I decided to try making this type of bread to accompany our St. Patrick's Day dinner of corned beef (with horseradish cream sauce) and cabbage and potatoes and carrots. I'm glad I did. This bread is very tasty!
Irish Soda Bread does not use yeast for rising. The dough rises from using baking soda and buttermilk.
The dough is particularly sticky, so keep your hands and a wood cutting board floured when handling the dough.
Ingredients: (makes one loaf of bread)
4 cups of bread flour, plus 1/4 cup more for dusting a cutting board and your fingers
1/4 cup of granulated sugar
1 tsp. of sea salt
1 tsp. of baking soda
6 tbsp. of butter (cut into 18 pieces), plus 1 tbsp. to grease the skillet
1 3/4 cups of cold buttermilk (naturally cultured)
1 extra large or jumbo egg, cold
1 cup of dried cranberries
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375˚F. Have a shelf in the center of the oven (top to bottom).
Generously grease the inside bottom of an 8” (diameter at the bottom) cast iron skillet with 1 tbsp. of butter.
Put the flour, sugar, salt and baking soda in an electric mixer bowl and mix on low speed for three minutes.
Increase the mixer speed to low/medium and slowly add the pieces of butter, then mix on low to medium speed for five minutes.
Add the cranberries and mix on low speed for one minute.
Whisk together the cold buttermilk and the cold egg in a 2 quart bowl, then add this mixture slowly into the flour mixture while mixing on medium speed. Mix only until the dough starts to come together. (The idea is that the acid content of the buttermilk will react chemically with the baking soda and create bubbles of carbon dioxide gas. You don't want to lose that gas as it has caused the dough to rise, so don't over mix the dough.)
Transfer the dough to a floured wood cutting board, flour your hands, and then shape the dough just until it forms into a round loaf. It should be shaggy. If it is too sticky to handle, dust it (and your hands) lightly with flour.
Transfer the dough to the buttered cast iron skillet, then use a sharp knife to score the top of the dough with a large and deep cross cut (+).
Bake the bread on the center shelf of the preheated oven at 375˚F for 60 minutes. It should be lightly golden on top.
Tap the top of the bread with a large spoon. It should sound hollow inside. If so, it is done baking. If not, then bake it for an additional five minutes.
Turn off the oven. Tip the loaf of bread from the skillet on to a wood cutting board. Transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool. Let it cool for one to two hours.
Use the bread within 2 days of making it, or you can refrigerate leftover bread, tightly covered with plastic wrap, for up to a week.
This bread is delicious plain or buttered or with any of many fruit preserve toppings. It is the perfect addition to the traditional St. Patrick's Day meal of corned beef and cabbage and potatoes and carrots.
Ice cold beer is a fine beverage for that meal, or serve any carbonated soft beverage to young people.
Enjoy!