This buttery apricot soda bread isn’t just for St. Patrick’s Day, it’s a loaf of bread you can enjoy on any day of the year. And, I think that you’ll find that soda bread is one of the easiest types of bread you will ever make, as well as one of the most delicious. Add in a generous dose of butter, dried apricots, and a little bit of buttermilk, and you’ve got a loaf of bread that definitely won’t stick around long.
Since it looks like we’ll all be stuck inside this St. Patrick’s Day, we mine as well celebrate with some warm, oven-baked, carb-loaded, buttery goodness. Or at least that’s my plan. Add in a few beers, perhaps a shot of whiskey or two, and it sounds like a decent way to get a party started. A party of two. Or a party of three if you count Miss Brenna. Yup, tonight, it’s just me, B.O.B. Bob, and Brenna partying it up. We’ll be sitting around, eating soda bread, and perhaps getting a little bit too tipsy. Welcome to our version of quarantine St. Patrick’s Day.
Ingredients:
- 2 Eggs
- 3/4 Cup Buttermilk
- 2 1/4 Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 6 Tablespoons Butter
- 1/2 Cup Dried Apricots, Finely Chopped
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together.
- Cut the butter into very small pieces and add it to the flour. Use a pastry cutter or fork to cut the butter into the flour for 2 minutes.
- Stir the chopped apricots into the flour mixture.
- Whisk the eggs together in a small bowl and then whisk in the buttermilk.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until incorporated.
- Flour your hands and bring the dough together into a ball.
- Place the ball of dough onto a Silpat or parchment paper-lined baking sheet and pat it down into a round loaf.
- Cut an X in the top of the bread and then bake it for 45 minutes.
Suggestions:
- If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make your own by adding 1-tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to milk.
- I used salted Irish butter in this recipe, however, you can use any type of butter you have on hand.
- Make sure that your butter is very cold when you add it to the flour mixture. You may want to cut the butter into very small pieces and then put it back in the refrigerator for a few minutes to get cold again.
- Soda bread is always best right when it comes out of the oven. It will last for several days, however, it is never quite as good as right after it was baked.
Improvements:
- You can add any type of dried fruit to soda bread, including raisins, currants, mangoes, cherries, cranberries, peaches, and pears.
- Add a 1/2-cup of grated cheddar cheese to the soda bread.
- Serve this soda bread alongside this Crockpot Guinness Burger Stew.
Ingredients:
- 2 Eggs
- 3/4 Cup Buttermilk
- 2 1/4 Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 6 Tablespoons Butter
- 1/2 Cup Dried Apricots, Finely Chopped
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together.
- Cut the butter into very small pieces and add it to the flour. Use a pastry cutter or fork to cut the butter into the flour for 2 minutes.
- Stir the chopped apricots into the flour mixture.
- Whisk the eggs together in a small bowl and then whisk in the buttermilk.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until incorporated.
- Flour your hands and bring the dough together into a ball.
- Place the ball of dough onto a Silpat or parchment paper-lined baking sheet and pat it down into a round loaf.
- Cut an X in the top of the bread and then bake it for 45 minutes.
PIN THIS RECIPE
Don’t let this recipe slip away. How often do you find a recipe intriguing, yet forget where to find it when you finally get the hankering to make it? Instead of digging through old posts or wandering aimlessly around on the internet, why not Pin this recipe to Pinterest where you can find it when you eventually need it? Simply Pin the image above and you’ll have it when that time comes. You can follow us HERE on Pinterest or simply click HERE to find all of our pin-worthy recipes.
Soda Bread with Whiskey-Soaked Golden Raisins
Irish Cheddar & Dried Cherry Soda Bread
St. Patrick’s Day is the perfect holiday to bake a warm crusty loaf of no-yeast bread. So, for those of you that suffer from a healthy fear of all things yeast, here are seven original recipes to accompany your traditional Irish fare that require absolutely no yeast. And, as a bonus to several recipes for delicious soda bread, you’ll also find a few mouth-watering recipes for crescent rolls, muffins, and scones to help you celebrate the special holiday. CLICK HERE for the recipes.
