SODA BREAD
Gluten free, wheat free, egg free and yeast free
Serves 4
I have strong & happy memories of enjoying Wanda's freshly baked Soda Bread with a friend of mine at her home in Southern Ireland way back, when we were in our teens! Easy to make, her Mum baked it every day in time for breakfast with lashings of butter and marmalade and sometimes later with soups or casseroles.
This gluten, wheat & yeast free bread recipe includes a yogurt/milk/lemon juice combination because I tend to have those in the house but they could be replaced by 150mls Buttermilk which is the traditional ingredient.
Teff flour is easily accessible online and gives the loaf a lovely wholemeal taste. You could use Gram flour but I prefer this with Teff.
The hemp seed hearts are by no means essential but add a little texture, alternatively you could include seeds in the mixture as well as on top.
Ingredients
100g Oast to Host Cake Flour
45g Teff Flour
28g Ptoato Flour
5g hemp seed hearts (optional)
1/4 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
1/2 Tablespoon Vegetable oil
75ml plain natural yogurt
75ml semi skimmed milk
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Seed to go on top
Preheat oven to 200C
Method
In a jug combine the yogurt/milk/lemon juice and oil then put to one side. Combine the flours, hemp seed hearts, salt, baking powder and bicarb in a bowl. Once dry ingredients have been mixed well, pour in the wet ingredients and fold until well combined, not overworking.
Turn onto a floured (potato flour if possible) surface and lightly shape loaf before lifting onto a piece of greaseproof paper on a baking tray.
Take a sharp knife and make a cross - about 1 inch deep across the top (this allows it to rise a little more easily).
Paint with a little milk and sprinkle with mixed seeds or seed of your choice.
Place in oven for 10 minutes before reducing the temperature to 180 for a further 20 minutes.
To check if its cooked, it should sound hollow when you tap the bottom of the loaf.
Wanda used to wrap hers in a tea towel which will give you a softer outside. If you prefer a crisper crust place on a wire rack for 10 mins or so then ENJOY!