Bread cooked in a can? This must be some well kept secret! Who knew that a coffee can could have such a use? During the times of the Great Depression when everything was used, coffee cans were a way to make multiple loaves of bread when one was short on space.
For those of you who prefer their crusts cut off of their sandwiches, this is a tried and true method of achieving this. A note of caution: ensure that the can you use does not have the plastic coating inside of the can. This can lead to plastics and chemicals leaching into your bread loaf. You can easily fashion a metal coffee can or even a #10 can to make endless loaves of bread.
Yeast Bread in a Can
- 2 pckg. active dry yeast
- 2 tbsp. sugar
- 1 c. warm water (110 F.)
- cornmeal
- 1 tsp. salt
- 5 c. all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 c. warm milk (110 F.)
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda dissolved in 1 tbls. water
- In a large bowl, combine yeast and sugar in the water; let stand 15 minutes or until it begins to rise.
- Grease the inside of 3 – 1 lb. metal coffee cans and the underside of their lids. Sprinkle cans with cornmeal, shaking off the excess.
- With electric mixer, gradually beat salt, 3 c. flour, and 1 c. milk to the yeast mixture; adding alternately and beating well.
- Add 1/2 tsp. baking soda to 1 tbsp. water and dissolve. Add this to the beaten mixture. Beat well.
- With mixer or spoon, beat the remaining 1/2 c. milk and about 1 1/2 to 2 c. flour to make a stiff dough that is too sticky to knead.
- Spoon enough dough equally into cans, top with lids. Let rise in a warm place until the lid pops off (about 45 – 60 minutes).
- Carefully remove lids. place cans upright on stove rack and bake at 375 degrees F. for 25-30 minutes until the bread top is golden brown.
- Slide out of can to test. Take loaves out of cans and stand upright on wire rack to cool.
- Store airtight and keep at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 4 days. Freeze for longer storage.
Source – www.about.com
Pumpkin Bread in a Can
- 2 c. of cooked prepared pumpkin (or 1 large can of pumpkin, drained)
- 3 c. sugar
- 1 c. canola, rapeseed or extra light virgin olive oil
- 3 eggs
- 3 c. flour
- 1 c. raisins
- 1 c. chopped nuts, optional
- 1 tsp. each of cloves, allspice, salt, baking powder, baking soda
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- Preheat over to 35o degrees F.
- Grease and flour 3 (13 oz) coffee cans (or 2 standard bread pans).
- In a large bowl, mix sugar, oil and add eggs one at a time. Set this mixture aside. Sift flour and all spices together.
- Add flour mixture and pumpkin alternately to the sugar/oil mixture.
- Mix just enough to moisten all the dry ingredients; it’s better if you don’t over beat the mixture.
- Add raisins and nuts.
- Pour mixture into the 3 coffee cans or the 2 loaf pans. Stir a bit when mixture is in the cans to avoid air bubbles.
- Cover loosely with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 70-80 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before loosening from the cans or pans.
Source – www.squidoo.com
This article was originally published at Ready Nutrition™ on March 2nd, 2010
My Grandmother used to make an Easter Bread with raisins in a can like this. It was very tasty. Thanks for the reminder!
I have to ask, KatD…. are you from Alaska? Some of my most cherished memories include that wonderfully delicious Easter Bread (Kulich) baked in a can! Yummm ~~~
In the early 70s my husband found a recipe for Mushroom Bread , I believe in Mother Earth News. It was yeast bread baked in a coffee can – the top rose up over the can so it looked like a mushroom.
He baked it sometimes in soup cans for individual portions, really impressed visitors!!
I used to bake english muffin bread in coffee, but stopped when they started lining them. Do you use the cans with the lining?? Thanks
NO do not use cans that have the plastic lining.
Warbaby,
That’s a good question. I would stay away from the cans with liners. The liners contain a harmful material called Bisphenol A (BPA) which has been linked to a multitude of health issues.
