This Week Lucy Loves: Irish Soda Bread with Bacon and Cheese

This week, Lucy Loves is celebrating St Patrick’s Day with this wonderful recipe for Irish Soda Bread with Bacon and Cheese.

Soda bread is much less of a kerfuffle to make than yeast based bread with no need to knead and no lengthy rising time. The resulting bread, with the fab additions of Irish cheddar and bacon, is full flavoured, soft but with a crisp crust. It’s perfect served warm slathered in butter or to accompany some hearty soup.

This quick and simple recipe can be whipped up within the hour, leaving you more time to wet the shamrock with a toast to St Patrick.

This recipe will feature on lucyloves.uk.com this week

Irish Soda Bread with Bacon and Cheese Recipe

Makes 1 small loaf to serve around 4 to 6 people

You will only need a big bowl, no gadgets

300g plain flour

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

A good pinch black pepper

1/2 teaspoon caster sugar

100g strong cheese, a nice Irish Cheddar maybe, cubed

2 tablespoons-ish fresh parsley, chopped

120g, around 3 rashers, smoked streaky bacon, chopped

180ml buttermilk, or milk with a teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice added

Lots of soft butter for serving

Pre heat your oven to around 180 degrees fan assisted.

If you don’t have buttermilk, measure out your milk then stir in a teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice. Leave for at least ten minutes.

Heat a frying pan and add your chopped bacon. Cook until crisp and browning then leave to cool while you crack on with the bread. In a large bowl, measure out your flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt, black pepper and sugar, stir together. Cut your cheese into small cubes, chop your fresh parsley then add these to the flour mixture and stir again. Add in the cooled, cooked bacon then pour in the buttermilk and mix until you have a soft dough.

Tip the dough onto a well-floured work surface and knead for a minute or two. Fashion the dough into a small round loaf shape then place onto a floured baking tray and make two half inch deep cuts in the top to form a cross. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. Serve warm in thick slices, slathered in butter.