Soda Bread

At the weekend I suddenly decided I was going to make some bread. Now I don’t own a breadmaker, although that is something I would love to own, so I decided I would make some soda bread.  I learnt to make soda bread at school, when you go to school in Belfast it seems to be one of the first things that you learn in Home Economics, Domestic Science, Food Technology or whatever they call it these days.  Its lovely and simple to make, and has a distinctive taste, really nice. Its also a great way to use up sour milk.

One thing I did notice when getting the ingredients is that you do not seem to be able to buy buttermilk in supermarkets any more. Luckily this is not a problem but to me it did seem a bit strange.  Anyway here is the recipe, I would be interested to know if you try it and what you think.

Ingredients

• One and a half  pounds (6 cups)  of plain flour
• Half a pint (1 cup)  of buttermilk, sour milk or fresh milk – if fresh milk is used add 1 tsp cream of tartar to the dry ingredients
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

Mix the dry ingredients together in a basin and make a well in the centre. Add the milk in generous amounts, mixing with a wooden spoon until a thick dough is formed. The dough should be slack but not wet and the mixing done lightly and quickly. If  the dough seems stiff add a little more milk. With floured hands place on a lightly floured board and flatten into a circle about one and a half inches thick. Put onto a baking sheet and put a large cross on the top to ensure the heat goes though evenly.

Bake in a moderate oven 375 F, 190C, Gas 5 for about 40 minutes. Test the centre using a skewer to make sure its cooked.