Don's Fruit Soda Bread
Here's a tasty recipe for fruit soda bread from Don, one of our volunteer millers at New Hall Mill. It was tested by our mill garden volunteer Anne, who said it's good with butter, cheese, or on it's own.
Ingredients
- 100g rolled oats (not jumbo oats)
- 25g butter (diced)
- 200g plain flour
- 200g New Hall Mill wholemeal flour
- 70 to 100g caster sugar according to taste
- 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- 1½ teaspoons mixed spice
- 125 to 150g dried fruit (mixed fruit or equal measures of raisins, sultanas, and dates, with 3 teaspoons mixed peel)
- 450g buttermilk
- 3 to 4 teaspoons demerara sugar
Method
- Heat the oven to 180 degrees.
- Rub the butter, oats and flour together,
- Stir in the caster sugar, bicarbonate of soda, mixed spice, salt, and dried fruit.
- Pour in the buttermilk and stir it in quickly with a pallet knife.
- Tip the mixture out onto a floured surface, and gently bring it together in a ball, without overworking it.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly greased baking tray.
- Spread the demerara sugar on top.
- Press the dough down to flatten it to about 5 to 6 cm (2 to 2½").
- Cut a cross on the top of the dough by slashing it about 1" deep.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until crusty.