Noreen Kinneys Irish Soda Bread Recipe Epicuriouscom Food

IRISH SODA BREAD WITH RAISINS AND CARAWAY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter heavy ovenproof 10- to 12-inch-diameter skillet with 2- to 2 1/2-inch-high sides. Whisk first 5 ingredients in large bowl to blend. Add butter; using fingertips, rub in until coarse crumbs form. Stir in raisins and caraway seeds. Whisk buttermilk and egg in medium bowl to blend. Add to dough; using wooden spoon, stir just until well incorporated (dough will be very sticky).
• Transfer dough to prepared skillet; smooth top, mounding slightly in center. Using small sharp knife dipped into flour, cut 1-inch-deep X in top center of dough. Bake until bread is cooked through and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool bread in skillet 10 minutes. Turn out onto rack and cool completely. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap tightly in foil; store at room temperature.)

BROWN SODA BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Butter 9x5x3-inch loaf pan. Combine first 8 ingredients in large bowl; mix well. Add butter; rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles fine meal. Stir in enough buttermilk to form soft dough. Transfer dough to prepared loaf pan. Bake until bread is dark brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Turn bread out onto rack. Turn right side up and cool on rack.

IRISH SODA BREAD WITH RAISINS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray 8-inch-diameter cake pan with nonstick spray. Whisk flour, 4 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in large bowl to blend. Add butter. Using fingertips, rub in until coarse meal forms. Make well in center of flour mixture. Add buttermilk. Gradually stir dry ingredients into milk to blend. Mix in raisins.
• Using floured hands, shape dough into ball. Transfer to prepared pan and flatten slightly (dough will not come to edges of pan). Sprinkle dough with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
• Bake bread until brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool bread in pan 10 minutes. Transfer to rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

THE BEST IRISH SODA BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line an 8-inch round cake pan with a large sheet of parchment paper, pressing it into the edges of the pan and leaving an overhang on 2 sides (the extra parchment will help you unmold the loaf later).
• Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl. Add the butter cubes to the flour mixture and toss to combine. Use a pastry blender or your fingertips to cut or rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in the currants and caraway seeds.
• Whisk the buttermilk and egg together in a separate bowl or liquid measuring cup. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the buttermilk mixture into the center. Use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to stir the mixture until it starts to come together in a shaggy mass.
• Lightly dust a work surface with flour. Turn the dough mixture out onto the floured surface and knead a few times to bring it together. Shape it into a domed disk. Place the dough into the prepared cake pan and cut a cross about 1/2-inch deep into the surface of the dough with a sharp knife. Bake until the top is puffed and lightly browned and a cake tester comes out clean, 60 to 75 minutes. Remove from the oven and use the parchment overhang to lift the bread from the pan. Place on a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with good Irish butter.

NOREEN KINNEY'S IRISH SODA BREAD

Steps:

• Adjust an oven rack to the center position and preheat the oven to 425°F. Coat a heavy baking sheet with vegetable cooking spray or line it with a silicone baking pan liner or aluminum foil.
• In a large bowl, stir together the all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour. Add the butter and work it into the dry ingredients with your fingertips until the fat particles are very fine. Stir in the baking soda, salt, sugar, wheat bran, oat bran, wheat germ, flaxseed, and sunflower seeds.
• Beat the egg lightly with a fork in a 2-cup glass measure. Add enough buttermilk to come to the 2-cup line and stir with the fork to combine well. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until the dough gathers into a thick, wet-looking mass.
• Sprinkle your work surface with whole wheat flour and scrape the dough onto it. Dust the dough with a bit more whole wheat flour. Pat the dough into a circular shape about 7 inches across and 2 inches high and transfer it to the prepared baking sheet. Don't be concerned about evenness-the loaf should look rustic. Make a cross-shaped indentation on top of the loaf going right to the edges. I use a plastic bench scraper and press it into the dough very gently; don't actually cut the dough. During baking the indentation expands, giving the top of the loaf an attractive pattern.
• Bake the bread for about 40 minutes, until it is well browned and sounds hollow when rapped on the bottom. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf should register 195° to 200°F. Cool the loaf on a wire cooling rack, and serve warm or at room temperature. Cut into quarters and slice each quarter with a sharp serrated knife. Delicious with butter.
• Storing:
• The loaf keeps well at room temperature, wrapped in plastic wrap, for 2 to 3 days. The entire loaf or quarters of it can also be frozen when completely cool. Wrap in plastic wrap, place in heavy-duty resealable plastic bags, and freeze for up to 2 weeks. Thaw completely before unwrapping. If desired, refresh the bread in a preheated 300°F oven for 10 minutes.

WHITE SODA BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Lightly flour baking sheet. Mix flour, caraway seeds, if using, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Mix in enough buttermilk to form moist clumps. Gather dough into ball. Turn out onto lightly flour surfaced and knead just until dough holds together, about 1 minute. Shape dough into 6-inch-diameter by 2-inch-high round. Place on prepared baking sheet. Cut 1-inch-deep X across top of bread, extending almost to edges. Bake until bread is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped on bottom, about 35 minutes. Transfer bread to rack and cool completely.

MRS. O'CALLAGHAN'S SODA BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray heavy baking sheet with nonstick spray. Whisk both flours, sugar, and baking soda in medium bowl to blend. Add margarine and cut in until margarine is reduced to pea-size pieces. Add buttermilk; stir until shaggy dough forms. Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface. Knead until dough comes together, about 10 turns. Shape dough into 7-inch round. Place dough on prepared baking sheet. Cut large X, 1/2 inch deep, in top of dough.
• Bake bread until deep brown and bottom sounds hollow when firmly tapped, about 40 minutes. Transfer bread to rack and cool completely.

DOWNEY'S SODA BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F with rack in middle.
• Blend flours, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, and butter in a large bowl with a pastry blender or your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. 3Stir in buttermilk and eggs until a smooth dough forms. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and divide into 3 pieces. Form each piece into a 16-inch-long log and arrange, evenly spaced, on a lightly floured baking sheet. Generously sprinkle with flour and cut 3 diagonal shallow slashes on each log with a very sharp knife.
• Bake 30 minutes, then reduce oven to 375°F and continue to bake until a wooden pick or skewer inserted into center of a loaf comes out clean, about 20 minutes.
• Transfer loaves to a rack to cool. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

IRISH SODA BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 40 degrees F; line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together buttermilk, egg, and baking soda; set aside.
• Fit a food processor with the metal blade, and process the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until just combined, about 5 seconds; add butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal, another 15 to 20 seconds.
• Transfer mixture to a large bowl and stir in raisins and caraway; make a well in the center of the dough and pour in the buttermilk mixture.
• Combine, with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, until a wet dough forms; divide in two equal portions.
• On a floured work surface, form each portion into a round loaf, about 5 inches in diameter (actually it will be a gloppy mess).
• Place each round on the prepared baking sheet, leaving several inches between loaves and sides of pan to allow for spreading.
• Using a sharp knife or a pastry cutter, cut each round into 5 equal wedges (known as scoring); sprinkle with flour to give the loaves a "rustic" look.
• Bake for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 375 degrees F and continue baking until loaves are golden brown on the top and bottom, about 15 to 20 minutes more.
• A toothpick inserted should come out clean; cool on wire racks and serve either warm or room temperature.