Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Irish Soda Bread--Food Storage Link Party


Saint Patrick's Day is tomorrow.  If you are looking for something festive to eat try this Irish Soda Bread.  
So I have found that I really love buttermilk in cooking.  Yet it is one of those ingredients that I just don't always have.  A year or so ago my Mom told me she was per-measruing and freezing buttermilk. Then when you are ready to use it you defrost it and add it in to your recipes.  I have been doing it ever since and LOVE it.  

Butter Milk Trick

Buttermilk
Papercups that will hold 1 cup each with pleanty of headspace
Cookies Sheet

1.  1 cup of buttermilk and pour it into a paper cup.  The cup should have several centimeters of headspace (remember liquids expand when they freeze)  Place paper cup on cookies sheet.  Repeat until all of the butter milk is in paper cups. 
2. Carefully place cookies sheet in freezer.  Freeze until firm.  
3. Remove from freezer and place paper cups in a Zip Lock Gallon Bag. Return to freezer. 

When ready to use remove from freezer and defrost on the counter or in the microwave.  It it has been in the freezer for a while you need to add a little bit of water to equal 1 cup. 

Easy Irish Soda Bread
recipe source:  http://theirishmother.blogspot.com/2011/02/easy-irish-soda-bread-and-irish.html
3 3/4 cups flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg, slightly beaten

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Either grease a cookie sheet, or place a piece of parchment paper on it.
In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking power, baking soda and salt.  Pour in melted butter, buttermilk and egg and stir together JUST until it comes together.  Do not overbeat, or it will give it a tough crumb.
Turn dough onto a floured board and knead lightly, just 3 or 4 folds.  Form dough into a round and place on prepared baking sheet.

In a small bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons melted butter and 2 tablespoons cream.  Brush loaf with this mixture, sprinkle with sugar and using a sharp knife, cut and X into the top of the loaf.
Bake in a preheated oven 40 - 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.

Link Party

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