Originally published March 12, 2014. It took about 45 minutes to bake. The loaf didn't expand significantly. Irish Soda Bread is a simple rustic bread made with the ingredients in any Irish farmhouse—flour, salt, baking soda, and buttermilk. We tried it with butter, peanut butter, honey, and sharp Cheddar. We found that depending on the yogurt used, you may need to work the dough a little more than you expect or you may even need to add a few tablespoons or even up to 1/2 cup more yogurt. Much to my surprise, though, when I sliced the loaf, a moist yet dense, nutty, heavenly slice of bread revealed itself! Tried today again (this is my favorite soda bread recipe) with pecans and raisins. I chose to make one large free-form loaf, and it baked perfectly through to the center. Lightly grease a baking tray. Let's check the baking soda: Add 1/4 teaspoon vinegar to 1/2 cup hot water. Thanks! For more information on our cookies and changing your settings, click, Get our latest recipes, competitions and cookbook news straight to your inbox every week, Get our latest recipes straight to your inbox every week, — Justin Gellatly, Louise Gellatly, and Matthew Jones —, — Genevieve Halbert - The Happy Foodie Team —, My Kitchen Table: 100 Sweet Treats and Puds, (½ pint) buttermilk or 150ml (¼ pint) milk and 150ml (¼ pint) natural yoghurt, mixed. We are curious about your version of soda bread, please let us know. Absolutely, almonds or pecans would work. Photo © 2013, Mild vegetable oil, for the baking sheet or pan, Scant 4 cups whole-wheat flour (1 lb), plus more for the work surface, 1 tablespoon demerara or light brown sugar, 2 to 2 1/2 cups plain full-fat or low-fat. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/270927/irish-soda-bread-with-buttermilk This Soda Bread is really versatile and can be customized to your taste. Rest assured, we test each of our recipes and we have a team of editors on each recipe, so this sorta oops is a rarity. Irish Soda Bread is now ready. This Irish soda bread is very close to traditional with the exception of using pantry-friendly yogurt instead of buttermilk. It also includes whole-wheat flour and walnuts and has incredible flavor, keeps well, and goes with everything from soup to jam. Hello Beth: I studied with Darina Allen — you can’t get more Irish than that! In the morning with a cup of coffee. Efkaristo. Try it toasted for breakfast topped with butter and marmalade, honey, jam or cream cheese and sliced strawberries. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, then turn the bread upside-down and continue baking for 10–15 minutes or until the bread sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. Still, it's not as sweet as many American soda breads; chewy and light, most of its sweetness comes from its currants, and a crackly-crunchy sugar crust. I used European-style whole-milk yogurt and made sure the brown sugar and baking soda were mixed in well. This recipe is for a plain white soda bread so it's a great recipe to use as a base and then adapt. Too, I’m wondering if you could add some softened mashed dates, since I dearly love date nut breads. (I personally still catch myself daydreaming about the yogurt with honey I enjoyed in Santorini more than two decades ago…) But when it comes to using yogurt in this recipe, we simply found Greek yogurt to be too thick for this recipe. Please note that if you use sunflower seeds, they will get a greenish/bluish hue after a few hours. The dough will be a shaggy mess, but bring the ingredients together as best you can, being careful not to knead the dough as this bread benefits from being handled as little as possible. Be the first on your block to be in the know. I got a delicious, slightly sweet, slightly salty, nutty soda bread. Place the flour, salt and bicarbonate of soda in a large mixing bowl and stir with a wooden spoon to … It is also great for many meals and occasions. Thank you SO VERY MUCH for taking the time to share your experience with us. I especially think it would pair well with the Breakfast Cheese and the Concord Grape Jam. The most surprising aspect of this loaf is how moist it is, considering the fact that it doesn’t have any fat other than the yogurt (I used 2%) and walnuts. I believe the intention was to draw attention to the fact that the fat in the recipe is healthful fat from whole foods. Traditional Irish soda bread is made with flour, salt, baking soda and buttermilk, with no hint of sugary sweetness. I am curious to taste it with the walnuts. My dough never seemed soft, though, and it took more handling to bring it together than I would have liked. Soft and tender on the inside, with a hint of sweetness, the buttermilk delivers a subtle tang that is absolutely delicious. I feel like a kid at Xmas when I open the site and see what goodies you all have found, every day, and from soup to dessert, there is something that makes my mouth water. Real soda bread should only contain 4 ingredients: flour, buttermilk, salt, and of course baking soda. Unclear recipe. After I mixed in the yogurt, I noticed that a lot of flour still wasn't incorporated. Serve and enjoy. Stir in 2 cups yogurt and gently combine, mixing first with a whisk or wooden spoon and then switching to your hands, until a soft dough forms. Let us know what you think. Since mass-market buttermilk is thickened with active cultures, it's often said that plain yogurt makes an excellent substitute. Measure the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl. It’s the easiest bread I’ve ever made, great toasted for breakfast, great with Hungarian cauliflower soup and just a wonderful introduction to whole wheat breads. