Irish Soda Bread with Dried Apricots
With its crunchy crust and tender crumb, this simple take on a classic Irish soda bread is gently sweetened with apricots, and lovely with a spread of butter.
Servings
1loaf
Servings
1loaf
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Heat the oven to 400° F. Add a piece of parchment paper to the bottom of a cast-iron skillet.
  2. Whisk all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt together for a minute so they are well combined.
  3. Cut the softened butter into 1/4 inch pieces and add to the flour mixture. Rub the butter pieces into the flour mixture with your fingers until you don’t feel any more clumps of butter.
  4. Add the dried apricot pieces and stir until combined.
  5. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in your buttermilk.
  6. Use a rubber spatula to stir the buttermilk into the flour, just until there aren’t any loose flour bits left. Do not over mix – the dough with be uneven, that is okay.
  7. Use your hands to bring the dough together in a rough round about 6 inches across.
  8. Transfer the round of dough to your prepared skillet. Use a sharp knife to cut a cross through the center of the round, not quite edge to edge, but close and about 1/2 inch deep.
  9. Bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes, until nicely golden brown on top and a cake tester used in the center comes out clean.
  10. Brush the melted butter on top while still warm.
  11. Let rest for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes

Specialty tools and ingredients used: