I love Irish Soda bread…no really. I used to still make my mom buy me two loaves from the bakery at home every year; one to eat right away and one to freeze to enjoy at a later date. (Clearly Atkins is not part of my daily vocabulary)

This year I decided to jump the gun and actually try making it for myself! It’s actually pretty easy to make; provided you have buttermilk. To be honest, I made my first loaf on Sunday and forgot to take pictures! So when I got home from work today I thought another loaf would be good…this time I was most of the way through when I realized I didn’t have enough raisins! So naturally I added chocolate chips, why not? The final product was tasty, but I think from now on I’ll make the bread sans chocolate. I’m just a sucker for the original I guess. Good thing I have two loaves waiting for me…

Irish Soda Bread

-2 c. white flour

-1 c. whole wheat flour

-1 tspn. baking soda

-1 tspn. salt

-2 tbpn. butter

-1 1/2 c. buttermilk (I used low-fat)

-1/2 c. raisins (any kind, I prefer golden)

• Pre-heat oven to 400ºF
• Mix together the flours, baking soda and salt
• Make a little well in your dry ingredients then pour in the buttermilk and butter, mixing well
• On a floured surface, knead dough for ~3 minutes until it comes together
• Form into a round shape and take a knife to create the “x-mark”
• Lightly flour the top of the loaf
• Place on either greased cookie pan or on silicon baking mat (seriously recommend these)
• Bake approximately 50-60 minutes