Soda Bread and soda scones

Make the dough quite wet, as it will be cooked in a tin, so the form will hold and you will have a less dense bread as a result.

By adding less buttermilk-you will have a stiffer dough, perfect for making the traditional round soda bread or for making individual soda bread scones.

Dry ingredients:
500g wholemeal flour
1heaped tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 level tsp salt
2 level tsp brown sugar (you can use Castor, granulated or honey/treacle also)

Liquid ingredients:
1 egg
50ml oil (sunflower or oil of choice or melted butter)
buttermilk (about 280-300ml approx - or enough to make soft dough)

(if you don't have buttermilk you can substitute it with milk to which you have added 2 tsp of cream of tartar or bextartar if you can't find cream of tartar)

Extra
seeds, wheatgerm (optional)
butter and wholemeal flour for preparing the tin

Method:
Add all dry ingredients together and mix well.

Make a well in the centre and add the egg, oil and half the buttermilk, mix to combine and add the rest of the buttermilk, adding more if necessary.

Butter your tin and dust with flour or seeds or wheatgerm, turn your soda bread into the tin, and sprinkle the top with seeds (optional), slash the top with a knife and bake for approx 50minutes to 1 hour at 200C

Turn out of the tin after the designated time, tap the base of the loaf, if it does not sound hollow; return to the oven for another 10 minutes or so.

Leave on a wire rack to cool.