Irish Soda Bread
Easy traditional Irish soda bread, no yeast or kneading, simple ingredients mixed in a bowl. Serve warm with lots of butter!
Servings: 12 slices
Calories: 259kcal
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose, unbleached flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 4 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 2 cups buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425º. Sift dry ingredients -- flour, sugar, salt and baking soda -- into a large bowl.
- Use a pastry cutter or your fingertips to mix butter into flour mixture until it looks like coarse crumbs. Stir in raisins.
- Make a well in center of flour mixture and add the egg and buttermilk. Use a wooden spoon to mix the dough until just combined and difficult to stir. Dust your clean hands with a little flour and gently knead the dough just until it forms a rough ball. Transfer to a floured board and shape into a round ball with your hands.
- Transfer round dough to a lightly greased baking sheet. With a serrated knife, cut a ½-inch deep cross on top of dough. Bake in oven for about 40 minutes, until golden and bottom sounds hollow when tapped. Let cool briefly on a wire rack. Serve bread warm, sliced or toasted, with butter!
Video
Notes
- For the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, try cranberry orange soda bread. Swap out the raisins for dried cranberries and add the zest of one orange.
- Soda bread freezes beautifully, just wrap tightly in a freezer bag.
- Serve with lots of butter, maybe some jam, too. Any leftovers are great toasted for breakfast the next day.
Nutrition
Calories: 259kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 28mg | Sodium: 366mg | Potassium: 205mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 202IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 59mg | Iron: 2mg