Irish Soda Bread with Aged Cheddar

Equipment

Ingredients

3 cups bread flour
1½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher sea salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons cold butter
1¼ cups buttermilk see note to make your own
1 to 1½ cups freshly grated aged cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400ºF (205ºC) and prepare parchment-lined 10-inch cast iron skillet.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and pepper. Using a box grater, grate the cold butter into the flour then toss everything together with your hands until the pieces are evenly distributed.
Pour in buttermilk and stir or mix by hand just until ingredients start to come together. Fold in cheddar and keep turning the dough until it starts to look a little sticky and stringy.
Transfer dough to a floured surface and use floured hands to shape it into a ball. Score the top of the loaf with an ‘X’ to allow even heat distribution.
Transfer to skillet and bake for 35-40 minutes until golden and it sounds hollow when you tap on the top. Remove from oven, transfer to wire cooling rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Notes

Flour: I like to use a hard wheat unbleached bread flour to get a good crusty, chewy loaf. Hard wheat or ‘strong’ flour is made from hard wheat kernels and is a little more dense and higher in protein than other flours. This recipe will also work well with other bread or all-purpose flours although results may vary in terms of both texture and appearance.

Don’t have buttermilk? Simply add 1 tablespoon + ¼ teaspoon vinegar to 1¼ cups milk, stir and let sit for 15 minutes until thickened.

Storage: Irish soda bread will keep in a well-sealed bag on the counter for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 2 months.