Nothing goes better with minestrone soup than some warm crusty bread. So I decided to try my hand at making some soda bread. I have never actually made bread before, and as such, I thought I should stick to something relatively easy. Therefore I came up with this Dill Soda Bread.
If you're not a fan of minestrone, this bread also tastes great with Vegetable and Barley Soup, Tuscan Bean Soup, or even some classic Tomato Soup. (Try making a grilled cheese sandwich with your soda bread!) If you're looking for something lighter, try pairing your soda bread alongside a fresh Vegan Summer Pasta Salad or a creamy Vegetarian Macaroni Salad.
What is Soda Bread?
Soda bread is an Irish style of bread, made with bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) as the raising agent—hence the name. Instead of leaving this bread plain, I added some chopped dill, which seems to be my favorite herb of the moment.
If you love vegan baking, make sure you grab a copy of my free vegan baking cheat sheet while you're here. It's packed with all my favorite plant-based substitutions to help you vegan-ize any recipe!
How to Make Dill Soda Bread
- Preheat the oven.
- Sift the flours, salt and bicarb soda into a large bowl.
- Add the butter and rub into the flour mixture.
- Add the buttermilk and dill and mix to form a dough.
- Cover a section of your kitchen counter with glad wrap, leaving enough room to knead the dough. Dust countertop with flour.
- Turn out the dough onto the floured surface and knead to form a ball shape.
- Cover a baking tray with baking paper and place the ball into the middle of the tray and score the middle of the ball with a knife to form a cross.
- Bake for 40 to 45 minutes.
Variations
Skip the Dill
If you're not a fan of dill flavor—or you're just looking for a super basic bread recipe—feel free to skip the dill. Your bread will still turn out crusty, golden, and yummy!
Add Spices
Instead of dill, try adding rosemary, thyme, or garlic to your soda bread.
Alternatively, you can keep the dill and still add even more spices and herbs! Try combining the dill with garlic, caraway, or even small pieces of cheddar cheese.
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Recipe
Dill Soda Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups plain flour
- 2 cups self-raising flour
- 4 tbsp butter cubed
- 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 2 ¼ cups buttermilk
- ⅓ cup fresh dill chopped
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
- Sift the flours, salt, and bicarb soda into a large bowl.
- Add the butter and rub into the flour mixture.
- Add the buttermilk and dill, and mix to form a dough.
- Cover a section of your kitchen bench with glad wrap (I do this to make cleaning up easier) that will provide enough room to knead the dough. Dust with flour.
- Turn out the dough onto the floured surface and knead to form a ball shape.
- Cover a baking tray with baking paper and place the ball into the middle of the tray and score the middle of the ball with a knife to form a cross.
- Bake for 40 to 45 minutes.
Michelle says
I love this idea of putting dill in the soda bread. I usually use dill in a cottage cheese bread, but this sounds a lot easier. Thank you for the idea!
delicieux says
You're welcome. 🙂
The idea of including cotta cheese sounds interesting. I'll have to try it 🙂