Irish Soda Bread

By es123

Ingredients

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
• 1 cup raisins
• 2 tablespoons caraway seed
• 1 3/4 cups well-shaken buttermilk

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 375 F. Butter and flour a large baking sheet, knocking off excess flour.
Sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter or your fingers until the butter is pea-sized lumps. Add raisins and caraway, then add buttermilk and stir just until dough is evenly moistened but still lumpy.
Transfer dough to a well-floured surface and gently knead with floured hands about 8 times to form a soft but slightly less sticky dough, then form into a ball. Pat dough ball into a domed 8-inch round on baking sheet. Cut a 1/2-inch-deep X on top of each loaf with a sharp knife.
Bake in the middle of oven until golden brown and bottom sounds hollow when tapped, 45 to 55 minutes. Transfer to rack to cool completely.