Dessert & Baked Goods » Irish Soda Bread
Dermot Quinn of Greenhills Bakery in Dorchester, MA, shares his Granny Murphy's long-protected Irish Soda Bread recipe. Classified as a quick-bread, it is leavened with baking soda (hence the name), and gets its moisture from low-fat buttermilk. Dermot mixes in plump raisins, but also suggests caraway (although he notes the Irish don't prefer caraway seeds), or other dried fruits. This recipe makes 4 loaves, and bakes perfectly when placed directly in the oven from the freezer. Save a couple of loaves for a future lazy weekend brunch.
Ingredients
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour + extra for work surface
- 3½ cups pastry flour
- 1 tbsp baking soda
- 1 tbsp salt
- 2½ tbsp cream of tartar
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 stick (4 oz) margarine
- ½ cup vegetable shortening
- 2 cups raisins, soaked in warm water for 20-60 minutes, then drained
- 3 cups low fat buttermilk + more if needed
- extra flour for dusting
- ½ cup caraway seeds (optional)
Special Equipment
- large mixing bowl
- sifter or mesh strainer
- pastry blender (bench scraper)
- foil
- four 7" round foil baking pans
How-to
- Preheat oven to 350º
- Sift flours, baking soda and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add sugar and cream of tartar and mix to integrate ingredients
- Cut in margarine and shortening with your hands (or use a fork or pastry blender), until the fat is in pea-sized pieces
- Pour in buttermilk (add more if dough is dry) and mix until it just comes together. The dough should be wet, but not gooey
- Add raisins (and caraway seeds, if using) and mix gently
- Remove dough to a floured board, and roll into one large log. Cut with a knife or bench scraper into 4 equal portions
- Roll each portion into a ball, and place into flour-dusted, 7” foil disposable rounds
- Slice a deep "X"” into the tops of each loaf with a knife or bench scraper, then dust the top of each loaf lightly with flour
- Bake 50-60 minutes, or until the bread has formed a golden crust and sounds hollow when tapped
- Serve sliced with butter or preserves
Note: If you don’t have a need for the 4 loaves this recipe yields, the dough bakes perfectly when placed directly from the freezer to the oven. Form dough ball and cut the “X” on top, place in foil baking round, then wrap tightly with plastic or foil and place in freezer bag. Store for up to 1 month. When ready to bake, remove from freezer and place in preheated oven. Add 20 minutes to the original baking time (bake for about 70 minutes)
Comments (3)
-
Posted Wednesday, March 17, 2010, at 4:09 pm by Sue:Looks so good! I'm going to "give it a go."
-
Posted Friday, March 12, 2010, at 2:22 pm by Zoe Brookes:Not only is the Irish bread delicious and flavorful, but served with the Irish butter...amazing!
-
Posted Thursday, March 11, 2010, at 8:10 pm by Carla & Anamelia Arriaga:I love to cook... but I've always been afraid of baking bread. Not anymore! this recipe looks super simple and i love that it barely requires any kneading. I'm a big fan of raisins so I'll be trying this recipe soon!
Add a Comment / Rate this Video
You must be logged in to comment!