Irish Soda Bread with Yogurt

Updated at: Thu, 17 Aug 2023 04:45:00 GMT

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/400F/Gas Mark 6.

Step 2

Put both flours in a large bowl. Add baking soda and salt and give it all a good whisk. Alternatively, sieve all ingredients into a bowl but don't forget to add the bran from your wholemeal flour that will stay on top of the sieve.

Step 3

Make a well in the centre of your dry ingredients and add the yogurt mixing everything in gently with the spoon until the dough starts coming together.

Step 4

Turn the dough out onto the kitchen counter dusted with a little bit of flour and gently start bringing it all together to form a round loaf. You can always use a bit more flour if your dough gets really sticky or a tiny splash of milk if it's a bit dry but try not to use too much of either.

Step 5

Put your loaf on the baking tray lined with some baking paper and cut a large cross in the middle of the loaf either with a knife or a dough scraper if you've got one. You want the cross to be deep (about two thirds way through the loaf) but at the same time you don't want to cut your loaf into 4 so be careful.

Step 6

Dust a bit more flour over your loaf and bake it in preheated oven for 30 minutes until golden brown and sounds hollow when you give it a little tap underneath.

Step 7

Let it cool slightly on the cooling rack and enjoy!

Step 8

I like using wholemeal spelt flour in this loaf and find that proportions half and half with plain flour work really well. Feel free to use any wholemeal flour you like here though or just plain flour will do too.

Step 9

I would recommend using full fat plain yogurt here instead of fat free version. If you happen to have buttermilk (which is used in traditional soda bread) by no means feel free to use it here instead of the yogurt.

Step 10

Like with any bread make sure your oven is preheated when putting your loaf in.

Step 11

As flours do differ you might need to add some extra moisture (a splash of milk) to your dough when bringing it together if you notice your dough is too dry or perhaps a bit more flour if it appears too wet and sticky.

Step 12

Don’t handle your dough too much. You want to bring it together with minimal kneading, just so that it holds its shape.

Step 13

Once you form your loaf you want to get it into the oven as quick as possible as baking soda would have already started its job of reacting with yogurt.

Step 14

Make sure you don’t skip cutting characteristic deep cross in the middle of the loaf which ensures that your loaf is evenly baked both on the throughout.

Step 15

If you like a nice crusty soda bread make sure to cool it on the rack uncovered. However, if you prefer soft crust, simply wrap it in a clean tea towel when still warm and the moisture will make your crust soften.

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