Carbs & Irish Car Bombs – Irish Soda Bread

I’m a white mutt. There must be Irish in me somewhere. I give that part of my heritage credit for San Francisco’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade being my second favorite day of the year. (My first is Christmas Eve.) It’s the day my inner leprechaun comes roaring out in a not so subtle fake Irish accent. I indulge in a wee bit of brandy on the fine holiday and mix it with a touch of Baileys. Perhaps I down the Baileys/Brandy shot within half pint of Guinness, but that’s it an Irish Car Bomb after all and they’re tasty.

But, Parade Day is about far more than pounding a creamy, chocolaty Car Bomb before it curdles.  It’s my friends linking arms and singing songs we don’t know the lyrics to. It’s wearing green like it might go out of style and kissing the nose of an Irish Wolfhound.  It’s cute rugby boys, high fiving float riders, mystery filled coffee cups, and “cheersing” the moment with a cop!

This is the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, not a day for the faint of heart. Buy in, cheer with your friends, and get your green on. Just make sure you start with the both Paddy’s Day Cs. What are the two Cs? Carbs and Car Bombs. You definitely want to carbo load on a day like this.

I was unfortunately in Seattle for this year’s parade. But in San Francisco, the girls took an extra car bomb for me. Up in the Pacific Northwest, I baked Irish Soda Bread in honor of at least one Paddy’s Day C. Ahh, Parade Day. I love you.

I also love how this recipe is so inexpensive. It calls for two specialty ingredients (cake flour and Cream of Tartar), but see my two substitution suggestions to avoid the extra purchase.

St. Patrick’s Day Trivia Question: How much food coloring does it take Chicago to turn their river green?

Irish Soda Bread
from The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook
(with my small variations/substitutions)
Makes 1 Loaf

If you do not have a cast-iron skillet, the bread can be baked on a baking sheet, although the crust won’t be as crunchy. My mom and I used a cast-iron Dutch oven and next time I think we might try using a pizza stone.

Soda bread is best eaten on the day it is baked, but does keep covered and stored at room temperature for a couple of days. On the second day, I suggest warming it in the oven or microwave and serving it with a generous helping of butter.

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup cake flour
2 TBS sugar (plus 1 TBS sugar for sprinkling, optional)
1½ tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp cream of tartar
1 ½ tsp table salt
2 TBS unsalted butter, softened (plus 1 TBS melted butter for brushing on the top, optional)
1¾ cups buttermilk
1 quarter (25¢)
1 small piece wax paper

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Whisk the flours, 2 TBS sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the 2 TBS softened butter and rub it into the flour using your fingers until it is completely incorporated. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add 1½ cups of the buttermilk. Work the buttermilk into the flour mixture using a fork until the dough comes together in large clumps and there is no dry flour in the bottom of the bowl. You can keep adding up to ¼ cup more buttermilk, 1 TBS at a time, until all the loose flour is just moistened.

Wrap the quarter in the small piece of wax paper. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface.  Add the wax paper wrapped quarter to the dough and pat everything together to form a 6-inch round disk. The dough will be scrappy and uneven.

Place dough in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet. Score a deep cross, about 5 inches and ¾ inch deep, on the top of the loaf. Place in the oven. Bake until nicely browned and a knife inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from the oven. Brush with 1 TBS melted butter. Sprinkle with 1 TBS sugar. Let cool at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.

Whoever gets the quarter has good luck!

Recipe in print-friendly format