REALLY Irish for St. Patrick's: Irish Soda Bread

If you're like countless other Americans, tomorrow you will don some shade(s) of green in your wardrobe and either celebrate your Irish heritage or pretend that you are part of the chosen people for a single day. To do this, you may also imbibe on Irish alcohols and various green-tinted food and drink. You may even cook up a batch of corned beef, cabbage and potatoes. I certainly will.

Of course, there's really not much Irish about all that, or the way St. Patrick's Day has evolved into some sort of green-tinged bacchanlia. Yes, Irish like to drink, but green beer is classic American commercialization. And corned beef? More likely an affordable and readily-available cut of meat at the Jewish delis of New York, Boston and other American cities, where Irish immigrants often settled en mass and decided to use the day of their patron saint to celebrate the land they left.

My great grandmother Bridget Leddy, like so many other Irish after the potato famine, eventually made her way to New York City, making a couple of trips back to County Cavan late in life with her grandchildren. Along with her hearty brogue, she also brought to the new country a special family recipe that has been a part of my family's St. Patrick's Day celebrations as long as I can remember.

Irish Soda Bread is a quintessential dish from the Emerald Isle. My mother, among the first group of grandchildren Bridget took to Ireland a half century or so ago, says she remembers it being prepared in the big pot over the fire after the bacon was cooked. It created an unforgettable for her combination of salty and sweet.

Our Americanized versions leaves behind the rendered bacon fat, but makes it work with shortening. It is both a great breakfast and perfect side for your corned beef and cabbage, which, by the way, should be stewed in a Crock Pot all day so that you come home to that incomparable aroma.

Anyway, you really should not need instruction on how to make the main dish. In case you do, put peeled potatoes cut in half in the bottom of the crock, top with corned beef and the seasoning that comes with it, then the cabbage. Add some water. Cook.

Now on to the real Irish in your St. Patty's Day meal (pictured at the top of the photo below).

Irish Soda Bread
Ingredients
3/4 cup seedless raisins
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp baking powder
1 large egg
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup solid shortening
1 tsp caraway seads
1 cup sour milk (If you're like most people and don't keep sour milk, measure out regular milk and stir in 2 tbsp of lemon juice or vinegar to sour it)

Directions
-Rinse and drain raisins. Set aside.
-Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda.
-Cut in shortening. (If you don't know, this means dump the shortening in, then use two knives to cut across the mix over and over again until the shortening is cut up into small pieces and incorporated with the dry ingredients)
-Stir in caraway seeds and raisins.
-Beat egg slightly and add to sour milk
-Stir egg and sour milk into dry mixture blending only until all of the flour is moistened. Take care not to over stir. The characteristic coarse ground, feathery texture is ruined with over mixing.
-Turn into greased 8-inch round baking pan. (I like to let the mixture sit for a minute while I grease the pan)
-Bake in a 400-degree oven about 30 minutes

Cut the bread into wedges and serve warm. Yes, it will be crumbly. It goes great with butter or jelly as a breakfast treat, or with butter to go with your corned beef and cabbage.

To reheat cut, spread with butter and heat for 10 minutes in a moderate oven or put on toast in a toaster oven.

Erin go bragh!