Irish Soda Bread and Corned Beef and Cabbage

Cookbook Recipe #41

My brother went to Europe last year and Ireland was one of his stops and one of his favorites too. So, he got me an Irish cookbook for Christmas. I figured it would be appropriate to make something from this book for St. Patrick's Day. I decided to make Irish soda bread. Since yeast freaks me out, this bread seemed perfect because it does not call for it. Did you know that there are fairies in soda bread? I thought it was funny when I was reading the recipe and it said that you cut a cross across the bread to let the fairies out.The bread came out really good. It could have stayed in the oven a little longer I think, but for my first try it was good. And it paired very nice with the corned beef, cabbage and red potatoes. For the corned beef, I always make mine in a large roasting oven because then there is plenty of room for the cabbage and the potatoes. Phil always gets really excited for this dinner.

Irish Soda Bread
Recipe from Irish Traditional Cooking by Darina Allen

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 -1 3/4 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Sift dry ingredients into a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the bowl. Pour in 1 1/2 cups of the buttermilk.

Using one hand, stir in a full circle to mix in the flour from the sides of the bowl. Add more buttermilk if necessary.

When dough forms together, put on a floured surface. Knead for just a little bit. Form into a disk about 2 inches thick.

With a knife cut a cross completely across the dough, making sure to go down the sides as well.

Place on a baking sheet and bake 15 minutes. Turn down the temperature to 400 degrees and bake another 20-30 minutes.

Corned Beef and Cabbage

1 corned beef brisket with seasoning packet
1 head cabbage, slided into wedges
Baby red potatoes









Place corned beef in roasting oven. Pour up to one inch of water over corned beef. Add spice packet.

Cook on 250 for about 2 hours.

Add cabbage and red potatoes.

Cook an additional hour.

These recipes are linked on:  Foodie Friday, Show and Tell Saturday, Strut Your Stuff Saturday,  Kitchen Fun with my 3 Sons, Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Rediscovering Lost Arts From Our Mothers,  Mix it Up Mondays, Melt in your Mouth Mondays,  On the Menu Monday,  Show me Your Plaid Mondays