Irish Soda Bread

🥘 Ingredients

• Irish-style flour 276 g
• bread flour 150 g
• granulated sugar 37 g
• baking soda 1 tsp
• kosher salt 1 ½ tsp
• currants 95 g
• raisins (alternative) 99 g
• unsalted butter 57 g
• buttermilk 302 g
• egg 1 large
• whole wheat (alternative) 254 g
• all-purpose flour (alternative) 150 g

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly grease an 8" or 9" round cake pan .
2. 2

   In a medium-sized mixing bowl , whisk together the Irish-style flour , bread flour , granulated sugar , baking soda , kosher salt , and currants or raisins (alternative) .
3. 3

   Using a mixer , a pastry fork or blender, or your fingers, work in the unsalted butter until it's evenly distributed and no large chunks remain.
4. 4

   In a separate bowl (or in a measuring cup) whisk together the buttermilk and egg . Pour this mixture into the dry ingredients and mix to combine. The dough will be stiff; if it's too crumbly to squeeze together, add another tablespoon or two of buttermilk.
5. 5

   Knead the dough a couple of times to make sure it's holding together, then shape it into a ball. Flatten the ball slightly, and place the loaf in your pan. Use a sharp knife to cut a 1/2" deep cross in the loaf.
6. 6

   Bake the bread for about 45 to 55 minutes , until it's golden brown and a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the bread from the oven and brush the top with melted butter.
7. 7

   Store for about 2 days, well wrapped, at room temperature; freeze for longer storage (up to about a month).
8. 8

   Tip: Our Irish-style flour will result in a soda bread with superior flavor and texture. Substituting premium whole wheat or white whole wheat flour is fine, but you'll want to reduce the amount of whole wheat (alternative) to 2 1/4 cups and substitute the bread flour with all-purpose flour (alternative) .