It's St. Patrick's day on Saturday, and as I'm genetically 50% Irish I feel I would be highly remiss if I didn't share something of my heritage with you. I love all things Irish - I was extremely lucky growing up and got to visit Ireland every summer. My boyfriend D says I can spot an Irish flag from any distance (For some reason he finds this odd - he's never been and therefore doesn't understand how wonderful a country Ireland is), and the sound of an Irish accent always makes me smile.
I debated just what to share - there's the picture of me in the leprechaun hat (I decided that would most likely cause permanent damage to your retinas given the hat came complete with a red beard), but then remembered this recipe for brown bread that is quite similar to one my grandmother used to make (and still does) whenever I visit her in Dublin.
This bread is lovely served with plain cream cheese and lox, or even toasted with peanut butter.
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| Irish brown bread with Cream cheese and Lox |
Irish Brown Bread
Fresh brown bread was always a staple in my grandmother's house whenever I visited her in Dublin.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 tbsp. wheat bran
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 3/4 to 2 cups buttermilk*
Instructions
* If you don't have buttermilk you can make your own. Pour 2 tbsp of lemon juice into a measuring cup. Fill to the 2 cup mark, and let sit for about 10 minutes until it's curdled.Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and grease a large loaf pan (I use a spray)In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients. Add the buttermilk, and stir to form a thick batter. Pour it into the prepared pan.Bake in the preheated oven for 1 to 1.5 hrs, or until the top is nicely browned. You’ll know the loaf is done when there is a hollow sound when you tap on the bottom of the pan. Remove the loaf from the pan and wrap it in a damp dish towel until cooled – this softens the crust (although it will still require a good bread knife)
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 1 loaf
