Bread Matters 03

Tonight's go. Same recipe as yesterday. 7.5 out of 10, maybe. Next time I'll go lighter with my 'cross cut' though.

Bread Matters 02

Attempt two.

I changed the recipe a bit to see if I could save on the expense of the buttermilk:

Ingredients
170g/6oz self-raising wholemeal flour
170g/6oz plain flour
50g Lightly salted butter
Half teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
290ml/half pint semi-skinned milk.

I gently melted the butter in a saucepan, whisked in the milk, allowed to cool a bit, and used in place of the buttermilk. As the butter contained salt I left out the added salt. The dough was 'wetter' than yesterdays and I found I needed to give the loaf an extra quarter of an hour in the oven. Taste pretty much the same I thought - another encouraging 7 out of 10.

Bread in the Blood!

My very first solo attempt at making soda bread. Not bad I thought, but then baking as a profession has been in my family for six generations, so I would of been greatly disappointed if it had all gone wrong. Something I'm definitely going to try again! Here's the recipe I used:

IRISH SODA BREAD
Preparation time less than 30 mins
Cooking time 20 to 30 mins

Ingredients
170g/6oz self-raising wholemeal flour
170g/6oz plain flour
Half tsp salt
Half tsp bicarbonate of soda
290ml/half pint buttermilk

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 400F/200C/Gas 6.
2. Tip the flours, salt and bicarbonate of soda into a large mixing bowl and stir.
3. Make a well in the centre and pour in the buttermilk, mixing quickly with a large fork to form a soft dough. (Depending upon the absorbency of the flour, you may need to add a little milk if the dough seems too stiff but it should not be too wet or sticky.)
4. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly.
5. Form into a round and flatten the dough slightly before placing on a lightly floured baking sheet.
6. Cut a cross on the top and bake for about 30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Cool on a wire rack.

I used a wooden spoon instead of a fork, and lightly floured a greased baking tray.