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Soda bread
Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 8:08 am
by Northern Lass
Does anyone make this and have a recipe they can post please.
I had a go this weekend and I don't think I cooked them long enough.
I cooked at 200 c fan oven......but should have done 180 for a fan oven which is 200 conventional....
they browned too quick and the inside was still doughy....looked fantastick but ....not cooked.
I used Buttermilk but what I want to know is the ratio for using full cream milk and lemon so I don't have to use buttermilk as
finding it is difficult.
I have one ratio of
625 full cream to 125 ml lemon
could I use soured cream?...if so do I just use the quantity of soured cream instead of buttermilk

Re: Soda bread
Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 10:30 am
by gardener
My best recipe is direct from a hotel owner in Connemara...
Mix equal weights of wholemeal flour and white self-raising flour. Add a bit of salt. Mix together with milk that has gone off because the hotel fridge doesn't work and it is a warm summer.
I sometimes use plain yoghurt and milk mixed together (50/50 ish). That works fine. The idea is just that you need some acid to help activate the raising agent. The other day I baked a "healthy loaf" recipe from the paper and that had water and lemon juice with baking powder.
The main thing is to treat it like a scone, so don't knead it death. Like you say, fan 200°C is too hot, and it does seem to take a long time to cook. It should have a good crust and sounds a bit hollow like normal bread when it is done. In Ireland they rubbed a knob of butter over the top when they took it out of the oven, and left it in the middle of the cross to melt.
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 1:07 pm
by Northern Lass
Ok thanks
so I have just bought some lemon juice and got full fat milk
so on
340g wholemeal flour
340g strong white flour
1 and half tsp salt
45 g butter
1 tsp cracked black pepper
625 buttermilk
re that qty of buttermilk what can i use instead re using the lemon juice and full fat milk
it is the buttermilk I want to not have to buy
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 9:43 pm
by gardener
Northern Lass wrote:Ok thanks
so I have just bought some lemon juice and got full fat milk
so on
340g wholemeal flour
340g strong white flour
1 and half tsp salt
45 g butter
1 tsp cracked black pepper
625 buttermilk
re that qty of buttermilk what can i use instead re using the lemon juice and full fat milk
it is the buttermilk I want to not have to buy
Use 500 ml of milk plus 30 ml of lemon juice. Mix and leave to stand for 5 minutes. Then make up to 625 ml with extra milk.
That should work. Probably best if the milk is not straight from the fridge, sometimes it takes a long time to curdle if it is very cold.
Post a picture when you are done?
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 11:37 pm
by Rob
I drink a glass of buttermilk every day . In Holland it's a very popular drink.Very refreshing on a warm day. Karnemelk !!

Re: Soda bread
Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 8:07 am
by Northern Lass
Thanks Gardener
So 625 of full cream milk and 125 lemon ....that would be too much lemon would it?
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 10:44 am
by gardener
Northern Lass wrote:Thanks Gardener
So 625 of full cream milk and 125 lemon ....that would be too much lemon would it?
You want to end up with 625 ml of buttermilk. If you do the above then you will have 750 ml so just remember to throw some of it away.
It does sound like a lot of lemon to me though. See below:
"In a 1-cup measuring cup, add 1 Tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Top the lemon juice with skim, low fat or whole milk. Stir and let sit for two minutes. After two minutes, your milk is both acidic and curdled. If you need 2 cups of buttermilk, add 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar to the milk. Two tablespoons aren’t necessary."
http://joythebaker.com/2013/11/baking-1 ... bstitutes/
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 5:32 pm
by snoopysue
Rob wrote:I drink a glass of buttermilk every day . In Holland it's a very popular drink.Very refreshing on a warm day. Karnemelk !!

We have that in Denmark as well, it's called kærnemælk!
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2015 9:23 pm
by gardener
So, how'd it go?
(watching Great Irish Bake Off s1 ep 3)
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2015 11:22 pm
by peterd
how come none of the recipes have any bicarbonate of soda in them as if i remember right during the bread strike in the 70s my gran couldnt get yeast so used bicarb hence soda bread. or that where i thought it got its name ?
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Sat Sep 26, 2015 9:30 am
by Northern Lass
gardener wrote:So, how'd it go?
(watching Great Irish Bake Off s1 ep 3)
It went ok I followed your suggestion of the milk and lemon juice but didnt seem to curdle much?
I did the 625 qty 500 and 30 lemon then top to 625
Gardener can you post if you a min your full recipe for soda bread pls and what you do?
going to try bread today....did one yesterday and used baking powder instead of fast yeast....got them mixed up
wondered why it didnt rise..............

Re: Soda bread
Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2015 10:11 pm
by gardener
peterd wrote:how come none of the recipes have any bicarbonate of soda in them as if i remember right during the bread strike in the 70s my gran couldnt get yeast so used bicarb hence soda bread. or that where i thought it got its name ?
Yes, that is where the name comes from. Baking powder contains bicarb so it is a sort of soda bread too.
Mrs O'Toole's soda bread1 1/2 cups SR flour (
or plain flour plus 2 tsp baking powder)
1 1/2 cups wholemeal flour
generous pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups plain yogurt
Mix dry ingredients together. Mix milk and yogurt together. Mix into the flour using a knife until the mixture all holds together - may need slightly less than full amount of liquid, or possibly a drop more milk.
Butter a 20 cm diameter round tin, place dough in tin and press gently to fill the tin. Cut a deep cross for St Brigid.
Bake at 225°C (no fan) until deep golden brown, about 40 minutes.
Remove from oven, rub top with a knob of butter to remove any floury surface. Let rest of butter knob melt into the cross.
That's it

You could use 2 cups of everything for a deeper loaf.
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2015 10:13 pm
by gardener
And inside
Re: Soda bread
Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2015 10:25 pm
by mallosa
Mmmm...that lookes scrumptious

Re: Soda bread
Posted: Thu Oct 01, 2015 7:17 am
by Northern Lass
Looks great will try that thanks
some Q's though
I only have fan oven so bearing in mind discussion prev. what temp should I do ....200 fan was too hot prev....so 180?
how big are the cups you use?
and do you have to let the yoghurt and milk settle for 10 mins
and do you have to put dough into a tin?
could you just put on a baking tray and cook?