Whole Grain Irish Soda Bread

whole grain einkorn irish soda bread sliced on a wooden cutting board

This simple Irish soda bread recipe is made with whole grain and all-purpose einkorn flour. Hearty, delicious, and perfect for St. Patrick's Day! Also included are the instructions for making a sweet Irish soda bread with raisins and sugar!

Course Bread

Cuisine American, bread, Irish

Keyword irish soda bread, soda bread, whole grain soda bread

Prep Time 3

Cook Time 44

Total Time 47

Servings slices

Calories 154kcal

Cost $5

Ingredients

2 2/3 cups whole grain einkorn flour freshly ground (310g)
2 1/4 cups all-purpose einkorn flour (260g)
2 tbsp butter cold
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1.5 cups buttermilk see notes
1 egg (optional)
1 tbsp gluten free oats (optional)

Instructions

In a small bowl, whisk the buttermilk and egg* together. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt together in another bowl.
Work the cold butter* into the flour mixture. You can use a fork, your hands, or a food processor like I do in my einkorn pie crust recipe. Just work the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles a fine sand.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients bowl and mix together just until a dough forms. You don't want to over work the dough - you should still see some dry flour (this is called a shaggy dough). Let the dough sit for a few minutes to allow the einkorn to absorb the moisture a bit before shaping.
Onto a parchment lined baking sheet, or into a seasoned cast iron skillet, turn the dough out and press into an even disc about 1- 1 1/2" tall. Using a sharp knife, score the dough in a cross pattern, this not only creates a traditional soda bread appearance, but also helps the center of the dough to bake properly.
Sprinkle the top with gluten free oats, if desired. I add them because it gives a very nice finished look to the soda bread, but it doesn't change the taste or texture at all!
Bake at 425°F for 15 minutes then drop the temperature to 400°F and bake for another 25 minutes, or until golden brown. The bread should sound hollow when thumped when it's fully baked.

Notes

*The egg can be omitted altogether, and the butter as well. No additional modifications are needed, however, the bread will be more dense in texture.

You can make your own buttermilk with your desired milk type, including dairy free milk.

Sweet Irish Soda Bread Variation

If you'd like to try a traditional Sweet Irish Soda Bread, follow these instructions!

To the dry goods bowl, add 3 tablespoons of sugar before cutting in the butter. Continue as normal.
After adding the buttermilk to the dry goods, add 1 cup of either currants or raisins and mix briefly.
Bake as normal, and enjoy!

Nutrition