Traditional Irish Soda Bread

A St. Patrick's Day tradition, this simple bread bakes up beautifully.  It's so easy--and goes so well with any meal--that it's worth making all year long. The best part--you don't have to wait for it to rise!

Filed under Breads, Holidays
Ingredients
4 cups flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups buttermilk

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Grease and flour a round cake pan.  In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt.  Gradually stir in the buttermilk until the dough comes together in a slightly sticky ball.  Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead gently a few times.  Form the dough into a ball and then press into the prepared pan so that the dough resembles a large disk.  The dough should reach the edges of the pan, but may spring back slightly. Cut an X into the dough with a sharp knife, about 1/4 of an inch deep.  Cover the pan of dough with another round cake pan turned upside down.  Bake for 30 minutes, covered, then remove the top pan and bake uncovered for about 10 minutes more or until the crust is dark golden brown.

Let's Dish
I've tried several recipes for Irish Soda Bread, and this is by far my favorite.  It bakes up into such a beautiful loaf that I can hardly believe it isn't a yeast bread.  And it's so incredibly easy, especially if you're impatient like me and don't want to wait around for the dough to rise.  Seriously, you can have a gorgeous loaf of homemade bread on the table in about an hour, from start to finish.  My family loves it too!  For some reason, I tend to only make it near St. Patrick's day, but it's so simple and delicious I really ought to make it more often. 

Who Dished It Up First
Adapted from Liz the Chef

Nutrition information and Weight Watchers points available at My Recipe Magic.