Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Last year I made my first Irish stew, Green Goddess Salad and a lime shamrock shake. With my mixer Rebel in the shop I wanted to make bread but had to do so without her help so I turned to the cookbook Fast Breads by Chronicle Books and discovered dark Irish soda bread.
It was so delicious that I also ate it with my beef and barley soup the other day with herb cream cheese. Delicious!
You can also bring this loaf of bread to the party with Occasions Magazine’s Quick Artichoke and Crab Dip. So bad for you but so good too! A perfectly decadent treat to celebrate at a St. Patrick’s Day party.
I did not have buttermilk to activate the baking soda so I made some acidulated milk by adding some lemon juice to 1 cup of milk. I let that sit and brought the dry ingredients together.
In a large bowl add 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour, 3/4 cup regular flour, a tbsp of dark brown sugar, 2 tsp caraway seeds, 1 tsp baking soda and 1/2 tsp kosher salt. Mix together.
Add in 2 tbsp of melted butter. Mix together.
You are supposed to stir 1 tbsp of light molasses into the milk. I had regular molasses and I added both into the dry ingredients.
I used my Betty Crocker Hand Mixer which sometimes does well with dough but this dough was quite dry.
I brought it together with my hands instead. Gather the dough into a ball and shape into an 8″ oval, patting it gently.
To get it 8″ in length, this meant a very flat dough. I scored the top around 5 times 1/4″ deep along the top and baked in a preheated 375F oven for 35 minutes.
Occasions Magazine’s quick artichoke and crab dip really does live up to its name. Using canned artichokes and crab (make sure they have been drained well) is a clever way to make a fancy dip in just minutes! Warming it up first in the microwave and broiling the top in the oven is genius!
For those who want to make bread but avoid the yeast, soda bread is a great idea. It is fast, easy and this particular bread will trick you into thinking you are making caraway rye bread. To get it all nice and brown and sturdy enough for the dip I just sliced it and fried it in a saute pan in some melted butter. The dip makes two medium ramekins when it comes to servings and will absolutely be an impressive treat at your next party. It is very rich though! One or two bites of this and then move on to the vegetable tray.
I loved both these recipes. I would have liked for the bread to have risen even more but for a non-yeast bread it did fantastic. My husband Reg and I thoroughly enjoyed every bite of that loaf, nothing went to waste. I give the Dark Irish Soda Bread four and a half out of five wooden spoons. The dip is delicious but deadly. Definitely party food for a treat. I give the dip four out of five wooden spoons.
Whatever you make today, let’s celebrate spring’s eventual return together with fabulous food!
Don’t leprechauns live on this bread and dip? They should!
They really, really should Debra, this is truly a leprechaun delight!
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Nice meal.
Susie, Happy St Patrick’s Day! May the luck of the Irish be with you. The meal looks very comforting, especially with that yummy bread slathered with the artichoke crab dip.
Did you say bread sauteed in butter then dunked in crab dip? Wow! Move over veggie tray cause I’m hoarding this dip at the party LOL. The bread and dip sound amazing on their own, but together it’s a match made in foodie heaven.
Thanks Helene and Anna! Ava, yes, can you believe I did that? I blame my mom, she showed me that trick.