.
Brown
and white soda breads are
widely made in Ireland.
Originally
they were cooked in an
iron bastible or
pot
oven beside the open fire.
They
are
very fast to make and are best
eaten fresh.
.
Ingredients:
.
675g (1 1/2 cups) brown
wholemeal flour
450g (4 cups) white
flour
(flour preferably stone-ground)
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons bicarbonate of
soda, sieved
750-900g (3 1/4 - 4 cups)
buttermilk
.
BROWN BREAD
Mix together the dry
ingredients in a large bowl.
Make a well in the centre and add most of the buttermilk. Working from
the centre, mix it with your hands into a dough, adding more milk if
necessary.
The dough should be soft but not too sticky. Turn out onto a floured
board
and pat lightly into a round. Flatten slightly to about 5 cm / 2 inches
thick and place on a baking sheet. Mark with a deep cross and bake in a
preheated oven at 230 degrees C (450 degrees F, or gas mark 8) for 15 -
20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 200 degrees C (400 degrees F, or
gas
mark 6) and bake for a further 20 - 25 minutes or until the bread is
cooked
and sounds hollow when tapped.
SCONES
Flatten to 2 1/2 cm / 1 inch
thick round and
cut out scones with a cutter of knife. Bake for 30 minutes in a hot
oven
turning down the temperature after 15 minutes as for the bread.
Note: To make a richer soda
bread dough add 30g
fine oatmeal, 1 egg and 30g of butter to the mixture.
