3 cup unbleached white flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) cold, sweet butter
2 cup raisins
1 egg
1/2 cup honey
1 cup buttermilk
Directions
Makes 1 large loaf.
Preheat oven to 350F.
Sift the flour, baking powder, soda and salt into a large mixing
bowl. Cut the butter into small pieces and add. Cut it into the flour
with a pastry blender until the mixture is the size of peas. Add the
raisins and toss to distribute evenly, using two forks.
Beat the egg in another bowl until very frothy. Beat in the honey.
When it is well blended, beat in the buttermilk.
Gradually pour the liquids into the flour, tossing all the while with
a fork so the mixture gets evenly moistened. Continue tossing lightly
with two forks until the batter comes together; it doesn't have to be
completely mixed and should be very rough and lumpy.
Butter a heavy skillet or casserole, 10 to 11 inches in diameter and
2 to 3 inches deep. Round is the traditional shape. Spoon batter out
into the pan and push it gently to fill the pan. It can mound up
somewhat in the middle. Bake at 350 F about an hour or until the
middle is set. Cut out a piece to test if necessary.
Cut into wedges and serve warm from the pan.
The Garden Way Bread Book From the collection of Jim Vorheis
Servings: 1 servings
Aggie's Irish Soda Bread Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Beverages; Bread; Breads; Irish
The History of Recipes
Experts have tracked the existance of recipes way back into ancient history, at least as far as ancient Egypt, and maybe further still. Interesting though that is, sadly, these early recipes were just simple hieroglyphic or cunieform instructions for preparing food.
Interestingly, the oldest recipe in existence, according to academics are a few clay tablets in Sumerian which recount the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making anyone who tried it feel exhilarated. Later on, in Roman times 25BC a man called Apicius created a collection of scripts describing recipes enjoyed by the Romans. In his works, he recounts how the meals were split into appetizers, main course and desserts, something we still use today. He also informs us how the cooks of his times were skilled in the use of a good variety of herbs and spices, including many that are still in use today like thyme, fennel and asafoetida. Closer to modern times, we have two interesting books which date from the 14th Century ; a cookery book published under the title `Forme of Cury`, and another titled `Curye on Inglish`. Despite their titles, these two books are not about the indian curry that is familiar to us all today, but instead accounts of the types of food served to the upper classes of that time. In the fifteenth century, knights returning from the crusades brought us many spices and herbs from Arab cooking, including basil and coriander. The introduction of these new culinary ideas created an increase in recipe books, most of which are now in private cookery archives. Like it or not, the introduction of television brought us cooking programs and the recipe books that accompanied them. And that neatly brings us to the present day and the invention of the internet, allowing everyone to access massive numbers of recipes such as those found on our web site. |
We hope you enjoy this Aggie's Irish Soda Bread recipe.
