Classic Irish Soda Bread
W H Y T H I S R E C I P E W O R K S
When developing our Irish soda bread recipe, our rst tests focused on our. A loaf made with all-purpose our produced a doughy, heavy bread with a thick crust. To soften the crumb, we added some cake our to the mix, and this made a di erence. With only the four basic ingredients of our, buttermilk, baking soda, and salt, our soda bread recipe was lacking in avor and still a little tough; we turned to sugar and butter. The sugar added avor without making the bread sweet and the butter softened the dough just enough with out making it overly rich.
I N G R E D I E N T S I N S T R U C T I O N S Y I E L D S 1 L O A F
3 cups bleached all-purpose flour, Fresh out of the oven, this bread is a great accompaniment to soups or stews, and plus more for work surface leftovers make ne toast. The variations following this recipe, with their avorful grains and additions, can stand alone. 1 cup cake flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar 1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Whisk 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda ours, sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt in large bowl. Work softened butter into dry ingredients with fork or ngertips until texture resembles coarse 1 ½ teaspoons cream of tartar crumbs. 1 ½ teaspoons table salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 2. Add buttermilk and stir with a fork just until dough begins to come together. Turn tablespoons softened + 1 out onto our-coated work surface; knead until dough just becomes cohesive and tablespoon melted) bumpy, 12 to 14 turns. (Do not knead until dough is smooth, or bread will be tough.)
1 ½ cups buttermilk 3. Pat dough into a round about 6 inches in diameter and 2 inches high; place on greased or parchment-lined baking sheet or in cast-iron pot, if using. Place the loaf on a cookie sheet and cut a cross shape into the top.
4. Bake until golden brown and a skewer inserted into center of loaf comes out clean or internal temperature reaches 180 degrees, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and brush with melted butter; cool to room temperature, 30 to 40 minutes.
Step-by-Step Proper Handling for a Proper Irish Bread 1. Mix the dough with a fork until it just comes together.
2. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead just until loose our gets incorporated; do not overknead.
3. Shape the dough into a six-inch round.
4. Place the loaf on a cookie sheet and cut a cross shape into the top.
5. For a golden crust that's thin and crisp, with a bit of a chew, bake in a cast-iron pan.