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and shape into a neat round about 18cm (7in) in diameter. Place all the walnuts in a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt, and mix well to ensure the baking soda is evenly dispersed. Email the grocery list for this recipe to: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and lightly oil either a baking sheet (if you prefer to make a free-form, traditional round loaf) or a loaf pan (if you’d rather a more contemporary rectangular loaf). Porridge oats can be added to give the bread more texture. We need to back up a minute before we get ahead of ourselves. Next time, I'll try mixing in some dried berries with the walnuts. Different yogurts have different moisture contents. Marilyn, you made our year, many thanks! I still feel that it could use a bit more liquid to allow for better incorporation and a more cohesive dough, but otherwise it was fantastic. Soda bread is a quick bread that uses buttermilk and baking soda (aka bread soda) as leavening agents, rather than yeast. We work really hard to earn and keep your trust and I’ll share your lovely acknowledgement with our entire team. This is a great recipe for Irish soda bread and is definitely something every cook should have in his or her arsenal as it's almost too easy. Based on the ingredients, I expected an overly dense bread that was one-dimensional in flavor. And the difference in flavor when soda bread's made with sweet milk rather than buttermilk doesn't seem to … Brown bread: For a traditional Irish soda bread make the loaf with wholewheat flour and add in 1/4 cup of cracked wheat. Writing from Athens Greece where all yoghourt is ‘greek’, why do you specify non-greek yoghourt? salt, baking powder, white vinegar, raisins, sugar, butter, baking soda and 4 more. Buttermilk and baking soda are the magic ingredients in this fabulous yeast-free bread that needs no time to rise, and gets gobbled up fast. I would enjoy eating this bread in the morning with a touch of jam. Adding seeds makes it kind of a multi grain bread. This is her intensive course. Soda bread is best eaten on the day of making. It’s divine plain or slathered with lightly salted butter or homemade jam. Registered office: 20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London, SW1V 2SA, UK, We use cookies on this site and by continuing to browse it you agree to sending us your cookies. Irish Soda Bread with Buttermilk and Raisins is a favorite St. Patrick’s Day tradition at our house. Also, thanks to the walnuts, this bread has plenty of great flavor and texture. What in the States is meant by greek yoghourt? The dough is sticky, and it doesn’t have the smooth “kneaded” appearance, but don’t fret—it bakes just fine. Blitz half the walnuts in a food processor until you have a coarse powder. Add in … I cooked it at 180°C (356°F) for the 50 minutes stated, which gave the crust a golden brown color. A classic Irish bread from Mary Berry. Place on the prepared baking tray and make a shallow cross in the top with a sharp knife. Leavened not by yeast but by the chemical reaction of basic baking soda with acidic buttermilk, the free form loaves are like dense biscuits with jagged, crisp crusts. This Irish soda bread recipe is my grandmother’s and has … To get the buttermilk consistency, add 1/4 cup of water for 3/4 cup of yogurt and whisk. For more information on our cookies and changing your settings, click here. In a bread basket over dinner. I'll take my hunk straight up with some salty butter. This bread relies solely on a reaction between an acid (yogurt) and a base (baking soda), so we should double-check that box of baking soda, which may or may not have been in your pantry since last year's 2-day holiday baking fandango. Just curious. And yes, that Paul knows what he’s talking about! Let the bread cool on a wire rack for about 30 minutes—if, that is, you can manage to keep your hands off it for that long. I used to make soda bread all the time (also with yogurt instead of buttermilk most of the time) but you’ve reminded me that I haven’t made any for absolutely ages. Soda bread with yogurt is best eaten freshly made – warm from the oven if possible – but any leftovers can be toasted and enjoyed the next day too. Enter your email address and get all of our updates sent to your inbox the moment they're posted. Alternatively you can use a 50/50 mixture of