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This easy to prepare and delicious Irish Soda Bread with Dill is a variation of the traditional classic Irish Bread recipe.
St-Patrick’s Day is in a couple of days and though I don’t really celebrate it, I thought it would be fun to try a new Irish recipe. I thought about making a traditional Irish lamb stew, but since my true passion is baking I gravitated towards making an Irish Soda Bread. My version includes dill, I know it’s not the traditional way of making it, but I wanted to try it anyways.
This bread is easy to prepare, doesn’t require too many ingredients and is also made without the use of yeast. Which to me is a bonus, because working with yeast makes me a bit nervous. I’m not sure why, it’s not like I’ve had any yeasty disasters but still all that bubbly action makes me a bit uneasy :).
I used this recipe for Irish Soda bread from Canadian living, except that I substituted half of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat bread flour and added 4 tablespoons of finely chopped dill. I would recommend not adding all of the buttermilk at once and keeping about 1/4 cup aside. Mix the dough and then judge whether you need more. I ended up putting it all in and then having to add a bit more flour because the dough became too wet.
This Irish Soda Bread came out beautifully and I really enjoyed the addition of the fresh dill. The bread is best served warm with some salted butter. I bet it would have been delicious served with that Irish stew I was supposed to make…oh well, maybe next year!
You can store any leftover bread in the freezer, just wrap it well and store in a large freezer bag. Thaw bread and warm it in the oven before serving. And to those who celebrate St-Patrick’s Day, I hope you have a happy one!
Ingredients
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole wheat bread flour
- 1 tbsp. sugar
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. salt
- 4 tbsp. chopped fresh dill
- 1-3/4 to 2 cups buttermilk
Instructions
- Place a rack in the centre of your oven and preheat oven to 425ºF.
- Grease or line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Sift flour, sugar, salt and baking soda into a large bowl, add the chopped dill and blend it in well with your fingers.
- Make a well in the centre and add 1 and 3/4 cups of the buttermilk, start mixing it with your fingers until the bread comes together, if needed add more buttermilk, one tablespoon at a time.
- Turn the dough out onto a flour dusted surface and knead the dough a few times until it comes together into a ball shape. Don’t over knead the dough.
- Transfer the dough onto the baking pan and using a sharp knife score a wide cross, about 1/2 of an inch deep on the dough.
- Place the pan onto the middle rack and bake for about 32 to 35 minutes, the bread should be brown and sound hollow when you tap the bottom of it.
- Remove the bread from the oven and let it cool for about a half hour before slicing and serving.
- Serve with salted butter and enjoy!
Nutrition
Kelsey says
March 27, 2015 at 4:55 PMWow im really loving this irish soda bread. and with dill? wow that would add so much great flavor.
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 27, 2015 at 8:14 PMThe dill was really good. Thank you!
milkandbun says
March 25, 2015 at 2:51 PMI do like dill, its wonderful flavour and taste; the bread looks very delish! 🙂
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 25, 2015 at 8:18 PMYes, so do I and I feel that I don’t use it all that much in my cooking, I will have to try and incorporate it more often 🙂 Thank you!
milkandbun says
March 26, 2015 at 10:19 AMDo you add it to fish? They are perfect together! 😀
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 27, 2015 at 8:12 PMYes, I do sometimes and it’s always delicious.
relaxingcooking says
March 22, 2015 at 8:44 AMThis bread looks like a delicious loaf!
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 22, 2015 at 1:47 PMThank you!
coconutcraze says
March 17, 2015 at 11:48 PMI like the taste of dill so this is a recipe to try. I will have to wait till my garden wakes up!
sabine says
March 17, 2015 at 5:20 PMLove the idea of adding dill to a bread – if only my husband liked that herb….
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 17, 2015 at 6:29 PMAh, yes it can be a challenge in the kitchen when tastes are not the same 🙁
Deborah says
March 17, 2015 at 5:11 PMBeautiful photos Fida. Your styling is impeccable.
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 17, 2015 at 6:27 PMThank you Deborah, I find some foods are easier to style than others. Looking forward to Saturday!
nancyc says
March 16, 2015 at 9:32 PMI’ve made soda bread before but not with dill–that sounds really good!
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 17, 2015 at 6:32 PMI hadn’t planned on it but then I had some dill in the fridge and thought it would make a nice addition.
Lili says
March 16, 2015 at 5:35 AMLooks like a nice loaf of irish soda bread and I like the addition of dill… quite fancy trying it! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 16, 2015 at 9:29 AMThanks Lili!
Nancy says
March 15, 2015 at 1:05 PMThis is some of the best looking Irish soda bread I’ve ever seen, Fida! Love the addition of dill. Your photos are stunning!
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 15, 2015 at 9:52 PMThank you so much Nancy! Bread / loaf pictures easily look good, they must be photogenic!
skd says
March 15, 2015 at 8:52 AMThis bread looks delicious . Cant wait to dip it in the Irish lamb stew which Judi @cookingwithauntjuju.com just made. Awesome combination.
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 15, 2015 at 9:56 PMThank you. Oh, that’s a good idea, think I’ll do the same!
brendonthesmilingchef says
March 15, 2015 at 5:54 AMLooks tasty
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
March 15, 2015 at 9:52 PMIt’s was, especially with all that butter 🙂