I’m so anxious to make bread in coffee cans, especially for Christmas, but several sites say the cans have to be made of steel, not aluminun for health reasons. Also I have read that most cans now are aluminum; so my question is —–how do we know if anyone still makes steel coffee cans??
Hi Glenda,
An old coffee can is perfectly safe–the steel cans were coated with tin inside and they were used regularly. Now that many of our aluminum cans are coated with a plastic coating, you want to avoid those or try to remove the coating.
If you cannot find a can without the plastic liner, here are some suitable alternatives that I found:
a Pyrex beaker works nicely–or the glass part of a French press coffee maker. (Put a round of parchment in the bottom to help with the release of the loaf.) Probably the best substitute is a terra cotta flower pot. Get an unglazed Italian terra cotta pot. Smear the business surfaces with somethng like Crisco, put it in a cold oven and heat to 450 (by increments if you like–some directions give it that way and others don’t), and after about 30 minutes, turn the oven off and let it cool in the oven, then rinse with water (not soap). Seasoning the pot in this way helps with the release of the loaf. Alternatively, line it with foil.
Some potters sell glazed stoneware pots for flower pot bread, and they work fine, too. But I would avoid ordinary glazed pots as the glaze may be lead based which could leach into food.
Hope this helps,
Tess
Thank you Tess for responding so soon. Right after I sent the question to you, I found a site that said that to find out which cans are steel, and which are aluminum; to just use our refrigerator magnet! The steel will be attracted to the magnet and the aluminum will not!! So now, we can know which cans are safe; I assume??
this is a good pumpkin bread recipe without the raisins and always add extra spices also. I freeze when cool wrapped in foil and plastic wrap great tasting later after everything has melded together
My
My grandma made brown bread in a can! It was delicious! thanks to her and my mom i know how to garden and can and cook from scratch including making soap and rendering lard! At the time all i did was complain… Now I am so thankful. this year taught one son to can applesauce we had fun and canned 40 qts.
I bake a holiday bread in coffee cans every year, but with coffee companies going to plastic, does anyone have any recommendations on where to find cans? Have you gone to bread loaf pans instead? Please help!
Arlene, Walmart sells their generic coffee in cans. Also, Choc full o’ nuts.
And since both Walmart and CFON coffee is so horrible, simply throw out the contents of the can then proceed with baking. No need to serve delicious bread with dreadful coffee. 🙂
Save the coffee to use for other things. Just Google “uses for coffee grounds” and you will get lots of hits teaching you the reasons to NOT throw out those grounds. 🙂
Funny, GV brand coffee tastes just fine to me….
I have seen a few recipes like this and was wondering I it would work the same in a glass mason jar? I have been making small cakes in jars and would love to try bread too!!
I have been baking my banana bread in coffee cans for years. The problem now is the coffee cans have a lip on them so they won;t work. The coffee cans at the Dollar General store work really well.
Can’t you use a can opener and take them off?
Be aware that some cans contain plastic liners (BPA) or clear plastic coating. These plastics will fuse into your food if you head them up.
How do you get the bread out? Do you spray the inside of can with something? What do you do so the bread does not break when taking it out?
Thanks!
Does the bread have a coffee smell/taste to it?
Does anyone have a recipe for the brown bread that is made in a can. It has molasses, I think, and we always ate it at the same time as Boston baked beans.
Sue, did you get a recipe yet? I have one that my Mom made all the time. She was from Worcester, MA. I’ll be glad to share it, just email me at holly4shelfreliance@gmail.com with Brown bread recipe in the subject line.
Besides the BPA found in the liner of the cans, the cheap, thin aluminum posses its own health risks. I would stay away from baking out of anything not manufactured to bake/cook out of unless it is a survival situation!
My mother has been baking bread in larger round cans for many decades. I believe she is still using the same cans she was using at least 40 years ago (probably thousands of loaves in the same cans). It became known as circle bread to freinds and family. There is a toxic liner in many cans, and one way to remove it would be to put the cans in a large outdoor fire, or indoors in your woodstove or fireplace, and burn it out, then scrub thoroughly with steel wool and then wash with soap and water. She is 90 yrs. old, and her “Circle” bread is still a big hit!
