Ingredients
4 cup unbleached flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 tsp cardamom
1/4 cup butter
1 egg, at room temperature
1 3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 1/2 cup currants
Directions
Cut this crusty bread in wedges to serve. Add two teaspoons grate
lemon peel to complement the flavor of the currants.
In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients. Cut in the butter
with a pastry blender or work it in with your finger. Mix the egg and
buttermilk together and then add this mixture to the dry ingredients.
Stir until well blended. Add the currants and stir the mixture well.
Turn out on a floured surface and knead gently for 3 minutes or until
the dough is smooth. Divide the dough into two pieces, shaping each
into a round loaf.
Place each in a greased 8 inch cake or pie pan,pressing it down until
the dough fills the pan. Use a sharp knife to cut a 1/2 inch deep
cross on top of each loaf. Bake in a preheated 375 F oven for about
40 minutes or until the bread sounds hollow when you thump it. Turn
out on a wire rack to cool. Do not cut for about 4 hours. Makes 2
loaves.
Origin: Hearth and Home Companion Shared by: Sharon Stevens
Servings: 2 servings
Saint Patrick's Day Irish Soda Bread Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Beverages; Bread; Breads
The History of Recipes
It is possible to follow the history of written recipes way back into the distant past, certainly as far into history as early Egypt, and potentially, even further back. However, sadly, these ancient records were just basic pictorial instructions for food preparation.
In fact, the oldest recipe in existence, according to experts is a collection of stone tablets in the Sumerian language which recount the making of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making anyone who drank it feel wonderful and blissful. Progressing into The time of the roman empire 25BC a man called Apicius assembled a collection of scripts describing recipes cooked by his fellow Romans. In his publication, Apicius tells us how the meals were divided into appetizers, main course and desserts, a very modern way of dining. Aspicius also describes how the chefs of Roman times were skilled in the use of a wide range of spices and herbs, including some familiar names for example bay, mint and asafoetida. Later on, there are a couple of interesting recipe books which were published in the fourteenth century - a recipe book entitled `Forme of Cury`, and another called `Curye on Inglish`. Surprisingly, these two books are not about the spicy food that we all know today, but instead recipes for the types of food prepared for the rich and powerful of those days. Later on in the 1400s, people returning from the crusades brought back many new foods and herbs from the holy land, including spices such as parsley and basil. The introduction of these new foods and spices caused an explosion in publications on food, the majority of which are now in private libraries. For the centuries that followed, the powerful and rich houses tried to lay on the most extravagent meals, and consequentially chefs and their recipe collections were much in demand. Notwithstanding that, it wasn`t until the 19th century that fine cookery and cookery books became really popular. The Famous Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and Fannie Merritt Farmer in the US, dedicated the best years of their lives to collating, testing, and writing down recipes for their fellow cooks to enjoy. By the advent of the twentieth century, cook books were increasing in popularity mostly as a result of better eduction, leisure time and having more disposable income. The introduction of the TV gave us celebrity chefs and the demand for the accompanying recipe books. And that pretty much brings us to the present day and the invention of the internet, allowing everybody to search through massive numbers of recipes like those on this site. |
We hope you enjoy this Saint Patrick's Day Irish Soda Bread recipe.
