Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with a loaf of Irish Soda Bread

Happy St. Patrick’s Day. Originally a religious holiday, the day is now more commonly celebrated as a secular holiday filled with Irish foods and green beer. Hold the beer for me, and I’ll head straight for the corned beef, cabbage and this week’s recipe for Soda Bread.

My dear friend Leah makes this Soda Bread recipe, which is how I first tried it. She was searching for the perfect recipe, and her Bon Appetit magazine came with this loaf on the cover. The remarks below the title of the recipe say, “Might this be the ultimate soda bread recipe in all of Ireland?” That’s some high praise for a recipe.

This loaf is dense, slightly sweet and delicious. Spread some butter on a slice, or toast it slightly and add a bit of preserves. The loaf doesn’t last long, so share some with a friend. It would be a beautiful gift wrapped in parchment paper and tied with some baking twine.

Leah is Irish — her maiden name happens to be O’Callaghan — and she’s traveled to Ireland several times. Ireland is supposed to be gorgeous, and it’s on my list of places to go. Perhaps the people in Ireland will think I belong because of my red hair. I do have a bit of Irish blood, but it’s minimal.

However you celebrate this St. Patrick’s Day, I hope you enjoy it safely.

Mrs. O’Callaghan’s Soda Bread

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

3 cups all-purpose flour

3 cups whole wheat flour

½ cup (packed) brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

¼ cup (½ stick) chilled margarine or butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

2 cups buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. 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-sized 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 9-inch round (the round should be about 1-inch high). Place dough on prepared baking sheet. Cut large X, ½-inch deep, in top of dough, almost all the way to the edges of the round.

Bake bread in center of oven until deep brown and bottom sounds hollow when firmly tapped (a bamboo skewer inserted into the center of the bread should emerge clean without any stickiness or moistness) about 55-60 minutes. Transfer bread to rack and cool completely.

This story was originally published March 16, 2021 at 11:42 AM.