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Categories:Viewed: 56 - Published at: 8 years ago
Ingredients
- 3 12 cups irish flour (READ RECIPE DESCRIPTION - 450g) or 3 12 cups plain flour (READ RECIPE DESCRIPTION - 450g) or 3 12 cups unbleached flour (READ RECIPE DESCRIPTION - 450g)
- 12 teaspoon baking soda (1 Imperial teaspoon) or 12 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (1 Imperial teaspoon)
- 12 teaspoon salt (1 Imperial teaspoon)
- 2 teaspoons caster sugar or 2 teaspoons superfine sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 13 cups buttermilk (READ RECIPE DESCRIPTION - 1/2 Imperial pint or 1/3 liter) or 1 13 cups sour milk (READ RECIPE DESCRIPTION - 1/2 Imperial pint or 1/3 liter)
- 12 cup sultana raisins (any combination) or 12 cup golden raisins (any combination) or 12 cup dark raisin (any combination)
- 1 teaspoon caster sugar or 1 teaspoon superfine sugar
- 23 cup buttermilk (1/4 Imperial pint or 166ml) or 23 cup sour milk (1/4 Imperial pint or 166ml)
Method
- Preheat oven to 450F/230C/Gas Mark 6.
- DO NOT START UNTIL OVEN IS READY.
- Then ignore the doorbell, telephone and cell phone until your bread is in the oven.
- For best results, measure everything before you begin.
- Sieve the flour, bread soda, salt and about 2 teaspoons of sugar into a large bowl and mix in the fruit.
- Whisk about 1 1/3 cup of the milk together with the egg.
- Make a well in the center of the flour and pour in almost all of the milk and egg mixture.
- Quickly and with a light touch, use your fingers to quickly and lightly bring the flour in from the edges and mix with the milk, until all the ingredients come together into a dough.
- Use your hands, not a spoon or mixer.
- Work quickly and lightly.
- The dough should be soft rather than wet or sticky.
- If it is too dry add a little more of the milk and egg mix or the of the remaining buttermilk.
- Once it has come together, do not knead, just place it on a floured wooden board, pick up a handful of flour and rub it into the palms of your hands so that they are perfectly dry, and and then shape the dough into a round about 2 inches thick.
- Brush the top of the dough with some of the remaining milk and sprinkle the rest of the sugar over it.
- Cut a deep cross on the top of the dough.
- Put the bread into the oven immediately.
- After 5 minutes turn the oven down to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C/regulo 6).
- The initial high temperature gives the bread a nice brown crust.
- After another 25 minutes take the bread out and knock on the base.
- If it sounds hollow it is done, if not return it to the oven for about 5 minutes and then check again.
- Eat the day of baking or toast it the next day.
