Irish Soda Bread

Irish Soda Bread

Adapted from Greyston Bakery Cookbook by Blue Heron Kitchen

            For those who celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and are looking for a great new Irish Soda Bread recipe, I’m excited to share this one with you. Get some great butter. Kerrygold would be a perfect choice for this, but any fresh butter will do.

With any soda bread recipe, technique is critical to its success. I’ve ruined soda breads by doing too much with the batter. This bread is a low maintenance relationship. Barely mix, touch or knead it, and it will fill your house with perfume and be a light and airy as a yeasted dough. But beware, this bread is meant to be eaten the day it’s made. The following day, it’s great heated or even better as toast. Of course, you can freeze the loaf, but it’s so fast and easy to make, this is one you’ll want to put together, un deux trois!

Everyone has their own tradition: raisins, currants, sweet, not sweet, caraway, not caraway, glazed, not glazed. (If you like it sweet, prepare a glaze with some sifted powdered sugar, a little warm water, some vanilla extract, if you like, and a squeeze of lemon juice. It's not traditional, but many people enjoy it this way. A glaze will help to preserve the loaf ... some.)

I like currants and I like caraway, so in my home, this is my ultimate Irish Soda Bread. Omit the caraway seeds or exchange the currants for raisins. Follow your leprechaun.

Make sure your egg, butter and buttermilk are at room temperature. Cold will shock the rise. This loaf wants minimal handling and a brief encounter before you slash your traditional “X” and pop it into the oven.

Ingredients:

3 c. sifted (or lightly scooped) all-purpose, unbleached flour

1 ½ tsp. baking soda

1 ½ tsp. aluminum-free baking powder (try Rumford’s)

½ tsp. kosher salt

2 oz. (1/2 stick) lightly salted (or unsalted) butter, cut into ¼” cubes, softened

¾ c. currants (raisins, if you prefer, but currants are better)

1 Tbsp. caraway seeds

1 egg, size large, room temperature

1 c. buttermilk, room temperature, measured into a 2 c. or larger liquid measure cup

2 Tbsp. honey

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350º F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper

Oven rack to center.

Whisk together all dry ingredients.

With your fingers, work butter into the dry ingredients until it is evenly distributed and resembles coarse cornmeal. (It’s okay if there are some larger lumps. Less mixing is better.)

With a wooden spoon, stir in currants and caraway seeds.

Into the measuring cup with your buttermilk, crack the egg and add the honey. Mix wet ingredients together, using a fork or a small whisk.

Add wet to dry and mix until JUST moistened. DO NOT OVERMIX.

Turn onto a lightly floured board and form into a smooth, round ball. Remember, the less you mess, the lighter and more tender this loaf will be.

Shape into a fairly high, round ball and place on prepared baking sheet (you can butter the sheet if you don’t have parchment paper).

Using a sharp knife, slash a traditional “x”, vertically and horizontally, about 4 inches long and ½ inch deep.

Bake at 350º for about 45-55 minutes. Loaf is done when it is well-browned on both top and bottom. Don’t over bake,

Cool for about 20 minutes. Slice and serve with butter. (Kerrygold!)

This is best eaten the day it is made, but you’ll enjoy it warmed or toasted the day(s) after.

Irish soda bread is, for most, once a year, so double your recipe ... and your fun!

Erin go bragh, top 'o the morning, the rest of the day; and a Happy St. Patrick's Day to all.

peace and love,

jane