yogurt and milk in place of the buttermilk. If you’re going to bake it in the traditional round, form it into a ball, place it on the oiled baking sheet, and score a deep cross into the top using a sharp knife. A thick slice of Traditional Irish Soda Bread, a generous smear of butter, and a cup of strong tea makes almost everything better. And yet what our tester said remains true. ;). This recipe only uses a few ingredients and can be easily prepared in 15 to 20 minutes, with a cooking time of 39 minutes. Super easy. And, thick-sliced and buttered, made a very decadent ‘Texas Toast’. I would love to try the recipe again with some chopped prunes mixed in. My only negative comment is that the dryness of the dough made it difficult to bring together, which might frustrate someone not familiar with making soda bread. Mine was free-form and baked perfectly in 50 minutes. Please don’t be tempted to add another tablespoon or two of brown sugar. We always have oat milk in … You can experiment with … Easy, delicious, and versatile—this humble bread offers so much! During the mid 1800s the Irish were making so much soda bread that baking soda almost doubled in price! Cool on a wire rack. Aqiyl, they do indeed add a lot to the bread. This bread is so good. If you love Irish Soda Bread, why not try this healthier one? A keeper, for sure! I used a brand of Irish soda brown bread flour, which is available from a flour mill in Britain. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6. We keep full fat Greek yogurt, so that’s what I used and it worked just fine (I had to add a little extra because it’s a denser yogurt). Tip: You can use yogurt instead of buttermilk. I substituted 1/2 cup almond meal for the walnut meal just because I was low on walnuts. After the requisite time, you *tap* it to make sure it is completely hollow … and usually takes turning over the loaf and giving another 5+ minutes in the oven. The soda bread looks wonderful. Plus, it’s incredibly easy to make and seems to keep for a week without becoming stale or dry.–Wild at Heart. I might try using honey instead of brown sugar next time. Registered number: 861590 England. Adapted from Wild at Heart | The Hedgerow Cookbook | Pavilion, 2013, This Irish soda bread has a moist, nutty wheatiness with a dense, a subtle sweetness, and crunchy crust. Being a word person and not a numbers person, I made a gaffe in the number of ounces, which I’ve tweaked in the recipe. elenits, we usually LOVE Greek yogurt for its flavor and consistency, and yes, it’s the only yogurt we’ll eat plain. No? Soda bread is quick and easy to make, as it uses no yeast so does not have to rise. Am wondering if it would work as well if I soaked the buttermilk and flour together first (as in Peter Reinhart’s “Whole Grain Breads”, to neutralize the phytic acid, then proceed with the recipe? We appreciate more than words can say you taking the time to express such a lovely sentiment. 60 students from all over the world come together for this course (offered 4 times a year). The main reason is the buttermilk chemically reacts with the baking soda to make the bread rise. The buttermilk adds lovely flavor to your bread. I would make this bread again and found it easier and tastier than the soda bread I normally make. Attach it below. Hi Rosy, buttermilk or sour cream can usually be substituted for yogurt in baking recipes. Plain Yogurt. Thanks for all those lovely suggestions, Lisa! https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/213830/brennans-irish-soda-bread We children loved this special treat, and my uncle savored it too. It’s easier to mix in the wet ingredients with your hands than with a spatula or wooden spoon, but be warned: it’s really messy. You end up with a lot of the dough on your hands that you have to scrape off. The recipe works great as it is written with the baking time on the dime at 50 minutes. That's it!!! The yogurt adds some moisture to the bread, and I think it helps the bread from being too dense. We don’t prefer walnuts so I ground up pecans instead and they added a richness (and protein) that was lovely. She is the Julia Child of Ireland! Added chocolate chunks and pecans. We use cookies on this site and by continuing to browse it you agree to sending us your cookies. Please let us know how the buttermilk substitution turns out. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6. But fear not, the bread came out great and would go perfectly with cheese, soup, and marmalade. I guess the best way to get rid of the bitter taste is to use unsweetened almond milk or regular milk This would be a lot healthier (I would think) than the usual cake-y versions…my grandmother, who made the world’s best date nut bread, is probably frowning at me from the hereafter for such heresy. Greetings from Ireland and your website is an excellent resource that I will return to time and time again. I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical about this recipe at first. 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