Irish Soda Bread

Every Thanksgiving, a whole herd of relatives arrive at my house- or rather, my parent's house. The distinction is still a bit fuzzy but it would definitely be impossible to fit the 35-40 people we have for Thanksgiving in my tiny city aparment, and even more impossible to cook a turkey in my little econo-oven that doesn't even fit two baking sheets!

My mom has seven siblings, of which she is the youngest, and I've grown up amid a zoo of a family, overflowing with cousins, aunts, uncles, second-cousins, not to mention boyfriends, girlfriends, friends in general; anyone is welcome on Thanksgiving.  Our Thanksgiving dinners are pretty traditional- if somewhat supersized. My mom cooks two large turkeys, one the night before and one Thanksgiving morning. We make pounds upon pounds of mashed potatoes that my dad boils in the pot that came with his deep fryer. And every relative brings a side dish, one of which is always Irish soda bread. As a child I was never interested in it, it seemed boring and to be truthful a bit bland. But as I got older my cousin and I discovered the deliciousness it created when combined with honey butter, and I loved the sweet honey and raisins combined with the creamy butter and the golden-brown crust of the bread. And on top of all that, it truly is a poor man's bread; all or nearly all of the ingredients are pantry staples.

This recipe doesn't have the rye or caraway commonly found in other Irish breads- truthfully I don't like the flavor. Also, if you are short on buttermilk, which I often am, you can combine one cup milk with one tbsp. white vinegar or lemon juice and let sit for five minutes. It will work in the bread nearly identically. 

Irish Soda Bread

Ingredients:

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 eggs

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 box raisins (to taste)

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl whip together eggs, buttermilk and oil. Combine the two bowls and stir until incorporated.

2. Knead the dough lightly to create a smooth loaf. Place the dough in a floured pie pan, cut an X shape in the top with a knife, and sprinkle the top of the loaf lightly with sugar.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until the loaf is golden brown. Serve with butter or honey butter.

(Pictures to come!)