It appears everyone has their favorite soda bread recipe. Some with
caraway seeds, some with raisins, some with both, some with neither.
The essential ingredients are flour, baking soda, salt, and
buttermilk. The acid in buttermilk reacts with the base of the
baking soda to provide the leavening for this quick bread. Soda
bread dries out quickly so is only good for a day or two. It is best
eaten freshly baked and warm or toasted.Note: Organic Ingredients
are recommended...INGREDIENTS:4 cups flour
2 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoon butter
1 cup raisins1/2 tablespoon caraway seeds
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups buttermilkMETHODS:Preheat oven to 425°. Sift together the
flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda into a large mixing bowl.Using a
pastry cutter or two knives, work butter into flour mixture until it
resembles coarse meal, then stir in raisins and caraway seeds.
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
stiff to stir. Dust hands with a little flour, then gently knead
dough in the bowl just long enough to form a rough ball. If the
dough is too sticky to work with, sprinkle in a little more flour.
Do not over knead! Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and
shape into a round loaf.
Transfer dough to a large, lightly greased cast-iron skillet or a
baking sheet. 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 bottom sounds hollow when tapped with a knife, about 35-
45 minutes. Check for doneness also by inserting a long, thin skewer
into the center. If it comes out clean, it's done.Transfer bread to
a rack to let cool briefly. Serve bread warm, at room temperature,
or sliced and toasted.Hint 1: If the top is getting too dark while
baking, tent the bread with some aluminum foil.Hint 2: If you use a
cast iron skillet to cook the bread in the oven, be very careful
when you take the pan out. It's easy to forget that the handle is
extremely hot. Cool the handle with an ice cube, or put a pot holder
over it.
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