Soda Bread So Good, Even a Kitty Will Love It!

In my previous post, you saw our naughty little kitty on top of our refrigerator enjoying some fresh baked Irish Soda Bread!  One reader commented that the bread must be pretty good for a cat to love it -- and indeed it is delicious! 

With St. Patrick's Day quickly approaching, I thought it would be worth sharing the recipe, just in case anyone is looking to make their own this year. 

This recipe is pretty straight forward.  Both of my sons made it for their Creative Foods class and the flavor was outstanding! 

We followed the recipe exactly as written, using a cast iron skillet. It definitely needed a few extra minutes baking time to make sure it baked through.  Matt reminded me that we when we made it the last time, we deviated slightly from the recipe as written -- using a loaf pan rather than forming into a round and baking on a sheet.  The major difference is that with a loaf pan the bread keeps its shape and gets a little "taller."   

No matter how you make it -- beware of sneaky kitties who will try to steal a nibble!

Enjoy -- and please let me know how it works out for you!

 

 

Irish Soda Bread Recipe

Ingredients
4 to 41/2 cups flour
2 Tbsp sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 Tbsp butter
1 cup raisins
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 cups buttermilk

Method

1. Preheat oven to 425°. Sift together 4 cups of flour, thesugar, salt, and baking
soda into a large mixing bowl.

2. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, work butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal, then stir in raisins.

3. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add beaten egg and buttermilk to well and mix in with a wooden spoon until dough is too stiffto stir. Dust hands with a little flour, then gently knead dough in the bowljust long enough to form a rough ball. If the dough is too sticky to work with,add in some more flour. Do not over knead! Transfer dough to a lightly flouredsurface and shape into a round loaf.

4. Transfer dough to a large, lightly greased cast-iron skillet or a bakingsheet. Using a serrated knife, score top of dough about 1/2'' deep in an"X" shape. Transfer to oven and bake until bread is golden and bottomsounds hollow when tapped with a knife, about 35-45 minutes. (If you use a castiron pan, it may take a little longer as it takes longer for the pan to heat upthan a baking sheet.) Check for doneness also byinserting a long, thin skewer into the center. If it comes out clean, it'sdone.

Hint 1: If the top is getting too dark while baking, tent thebreadwith some aluminum foil.

Hint 2: If you use a cast iron skillet to cook thebread in the oven, be very careful when you take the pan out. It's easy toforget that the handle is extremely hot. Cool the handle with an ice cube, orput a pot holder over it.

Transfer bread to a rack to let cool briefly. Servebread warm, at room temperature, or sliced and toasted.