Bisphenol A (BPA) is also present in the thermal receipts you get at any store now. When you touch these receipts you get a plentiful amount of Bisphenol A (BPA) that you will in turn touch your food, mouth, shake hands, and can be absorbed through your skin!
This link talks about it.
http://greensource.construction.com/news/2011/01/110105bisphenol-A.asp
Is it time for or has someone already come up with a baking container that’s been tested unbiasly. I’d rather have no doubts concerning health issues using a coffee can shaped container to bake bread. This no crust, round bread web page has me craving for a slice of warn bread with a little butter, dunked in whole milk. That’s it! Where’s the nearest coffee can?
you can remove the inside lip of the coffee can with a can opener. and you can substitute an equal amount of honey for the sugar. in such a small amount, it won’t make a difference. Usually, if you use 1 c of sugar, you sub 3/4 c honey. I am thinking I will use this bread for breakfast rounds. my husband likes his bread made into texas toast, then put together with eggs and meat to make a breakfast sandwich. I think round will be interesting. Also, I will try ww instead of white for a more healthy choice.
We use to do the same thing in a restaurant I worked at but used a clay flower pot instead. Many cans do have a special lining in them which can not only ruin the taste but be harmful.
My suggestion is to use a “Pullman Loaf Pan” (google it for more info). It’s a lidded loaf pan, so your bread bakes in an enclosed container — producing little to no crust. It works the same way as a coffee can, except it’s manufactured specifically for baking so you know it’s safe. The only other difference is that your bread will be square, not round. Hope this helps!
I have a 3 lb coffee can instead of a 1 lb… can you use that and bake all of the bread in one can??
Thanks, Angie
Hi Angie,
Sure, why not! You could even double the recipe and get a large loaf if you wanted. Remember to make sure that the plastic strip inside the can is removed before you bake with it.
Thanks,
Tess
you can also bake in canning jars. When done baking, put a clean hot lid and screw band on right away. They will seal and keep for months. Nice to have dessert in your stash!!!
Do the Wal-Mart coffee (cans) contain BPH…does anybody know…
My family has used coffee cans to bake banana bread for decades. I’ve used mine so much that the lids for my cans are now split on the sides. I’ve looked everywhere for replacement lids to no avail. Not on Amazon, not on ebay, not anywhere on the internet searches I’ve done…Any ideas?
I’m in talks with a mfg to produce “coffee can” baking canisters made specifically for baking without the harmful coatings. My questions are: What would you be willing to pay? I’m thinking of selling in groups of 3. The CAD fee and the set up fee, so far are running $350 combined. That’s without the cost of materials/shipping. Also, what would you prefer to have it made out of? Steel? Stainless steel? A nonhazardous stick coating? Aluminum?
Have made this bread for ages but my old lids are in shreds! The cans could probably use replacing too. Do you know of any sources or reasonable substitutions?
I recently discovered these cans made specifically for bread:
https://mjangelfoodbakery.com.
After a concentrated search re coffee cans and/or substitutes for baking, I discovered these cans on amazon.com. They are heavier & thicker* than our beloved older coffee cans and I have needed to adapt baking times for my original recipes. The only thing missing are the rings from the coffee cans that I loved for visual interest and parallel slicing guides.
The can’s website has a growing list of recipes, with quantity adaptations.
*These cans will not be acquiring any dings … but they could give some!
I saw someplace that walmart and target both sell stainless steel canister sets. Some where around $22 at Walmart. Think these would work?
I recently made my coffee can bread recipe in a 3 pound metal can we bought of green beans. It had some sort of coating inside. After reading all the comments, I am concerned about safety. It did a beautiful job. I baked the bread almost an hour. It was delicious. I agree that I would like to use a container that is safe for baking. I will check out some of your suggestions. Thank you.