The secret name of this post is actually “Honey Oat Irish Soda Bread – aka the bread that broke my oven.”
But really…this is the last thing I baked in the oven that our new home came with. RIP crappy-brand-I-never-heard-of oven.
We always intended to eventually replace the kitchen appliances…in like 3 years though…not 1 month after moving into our home. But that’s the way the cookie crumbles sometimes, right?
The weekend baking routine started out well enough – I baked this bread as well as some Lucky Charm Treats on the stove top and was actually starting to prep some corn bread for our chili dinner when it happened. The kitchen was filled with smoked. I panicked – threw open the window to let the smoke out so not to set off the fire alarm. Switched off the oven and called for Jesse. He attempted turning the oven back on to see where the smoke was coming from – it was coming from the back panel (not a lingering breadcrumb, smoldering in the oven…I keep a tidy oven!). Then the sparks starting flying from the back electrical panel and the oven was promptly shut off again. The smoke cleared. And we said “to heck with it – we wanted new gas appliances anyways!”
And that was that.
I love Irish Soda bread. Up until this recipe, I liked my Irish Soda Bread best the next day, toasted with loads of butter. Nothing against the classic when it’s fresh out of the oven..I just enjoy it most when toasted the next day.
But then I thought to myself – how can I improve fresh, warm Irish Soda bread? How about some oats and honey? Oats are Irish, right? Well dang…adding a little bit of oats and some sweet honey goes a long way. I bet you eat half the loaf, warm and fresh right out of the oven. This bread is rich, fairly dense and has a lovely extra hint of sweetness from the honey.
And now I need to go call the gas company to find out how many pieces of coin it’ll cost to run a gas line into the kitchen…yay adulthood!
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A sweet twist on a classic – Irish Soda bread revamped with honey and oats.
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour*
- 3/4 cups old fashion oats
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup butter, cold
- 1 1/2 cup buttermilk**
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/2 cup currants
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425°.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, oats, baking soda, salt and currants. Side aside.
Using a block grater, grate cold butter into shreds. Use your fingers to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until you have a coarse crumb. Create a well in the center, pour in buttermilk, egg and honey. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to mix until combined into a shaggy dough.
Turn out dough onto a floured surface and knead a few times (I find 1 minute is just right). Do not over knead or your bread will be tough. Shape into a disk about 2 inches thick and 7 inches across. Place in a lightly greased cast iron skillet, use a knife to score top with an X.
Bake at 435° for 35-40 minutes. You may need to cover with foil around 25 minutes if the top is browning too fast. Bread is done when tapped and it sounds hollow inside. Let cool slightly, then slice and slather with butter and honey. Enjoy!
Notes
*You may need to more flour during kneading to get your dough to the right consistency and not too sticky. I find the variance happens with the size of your egg. If your egg is on the larger side, you’ll probably need to add about 1/4 cup more flour. If you find your dough very wet and unable to knead, start adding more flour by the tablespoon to avoid adding too much until you have a workable dough that isn’t sticking to the counter.
**for homemade buttermilk, I measure 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar into a liquid measuring up and then fill to the 1 1/2 cup mark with almond milk. Gently stir and then let rest for 5 minutes before using.
Keywords: Irish Soda Bread, Honey Oat Irish Soda Bread, Quick Breads
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