Since I’m not huge when it comes to celebrating Holidays I try to at least do some celebrating in the kitchen. I won’t decorate my house for Easter and I don’t dress in green on St. Patricks Day. My husband and I barely recognize Valentine’s Day. Other than Thanksgiving and Christmas we really don’t concern ourselves on Holidays. I do enjoy making traditional Holiday fare though, so I usually bust out some sort of treat around the given season. With St. Patrick’s Day on Saturday, I thought I would make up a few things in honor of the great Irish Holiday!
I started making Irish Soda Bread for St. Patrick’s Day about 4 years ago, back in college, when I first started cooking/baking. It was a giant round loaf made in a cast-iron skillet. I was living with my Grandma at the time and somehow we managed to tackle quite a bit of that between the two of us. Nowadays I probably make it more for the memory with my Grandma than for St. Patrick’s Day itself.
Irish Soda Bread is a traditional Irish bread that consists of flour, baking soda, buttermilk, and usually salt. It’s a very simple, plain bread that was often made in replacement of yeasted bread in part for its inexpensive ingredients. Americans have taken that bread and added non-traditional elements such as butter, eggs, sugar, and raisins. What Americans generally consider Irish Soda Bread is usually non-authentic and more of a cake. However, it is my favorite way of eating it : ) So non-authentic or not… it’s much better than the plain version!
If you’ve never had soda bread before, it’s kind of like a giant scone… Seriously. You cut the butter into the flour, then add the buttermilk and egg. Pretty much a scone, right?! A few other notes about soda bread- the signature “X” on the top of the loaf is absolutely necessary! It helps distribute the heat evenly while baking so that the center bakes through completely. So if you’re bread doesn’t cook through it could be because you didn’t score it deep enough. Also, if you decide to bake it on a cast-iron skillet, it may take longer and/or brown faster since cast iron takes longer to heat up than a baking sheet. Just keep these things in mind.
Irish Soda Bread
Ingredients:
- 4 cups flour
- ¼ cup of sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1½ teaspoon baking soda
- 4 Tbsp butter
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 large egg
- 1¾ cups buttermilk
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425°. Whisk together 4 cups of flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda into a large mixing bowl.
Using your (clean) fingers (or two knives or a pastry cutter), work the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles a coarse meal, then add in the raisins.
In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and egg. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the wet mixture. Mix until dough is just combined. Gently knead the dough on the dusted counter top just long enough to form a ball. If the dough is too sticky to work with, add in a little more flour. Do NOT over-knead!
Transfer dough to a large, lightly greased cast-iron skillet or a baking sheet. Using a serrated knife, score the top of dough about an inch and a half deep in an “X” shape. Bake until bread is golden, about 35-45 minutes. Check for doneness also by inserting a long, thin skewer into the center. If it comes out clean, it’s done.
Notes:
If you like your soda bread less sweet only use 2 Tb sugar. To change things up swap out the raisins for some currants, dried cherries, or any other of your favorite dried fruit!
