Cheese Quick Bread

This easy quick bread recipe has been popular around my house for almost 20 years. When a recipe sticks around that long, you know it’s got to be a good one!

I started making Peppery Cheese Bread when it first appeared in an issue of Southern Living magazine way back in 2004. It immediately became a family favorite!

The texture of this bread is similar to a muffin, only denser. The recipe is made from regular pantry ingredients and is quite versatile.

If you don’t have Greek yogurt, use sour cream. If you don’t have self-rising flour, use all-purpose. If you don’t have spicy mustard, use regular. Basically, you can’t mess it up!

Ingredients

• Self-rising flour — may substitute the equal amount of all-purpose flour plus 1 teaspoon baking powder, 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• Sugar
• Cheddar cheese — I prefer a sharp cheddar
• Green onions or scallions
• Coarse-ground black pepper — or freshly ground black pepper
• Stone-ground spicy mustard
• Plain Greek yogurt — may substitute sour cream or buttermilk
• Milk — whole or low-fat
• Eggs — lightly beaten
• Canola Oil — may substitute vegetable oil or coconut oil

How to make black pepper cheesy quick bread

1. Preheat the oven and lightly grease a loaf pan (see tips below).
2. Combine the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, pepper, and diced green onions) in a large bowl, and in a separate bowl combine the remaining wet ingredients.
3. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and stir in the wet ingredients just until moistened (again, see the quick bread tips below).
4. Spoon the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes.

Basic quick bread tips

• Always preheat the oven before baking the loaf to ensure a good rise.
• Bake the loaf on the middle oven rack for even cooking.
• Like with muffins, it’s important to only stir the ingredients until the dry ingredients are just moistened. A few lump in the batter is actually desirable. Stir the batter too much and the bread texture will be chewy and tough.
• Grease the loaf pan on the bottom and only 1/2 inch up the sides. I also like to place a piece of parchment paper cut to size in the bottom of the pan for guaranteed easy removal.
• Watch that the bread doesn’t brown too fast on the top. Check it a few minutes before the baking time is up and cover loosely with foil if needed.
• Check for doneness by inserting a wooden toothpick near the center of the loaf. It should comes out clean without any crumbs.
• Cool the quick bread for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.
• Slice quick bread with a long serrated knife to avoid crumbling.

How to know if this quick bread is done?

The outside crust of Peppery Cheese Bread should get golden brown. To test if the loaf is cooked all the way through, insert a wooden pick into the center. When the pick is removed, it should come out clean without any wet crumbs.

How many can one loaf serve?

A loaf of Peppery Cheese Quick Bread should yield 10 slices. How many you can serve with one loaf will depend on the will power of any carb lovers you may be serving!

Recipe variations

• Toss a diced and seeded jalapeño pepper and a clove of minced garlic into the batter to kick this bread up a notch.
• If you have them on hand, try adding a tablespoon of chopped fresh herbs, like rosemary or thyme.
• Add 6 – 7 crisp-fried and crumbled slices of bacon to the batter to make bacon cheddar bread.
• Use a mixture of cheeses, like half sharp cheddar cheese and half smoked gouda, to suit your personal tastes.

Related recipes

Besides today’s cheesy loaf, here are a few of my other favorite homemade breads to serve when we have soup or chili for dinner:

• Bacon Cheddar Scones
• Greek Olive Foccaccia Bread
• Jalapeno Jam Corn Muffins
• Mexican Cornbread Muffiins

Serving suggestions

A thick slice of Peppery Cheese Quick Bread toasted and smeared with softened butter and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese makes a delicious appetizer.

This cheesy bread is also delicious with a steamy bowl of vegetable soup, taco soup, or old-fashioned potato soup.