Reviewed: Nov. 24, 2009

This bread is good for what it is. Not a ton of flavor, but it soaked up my salty soup very well! I scaled the recipe to 3 servings to make 1 loaf. I flattened it to about an inch before cooking, which seemed to work great. I also drizzled it with a tablespoon or so of melted butter before baking, and brushed another tablespoon on halfway through.

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ONIOND

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

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Reviewed: Oct. 5, 2009

Just okay per my Irish hubby. This is a SUPER dense recipe, as are many Irish breads. I don't think I will be asked to make this one again.

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KIMALLI1

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Tampa, Florida, USA

Living In: Tallahassee, Florida, USA

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Reviewed: Sep. 15, 2009

YUMMY!! I am totally lovin' this recipe. I had tried a couple other soda bread recipes from this site and was really disappointed because they weren't anywhere CLOSE to what I was looking for. This one was!! It's not identical to my brother's recipe, but it is SUPER close, moist and dense with a wonderful hearty flavor. Would be fantastic with a hunk of cheese or a nice stew, and is great with some real butter. My son loved this bread too. I halved the recipe and made one large loaf, rounded and baked in a pie plate. I baked for 30 minutes at the recommended temperature then turned the heat off and let it sit in the oven another 10 minutes (it was already nicely browned, but I wanted to make sure the middle cooked through too). Seems to have worked perfectly! The bread is just fantastic, and easy to throw together. Thank you! :)

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SANDRA_92083

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Hiram, Georgia, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 31, 2009

This is by far the best Irish soda bread recipe I've tried. I've tried it with buttermilk, soured milk, and regular milk, and it turns out well with each. I do add about a half tablespoon of sugar to the dough to bring out the flavors more, but it's good the way the recipe is written also.

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Heather_in_VA

Cooking Level: Expert

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Reviewed: Jul. 18, 2009

I pretty much followed the recipe exactly. The bread is tasty, though quite dense, and needs to be eaten sooner rather than later - otherwise you lose that nice crusty exterior and soft interior. I must say that I didn't care for it so much with just plain butter - though it was great with jam and butter for a breakfast treat. Not sure why, but I needed to add considerably more liquid to the recipe in order to knead it, otherwise it was like working a pile of dust. As the recipe says - knead lightly! I made a few loaves that turned out great, then over-kneaded a few and they turned into tasty bricks!

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MuffinMan1on1DruryLn

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Reviewed: Jun. 25, 2009

Just got back from Ireland and wanted to hold onto our experience. I made this for a recipe exchange and to give a few loaves away to friends and everyone loved it.

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jstremer

Cooking Level: Beginning

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Reviewed: Jun. 20, 2009

Good, but not the same as what I had in Ireland. I'll try it again, though.

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senoramandi

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Reviewed: Apr. 2, 2009

ive never had real irish bread but i loved this recipe. i made it exact except i had no bread flour so i used all whole wheat. I would definitely make this again, perhaps into biscuits for easy serving (it was hard to cut) its a keeper!

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ms elizadeath

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Springfield, Massachusetts, USA

Living In: Concord, California, USA

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Reviewed: Mar. 26, 2009

I think the baking tempo is a bit high for this recipe. the crust was a bit too firm and I baked it for less thime than it required. That said, my son LOVED this and has requested it multiple times since.

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HEIDIVASS

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Reviewed: Mar. 24, 2009

Super easy to make. Flavor is lacking, but would be good with soup. Very thick, moist bread. Not enjoyed by my family, though.

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clubebmom

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Mar. 22, 2009

I've never had soda bread, but this is a great recipe for whole wheat bread. I used whole yogurt instead of buttermilk, and it didn't take as long to cook. Delicious! Browned very nicely, with nice crunchy crust. Very moist and dense.

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Kris

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Mar. 22, 2009

This was good right after baking. Next day, it was hard as a rock!. Gave it to the birds. Bottom line..bake it, and eat it!!

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BettyAnn

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Lombard, Illinois, USA

Living In: Huntley, Illinois, USA

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Reviewed: Mar. 19, 2009

5 star recipe!! This recipe is as good as money! We have made it 7 or 8 times! Can not keep it. Thank you for sharing!

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Darrol J. Unruh

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Buhler, Kansas, USA

Living In: Fredericktown, Missouri, USA

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Reviewed: Mar. 17, 2009

Heavy, chewy, and moist. I have never had the "real thing" but this is mighty good! Ugly on the outside though.

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Denise T.

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Reviewed: Mar. 17, 2009

Made this last night and it was so good! All dinner guests loved it and kept saying how good it was. I did use the bread flour - which I think helped a lot (rather than just substituting AP flour for it). I also used 1/2 skim milk with vinegar (buttermilk substitute) and 1/2 fat free plain yogurt. I also adjusted for high altitude and had to add a little more than 3 cups total of milk/yogurt (just FYI for those high altitude bakers out there). I only split it into 2 loaves, and for one of the loafs I also added some caraway seeds and raisins. Baked for 35 min (at 440) on a parchment-lined baking sheet and it was absolutely perfect. Very dense but chewy and hearty. Went perfectly with corned beef and cabbage. Highly recommend if you're looking for a great, not-too-sweet bread accompaniment for your meal. Will definitely make again!

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Becky

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

Living In: Chicago, Illinois, USA

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Reviewed: Mar. 2, 2009

I made this recipe yesterday and the only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because the consistency wasn't as crumbly as Irish bread...might be due to the flour though. I am thinking of getting some Irish flour online and it'll probably be perfect! Thank you so much!

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COLLEENPHELAN

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Reviewed: Feb. 13, 2009

I halved this recipe, but otherwise followed it exactly and it didn't rise at all. The dough was very sticky, not like a normal bread dough. I've never made a soda bread though, so I wasn't sure how moist the dough should be. It still tastes fine, but the texture of the finished bread is off and it can't really be used as sandwich bread. I'm really not sure why it didn't rise, but I doubt I'll use this recipe again.

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shellymayo

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Knoxville, Tennessee, USA

Living In: Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA

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Reviewed: Feb. 12, 2009

Wonderful recipe, absolutely takes me back to Ireland! I did substitute steel cut Irish oats for rolled oats and that gave it the authentic texture.

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yeloflower

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Nov. 22, 2008

cool chemistry recipe. requires only enough stirring to lightly mix ingredients. nice texture and mild flavor. went great with soup.

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Mrs. C.

Cooking Level: Beginning

Home Town: Salem, Oregon, USA

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Reviewed: Nov. 10, 2008

I was raised by an Irishman and never knew there was a whole wheat version of this bread. Smells like whole wheat french bread. Great with butter and honey or split and toasted with garlic butter. I think it will make a great base for creating variations. Quick and easy to make.

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