The Englishman’s Easy Irish Soda Bread

Every year when St. Patrick’s Day approaches, I find myself frantically checking the shelves at Whole Foods looking for their delicious Irish Soda Bread.  Once the bread is found and purchased, I generally find myself devouring the loaf within a matter of a few days.  It’s that good.  Muldoon’s in Newport Beach also serves Irish Soda Bread when you order a meal there, but it’s a bit tricky to ask for some of their mini loaves to go, even though I have tried.

The Englishman has long heard of my love for the Irish Soda Bread, and this year decided to make his own homemade soda bread for us to enjoy (and to prevent me from spending ridiculous amounts of money buying loaves at Whole Foods).

He followed this recipe below from Simply Recipes almost to a T, and threw in a few changes of his own.  The result?  Well, let’s just say I won’t be spending my hard-earned dollars at Whole Foods anymore.

The Englishman’s Easy Irish Soda Bread (adapted from this recipe)

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

2 tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

4 tbsp butter

1 cup raisins

1 egg

3/4 cup buttermilk

1 cup fresh blueberries

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 425°. Whisk together 4 cups of flour, the sugar, salt, and baking soda into a large mixing bowl (we used our Kitchen Aid Mixer).

2. Fold the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal, then add in the raisins and blueberries.

3. Beat the egg and add it along with the buttermilk to the mixture and mix until the dough becomes tough.  Knead the dough in the bowl just long enough to form a rough ball. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and shape into a round loaf.

4. Transfer dough to a large, lightly greased skillet or pan and bake from 35-45 minutes.  Pull out from the oven, let it cool, dig in an enjoy!

This soda bread is best enjoyed with a warm pat of butter, some jam, or even as some nice french toast.  You should also plan on devouring this bread in a matter of days.  It’s just that good.

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