Easy Irish Soda Bread

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Flavorful and hard to resist, this recipe for Easy Irish Soda Bread is incredibly simple to make and bakes in less than an hour.  It’s a cross between a cake and bread.  Each slice is filled with a delicious combination of raisins and bits of chocolate throughout, giving this Irish soda bread a subtle sweetness.

Try something new this St. Patrick’s Day and enjoy this tasteful bread that goes perfectly with a cup of coffee or a glass of milk.  It happens to be our favorite breakfast treat this time of year. 

 

Who doesn’t love Irish Soda Bread? 

I love the month of March.  It’s the month where the weather begins to warm up here in Charleston, and we see the first wonderful signs of spring.  Nature begins to bloom, and sunsets are gloriously brighter.

We also get to celebrate St. Patty’s Day, St. Joseph’s Day, and my birthday with delicious treats. 🙂

Every year, we enjoy making our St. Patrick’s day green chocolate bark, and our Italian cream puffs for St. Joseph.  And we can’t forget our boozy frozen grasshopper.

 

It’s the time of year when Irish soda bread is found selling in town markets and bakeries.  …and boy, how we look forward to it every year. 

Today, I’m excited to share this Easy Irish Soda Bread recipe with all of you! 

This bread is so delicious, you won’t need to add any butter or jam.  It’s that good.

Best of all,  there’s no downtime, no kneading, and no waiting to rise.  Just blend all the ingredients with a good whisk, divide the batter into 2 baking pans and bake for 45 to 55 minutes.   

It’s that easy!

 

Keep in mind, there are so many variations when making Irish soda bread.  Just like there are so many variations of our grandmother’s meatballs. 

Well, I have to tell you this recipe turned out terrific. 

I was inspired by a few recipes, and this one is slightly adapted from allrecipes, with a few additional ingredients of my own.   

 

 

 

HOW TO MAKE IRISH SODA BREAD…

5 Simple Steps to whip up this Easy Irish Soda Bread:

       1. First, in a small bowl, whisk all the liquid ingredients, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla extract.  

 

       2.  Second, blend all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  Then cut the butter into the flour, the same way we do when we make a pie crust or make our crumble bars.  You can do this with either a fork, your hands, or a pastry cutter.   

I prefer to use my hands and get the butter evenly incorporated into the flour, making the flour very soft and crumbly. 

        3.  Stir in the raisins and mini chocolate chips. 

        4.  Next, gradually pour the liquid into the large mixing bowl and whisk until all the dry ingredients are well incorporated.  I switched over from a whisk to a large wooden spoon when the mixture became too heavy to whisk any further.  

The dough will be very soft, sticky, and pliable. 

 

          5.  Spoon and divide the mixture into two round baking pans.  Spoon the mixture in the center of the pans.  Do not spread it.  Bake until crust is brown and when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Baking Notes and Tips…

• No need for any fancy equipment, just a good whisk, along with a large wooden spoon will do.

• This recipe yields 2 loaves of bread.

• It’s important to whisk the egg mixture into the flour mixture as best as you can.  Then use a large wooden spoon to help you finish incorporating all the flour into the dough.  The dough will be very thick, soft, and sticky. 

• I used two 8-inch baking pans.  But if you use smaller pans, like 7-inch round pans, they will bake higher. 

• These finished loaves of Irish soda bread are often dusted with powdered sugar. 

• As always, all ovens vary.  The best way to know if they are fully baked is when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

 

How to Store Irish Soda Bread?

This bread will stay fresh for up to 3 to 4 days if you store it tightly wrapped with clear wrap or in a zip-lock plastic bag, or air-tight container.  It freezes well for up to 1 month. 

 

With a few ingredients on hand, you can whip up this easy Irish soda bread as a quick option for a delicious breakfast the whole family will enjoy!  It’s even terrific as an afternoon snack. 

Give it a try    … and enjoy!! 

 

Finally, a few more delicious bread recipes for you…

Decadent Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Healthy Apple Cinnamon Bread

Best Zucchini Bread

 

Yield: 2 loaves of bread

Easy Irish Soda Bread

Print

Easy Irish Soda Bread is a delicious bread that's incredibly simple and bakes in less than an hour. It's a cross between a cake and bread. Each slice is filled with a flavorful combination of raisins and bits of chocolate throughout, making this Irish soda bread a terrific treat!

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 + 1/2 cups (337.5 grams) buttermilk - at room temperature
• 3 whole eggs - at room temperature
• 1 + 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 4 cups (480 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 + 1/4 cups (251 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 cup (113 grams, 1 stick) unsalted butter - sliced into pieces
• 1 + 1/2 cups (225 grams) raisins
• 1/4 cup (40 grams) mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
• powdered sugar, for dusting

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177C). Rearrange your racks in the oven to make sure there is one in the center.
2. Lightly spray two 8-inch round baking pans with cooking spray and dust with some flour, and set them aside.
3. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, vanilla extract, and three eggs. Set aside.
4. Next, in a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder.
5. Cut the butter into pieces and with a pastry cutter or with your hands work the butter into the flour mixture until the flour is nice and crumbly soft.
6. Stir in the raisins and mini chocolate chips and blend to combine.
7. Slowly pour the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture and whisk as you work to combine it all together. Then use a large wooden spoon to help blend it evenly. The dough mixture will be very soft and sticky.
8. Divide the batter evenly into the two prepared round baking pans. Do not spread it. The bread will rise as it bakes. Place both pans on the center rack in your preheated oven.
9. BAKE for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
10. Allow the loaves of bread to cool in their pans for 10 minutes. Then remove from pans, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
11. Dust with powdered sugar on top.
12. yields: 2 loaves

Nutrition Information:

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 231Total Fat: 6.4gCarbohydrates: 40.1gProtein: 4.6g

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Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 1 serving
Servings: 20
Amount per serving
Calories	231
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 6.4g	8%
Saturated Fat 3.7g	19%
Cholesterol 38mg	13%
Sodium 244mg	11%
Total Carbohydrate 40.1g	15%
Dietary Fiber 1.2g	4%
Total Sugars 18.6g
Protein 4.6g
Vitamin D 5mcg	27%
Calcium 51mg	4%
Iron 2mg	9%
Potassium 180mg	4%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calorie a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Have you tried this easy Irish soda bread?  If you do, please let us know and leave a comment with a star rating.  We’d greatly appreciate it. 

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Stay Healthy … and Happy Baking!   🙂 

Thanks for stopping by!  

 xo Anna and Liz