irish soda bread

This recipe is by my friend Patsy Jamieson, the former food editor of Eating Well. It was originally published in Cooking Pleasures magazine and has become a tradition at our house this time of the year.

½ cup dried currants or raisins
½ cup hot black tea
2 teaspoons caraway seeds
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup whole wheat flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Heat the oven to 425°F. Spray a pie pan with cooking spray. Place the currants in a small bowl and pour enough hot tea over them to cover. Let stand 15 minutes to plump. Drain currants, pressing out excess moisture; discard tea. Crush the caraway seeds with a mortar and pestle or heavy saucepan to release their anise-like fragrance.

Whisk the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Stir in the currants and caraway seeds. Whisk the buttermilk, brown sugar and butter together in a glass measuring cup. Pour into the flour mixture and stir with a fork until all the ingredients are moistened.

Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface several times, form into a ball and place in the pie pan. Press the dough slightly to a height of 1½ inches. Dust the top lightly with flour. Make a small ½-inch deep crisscross slash in the dough with a serrated knife.

Bake 30 minutes or until the loaf is golden brown, sounds hollow when tapped and a skewer inserted in the bottom comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack 15 minutes. Serve warm.

Makes 1 loaf, about 12 slices