A Delicious Irish Soda Bread Recipe With Oats

This Irish soda bread recipe is very versatile.  You can play around with the flour ratio if you want, using all wholewheat flour or half and half white and brown flour. The more white flour you use the lighter the loaf.  You can also omit the oats completely too but I love the nuttiness that they add.  The soda bread is also nice sprinkled with sesame seeds or sunflower seeds before you put it in the oven.

Ingredients:
375g/13oz/3 cups of wholemeal flour
200g/7oz/2 cups of plain white flour
50g /2oz/2/3 of a cup of rolled oats
1 heaped teaspoon of baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
1 teaspoon of salt
450mls/¾ pint/2 cups of buttermilk or sour milk


Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6.

2. In a large baking dish, mix together the flours, oats, baking soda and salt.

3. Make a well in the centre and pour in the buttermilk.  Stir until mixed.  The dough will be soft and slightly wet.

4. Turn the mixture onto a floured surface, knead gently and shape into a round. 

5. Place the bread on a floured baking tray and score the top with a cross shape.

6. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes.  The bread should be golden brown and when turned over should sound hollow when you tap the base.

7. Leave to cool for an hour if you can (I usually manage to wait about 10 minutes!) and serve spread with lots of real butter.  


This was a favourite breakfast bread in our house on a Saturday morning served with soft boiled eggs.