Bread baking

Our sour dough starter has somehow survived another year and we continue to use it in breads. I have gotten into searching out flour from small mills. I recently bought a sack of whole wheat flour from New Hope Mills. I also brought home some wheat berries that we soaked for a few days and mixed into the bread sponge.

The fun of bread baking is trying various flours and experimenting with textures. My sister came back from Amish country a few months ago and brought back some overly sweetened raisin and cinnamon bread. My mother rolled out the dough much as the Amish ladies had done and spread the surface with a layer of brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins. It made for great toast.

We usually have the bread toasted in the mornings along with alot of coffee. My Dad tends to drink too much coffee and munches day old doughnuts he prefers to the bread. He gives Spencer a few bits of the doughnuts that has the dog salivating all over the rug.

So next we'll try the sprouted wheat bread again with about 2 cups of the sprouted berries instead of the measly 1/2 cup we started with last week.

This week we baked Irish soda bread in honor of St. Pat's day. I worked as a data-entry clerk for a few months at the county court house and met quite a few policemen and security guards. One of the sheriff's deputies gave me his grandmother's recipe for soda bread and we've been making it ever since. I had sampled it a few times in the past and always found it a little dry and not very flavorful but this one called for over a cup of raisins that kept the bread moist for days.


Irish Soda Bread

4 cups sifted all purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp double acting baking powder
2 tbl spoons caraway seeds (or more to taste)
1/4 cup butter
2 cups raisins (I use dark and white)
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
1 egg unbeaten
1 tsp baking soda
1 egg yolk, beaten

Heat oven to 375. Grease cast iron fry pan. Into mixing bowl sift flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Stir in caraway seeds with pastry blender. Cut in butter till its like course corn meal. Stir in raisins. Combine in another bowl, buttermilk, egg, soda. Stir this into flour mixture until just moistened.

Turn dough onto lightly floured board and knead lightly till smooth. Place in pan. Leave center higher than sides. Cut across 1/4 " deep in center. Bursh with egg yok. Bake about 1 hour or until done. Let cool 10 minutes in pan before removing.