Happy St. Patrick's Day!!
Fiona sent me her Irish Soda bread recipe, and she said I could share it. It's from Cook's Illustrated-- enjoy!! It's addictive!
Irish Soda Bread From Cook’s
Illustrated
3 cups all purpose flour (I use King Arthur bread
flour)
1 cup plain cake flour (King Arthur or Swan’s Down both work
fine)
2 tablespoons sugar
1.5 teaspoons baking soda
1.5 teaspoons cream of tartar
1.5 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons sweet butter, softened, plus 2 tablespoons
melted to brush on the
crust when baked. Unsalted
KerryGold butter from Ireland is great. : )
1.5 – 2 cups of buttermilk - butter milk is best, but you
can fudge it with milk mixed with plain yogurt, about 1.5 c milk, ½ c plain
yogurt or sour cream – bread will be crustier, denser. I usually need the full 2
cups, but if it’s humid, a little less.
“Official” recipe:
Heat oven to 400F degrees. Whisk the flours, sugar, baking
soda, cream of tartar, & salt together in a large bowl.
Work the softened butter in with fork or fingertips until the
texture resembles coarse crumbs.
Add 1.5 c buttermilk and stir with fork or wooden spoon until
dough comes together. If dough is too dry, add more buttermilk.
Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface, and gently
knead just until the dough is cohesive and bumpy, 12 – 14 turns. Avoid over
kneading, as the bread will be tough.
Pat the dough into a round shape, place on a parchment lined
baking sheet. Score a cross in the top of the dough with a sharp
knife.
Bake until the loaf is golden brown and an inserted skewer
comes out clean, or internal temperature is 180F, about 40-45 minutes.
Remove loaf from oven, brush top with melted butter and cool
on wire rack.
Fiona’s recipe modifications:
Same ingredients, but I bake it in a cast iron Dutch oven.
Preheat Dutch oven in a 500F oven. Prepare bread dough while
oven heats. I usually need to use the full two cups of buttermilk, but in more
humid weather, a bit less. I knead the bread very gently in the bowl until it
takes on a cohesive form. If it’s sticky, I add a bit more flour until it
doesn’t stick to the bowl. I pat it into a nice roundish shape.
Take hot Dutch oven out very carefully, lift off lid and put
bread dough in – it won’t stick, don’t worry, but if you’d like to use some
parchment that’s fine too. *It’s easier to score it after plopping it into the
Dutch oven.
Carefully put lid back on and return to oven.
Lower temperature to 475 for 20 – 30 minutes. I play with this timing a
bit – depends on the oven.
Remove lid – bread should be light golden brown. Lower temp
to 425. Leave in oven with lid off for another 5 – 10 minutes until internal
temp is 180F, or deep golden brown. Remove from oven.
Use mitts and wooden spoon or spatula to carefully remove
bread from Dutch oven onto a wire rack to cool. It’s much easier to slice when
it’s cool, if you can wait.
I brush the crust with melted butter with some sugar and
almond extract mixed into it. Orange or vanilla extract is good too, and so is a
little sprinkle of ground cloves or whatever you like.
Bread freezes well!
1 comment:
As Coco's mother has Irish forebears....... she is downing a pint of Green Guinness Stout, dunking her Irish Soda Bread dog biscuits in her bowl of Irish stew and doing a Irish Jig at the same time!!! Too be sure to be sure !!!!!!!
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