I was in an Irish mood this weekend (I blame all the St. Patrick's Day decorations in hung throughout my neighborhood)... so when I stumbled across this recipe on King Arthur Flour's website, I couldn't resist.
PLUS, I had all of these ingredients in my kitchen already- so I had every excuse to bake a loaf of Irish Buttermilk Brown Bread!
Here are the simple ingredients I needed:
Flour...
Sugar...
Salt...
Baking soda...
Baking powder...
And dried buttermilk. (Apparently I've been living under a rock because I hadn't heard of this product before, but it has since changed my life!)
Meanwhile, in a separate bowl I combined water...
An egg and some melted butter. (Which looked totally gross until I whisked it together- it was much easier to look at after that!)
Per the instructions, I then created a well in the dry ingredients and poured in the wet ones.
After a quick stir, I had a mass of sticky, yummy dough on my hands.
Literally- after transferring the dough to a greased casserole dish my hands were covered in the sticky deliciousness!
After a quick brush of butter over the top (this butter is in addition to the butter called for in the recipe, FYI)... it was ready for the oven!
And in just over 30 minutes, I slid this lovely loaf from my oven!
When it had cooled a bit, I dumped it from the baking dish and promptly dug right in... talk about tasty! The bread has a slight sweetness to it and is wonderfully hearty- the perfect addition to a bowl of Irish stew!
If you'd like to try making this bread at your house, here's the recipe:
Irish Buttermilk Brown Bread
Ingredients:
4 cups King Arthur Whole Wheat Flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups water
1 large egg
1/4 cup melted butter or vegetable oil
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 1 1/2-quart baking dish. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, buttermilk powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the water, egg, and melted butter. Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the liquids. Stir together until blended and no dry spots remain; the dough will be soft and sticky. Scoop the dough into the prepared pan, mounding it in the center. Brush the top with some additional melted butter (I used about 1 tablespoon). FYI: Wait 5 minutes for liquid to be absorbed by the flour before baking. Bake the bread for 35 to 40 minutes, or until it tests done (a cake tester inserted into the center will come out clean.) Remove it from the oven, and serve warm.
If you DO make it, I highly recommend that you slather a tab of butter on a warm slice... and promptly shove it into your mouth as fast as possible- I promise you won't regret it!
Thanks for stopping by- I hope you have a great Wednesday!
