I have always LOVED Irish Soda Bread it is one of the best parts of celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.
Irish soda bread is a quick bread,
with no yeast or rising time.
It comes together quickly if you are using a pastry cutter, then you’ll knead it a few times and then start baking
You can add raisins, which is traditionally how it’s served and really one of the only times I like raisins in baked goods!
When cutting in butter into recipes, be sure the butter is ice cold, that is how baked goods turn out so yummy!
This is the one time of year I typically buy buttermilk, I have used dry buttermilk that is available in the baking aisle with good results, or milk and vinegar, but I really like real buttermilk in this recipe best.
If you have extra buttermilk or want some more recipes using buttermilk look at
- Buttermilk Pasta Sauce
- How to make buttermilk
- Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
- Buttermilk Ranch Chicken
Dusting the bread with powdered sugar and having it served slathered with butter is my favorite.
I’ve even made the dough and baked it as muffins and they are so delicious!
- Corned Beef and Cabbage Soup
- Slow Cooker Corned Beef Recipe
- Mint Chocolate Recipes
- Healthy Mint Chocolate Chip Smoothie
- St. Patrick’s Day Mint Chocolate Cake
- Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Corned Beef and Cabbage Egg Rolls
- Reuben Pizza
- 4 cups flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 6 tablespoons cold butter
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 1 1/2 cups raisins
- Prepare a 1 1/2 quart casserole pan or muffin tin with a baking spray or butter.
- Mix flour with sugar, baking powder salt and baking soda in large bowl. But in cold butter with a pastry cutter or two knives until it resembles coarse crumbs.
- In a small bowl, beat the eggs and remove a tablespoon for to brush on top of muffins before baking.
- Add buttermilk and eggs to flour mixture, Dough will be very sticky.
- You can mix it with a mixer and dough hook.
- Add raisins and mix together until they are incorporated.
- Turn dough onto well-floured surface and with floured hands knead the dough about 10 times.
- You can bake this in a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish for 1 hour and 10 minutes.
- Or you can bake these as muffins, place three tablespoons into each well of the muffin pan and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.
- Insert a toothpick to check to see the bread is not moist inside.
- Let the Irish soda bread cool and dust with powdered sugar before serving.
- * You can find dry buttermilk, that you can add water to in the baking section. Buttermilk adds a rich flavor to scones, biscuits, cake, and pancakes.
If you like this or any other recipe at 
Village Bakery says
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. Have you tried making it in a bread cloche? I just got one for Christmas and want to start using it more… and I LOVE Irish soda bread!
Diane says
I don’t have a cloche, but I’m sure it will come out great in one!