Description
A gluten free version of a traditional Irish bread, brown soda bread. Hearty, rustic, perfect for dipping in soups and best spread with butter. An easy bread to make. No yeast, rising time, or kneading required! So yum!
Ingredients
- 2 cupsBob’s Red Mill gluten free hearty whole grain bread mix*
- 3/4 cups + 2 tablespoons All Purpose gluten free flour blend ( I like to use Bob’s Red Mill 1 for 1 baking flour)
- 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted**
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 cup butter milk***
Instructions
- Prepare: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly grease a sheet pan, set aside. Note: If making your own buttermilk (see notes), make it at this time and allow it to sit while you continue making the bread.
- Mix dry ingredients: To a large bowl mix together both of the flours, baking soda, and salt.
- Add the wet ingredients: Form a well in your dry ingredients. Pour your buttermilk, whisked egg, and melted butter into the well. Use hands or a good sturdy spatula to mix together until well combined. If the dough is too wet and sticky add in an extra tablespoon or 2 of AP GF flour. The texture should be a little sticky but not wet (see photo in post). A good dough ball should form.
- Finish: Lightly flour your hands and form the dough into a large ball. Flatten it out slightly. Use a sharp knife to create a shallow X on the top of the bread. This is an optional step but traditional Irish practice to bless the bread. For the gluten free version it does tend to separate the bread as it bakes, which I like for portion control purposes. If you want a longer slices skip the step all together. Place the loaf on the greased baking sheet.
- Bake: Bake on the middle rack for 40 to 45 minutes. You will know the bread is done when you tap on the bottom and it sounds hollow. Transfer to cooling rack and allow to cool before slicing. The bread will last for 3 to 4 days, however it is best the day it is baked.
Notes
*I wanted to make this gluten free bread similar to a hearty brown bread, but obviously without the whole wheat flour. This is why I specifically used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten free hearty whole grain mix. It gives that rustic, hearty feel you would get from whole wheat flour. If you can’t find it or don’t want to use a specific brand than just make it using all purpose gluten free flour blend of choice. You just won’t have that whole wheat feel to it, it will be more of a white soda bread. I am confident this would work, however I haven’t tested it!
**Dairy Free Option: use vegan butter and any type of non dairy, unflavored and unsweetened milk to make your own buttermilk (recipe below).
***Buttermilk: Buttermilk is ideal for this recipe but if you don’t have it mix 1 cup of any kind of milk with 1 tablespoon of acid (such as lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, or distilled vinegar). Allow the mixture to sit for 10 minutes and it will curdle slightly, this is good. Congrats, you’ve just made your own buttermilk!!! I used unsweetened, unflavored almond milk and apple cider vinegar because that’s what I like to keep on hand. Any type of milk you like will do.
This recipe makes a medium loaf of soda bread. If you want a larger one than you can easily double the recipe.
Not gluten free? Try my Irish brown soda bread recipe!
