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NEVER ENOUGH SODA BREAD
Baking Irish soda bread is easier than baking biscuits,
says Patricia Prior of Tempe. "When I bake it, I'll call my children and tell them," Prior said. "They'll bring friends home to eat it. There's never enough." Prior, a real-estate agent who moved to Arizona in 1970, bakes brown soda bread with wheat flour and a sweeter bread with golden raisins or dried cranberries. "It's so good, we'll eat the brown bread with smoked salmon," Prior said. Prior jokes that she moved to the desert to meet her husband Sean, also from Ireland. "Anyone who says there aren't any Irish here hasn't tried hard to meet us," Prior said. "We have the cultural center in Phoenix, a few social groups, a business group. We're all over the Valley." Irish Soda Bread From Patricia Prior 4 cups wheat flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon sugar 2 cups buttermilk 1 cup raisins or dried cranberries (optional) Heat oven to 450 degrees. Sift flour, salt, baking soda and sugar into a large bowl, mixing well. Add buttermilk and stir to make a soft dough. Add raisins, if desired. Knead the dough lightly. Form a round loaf as thick as your fist. Place dough on a lightly floured baking sheet. Use a floured knife to cut a cross in the top of the loaf. Bake near the top of the oven for 35 to 45 minutes. Cut into quarters and wrap in a clean towel or plastic to keep the crust from getting too hard. Makes 10 servings. Approximate values per serving: 184 calories, 1 g fat, 2 mg cholesterol, 8 g protein, 38 g carbohydrates, 6 g fiber, 393 mg sodium, 6 percent calories from fat. Reach the reporter (602) 444-8148. CAPTION: Patricia Prior, who lives in Tempe, has been baking varieties of soda bread since she was a young girl in Ireland. |
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