I always wanted to bake Irish Soda Bread. Is making bread using baking soda instead of yeast all it’s cracked out to be? Today, being St. Patrick’s Day, is probably the best time to try out this recipe. I’m guessing it’s also a great recipe to pull out the day after St. Patrick’s Day. It’s great hangover food . I’m not sure about the history behind this bread but I just had a slice and I feel like it’s a nice and light kind of snack that would not irritate the stomach and soothe a headache.

What makes this bread a hit with me is that it’s perfectly balanced between sweet and savory. On one side there is the sweetness of the sugar and the dried currants and on the other side there is the savory taste of sea salt and caraway seeds. Caraway seeds are definitely not used enough in baking. I don’t know if it’s a European thing, but I love caraway seeds in bread. There is always a loaf of caraway seed bread in a Polish bakery. Some people choose to leave out the currants and the caraway seeds but I think it’s what makes the bread so interesting flavor-wise. Not to mention delicious.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Irish Soda Bread (from The Model Bakery Cookbook by Karen Mitchell and Sarah Mitchell Hansen with Rick Rodgers)
2 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan and the top of the loaf
3 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. fine sea salt
3 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
½ cup dried currants
1 tsp. caraway seeds
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. buttermilk, as needed

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400F. Dust the bottom of an 8-inch round cake pan with flour.
Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into a large bowl. Add the butter and stir to coat with the flour mixture. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly, with some pea-size pieces of butter. Stir in the currants and caraway seeds. Stir in enough of the buttermilk to make moist, soft dough, being sure to moisten all of the dry bits on the bottom of the bowl. Knead in the bowl just a few times to be sure the dough comes together- this is not a smooth dough.
Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and shape into a ball. Sprinkle the top with at least 1 tbsp. flour to give the loaf a rustic look. Transfer to the prepared pan. Using a sharp knife, cut a shallow 4-inch wide X in the top of the dough. The X will open during baking and help the loaf bake more evenly.
Bake until the top is deep golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the pan. Let cool on a wire cooling rack for 5 to 10 minutes, and serve warm.