One of the great joys of Dutch oven cooking, and all cooking and baking really, is the sharing of favorite recipes. This month’s featured recipe is for Irish Soda Bread shared with us by our good friends, and amazing bread bakers, Scott and Marie Nicholson of Montana. A slather of soft butter and some honey or homemade jam on a hearty slice of this wonderfully flavorful bread and you’ve got a reason to relax and smile. Enjoy!
PRO TIP
To help with even cooking/baking rotate the Dutch oven and the lid a quarter-turn in opposite directions every 15-20 minutes, or so.
TOOL TIP:
Long Handled Serving Utensils are a must – look for utensils made out of high-temperature silicone or wood. Plastic utensils can melt and metal utensils can scratch your layer of seasoning, making cleaning more difficult.
HOW TO
Clean your Dutch oven
It is important to clean your Dutch oven after each use. If you used a liner, this process can be fairly simple and quick – just wipe out your Dutch oven with a paper towel and add a light coating of oil (to the lid as well). If you didn’t use a liner, and while the Dutch oven is still warm, scrape it out with a plastic scraper (so you don’t damage your layer of seasoning) and then like above add a light coating of oil. It is not recommended to use soap and water to clean your Dutch oven as this will degrade your seasoning layer.
RECIPE
IRISH SODA BREAD
Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons white sugar
½ cup raisins (Really Good Option: soak the raisins in Irish whiskey for 1-2 hours, drain and add to mixture per instructions; sip the whiskey while the bread is baking)
1 egg, beaten
1 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons honey
Technique:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a cast-iron skillet. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda and sugar. Toss the raisins with the flour mixture until coated. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the egg, buttermilk, melted butter and honey. Stir until all of the dry ingredients are absorbed. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for a few quick turns just to even out the dough. Handle the dough as little as possible. Pat into a flat circle, and place into the prepared pan. Bake the bread for 40 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are golden.
Dutch oven Directions
We bake this loaf in our size 8 Dutch oven with an ungreased liner. To get 350 degrees F you will need 16 briquettes, 11 on top and 5 underneath.
Want to download this and print? CLICK HERE for the one-page document.