Soda bread

Ingredients

Quantities for 8 servings.

• 350 g Plain flour
• 150 g Wholemeal flour
• 400 ml Buttermilk
• 1 tsp Bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp Salt
• 2 tbsp Rolled oats, for the top

Method

1. Heat the oven to 220 °C in advance. The bread has to go in immediately after mixing; it cannot wait.
2. Mix both flours, the bicarbonate and the salt in a bowl and stir well so the soda spreads evenly.
3. Pour in the buttermilk and mix with a knife or your hand only until it comes together. The dough is sticky and uneven, which is correct.
4. Turn it onto a floured tray, shape it into a round loaf and cut a deep cross almost to the base.
5. Scatter the oats over and bake fifteen minutes at 220 °C, then thirty at 190 °C.
6. A finished loaf sounds hollow when its base is tapped. Cool it on a rack for at least an hour: hot soda bread will not slice.