WHEN I’M ASKED TO ADVISE BEGINNERS on what recipes to start with, I tell them, “Start with something you can manage, and that will turn out well, like soda bread or treacle bread.” Back when my niece Gemma was a young girl, I thought I’d teach her to cook. She told me she didn’t like to because it dirtied the kitchen! I got her started with her first soda bread. Next, we tackled Treacle Bread, the dark-colored soda bread flavored with dark treacle, which, to those of you unfamiliar, is a bit like blackstrap molasses. Dark treacle both sweetens and adds a bitter, distinctive flavor to this basic bread, and like Guinness is a unique, particular taste beloved of the Irish. Inside of 10 minutes, Gemma had done a stellar job and had a fine loaf to pop in the oven. Just as important as the measuring and the mixing is cleaning as you go, and we worked as if we were in a restaurant kitchen. Today, she’s not only a great cook, she leaves no mess, and I daresay that pleases her mum as much as do the delicious treats my niece serves.
MAKES
6 TO 8 SERVINGS
2½ cups / 300 grams all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon granulated sugar
1¼ cups / 300 milliliters buttermilk, plus more as needed
3 tablespoons dark treacle, warmed (if you can’t find treacle, you can use 2 tablespoons molasses plus 1 tablespoon honey)
Preheat the oven to 400°F / 200°C and lightly flour a baking sheet.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, and sugar and stir lightly with a fork. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, using your hand. In a separate bowl, mix the buttermilk and treacle together and whisk. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the well of the dry ingredients and mix quickly with a large fork to form a soft dough. If the dough seems too stiff, you can add a bit of buttermilk, a very small amount at a time, taking care not to make the dough too wet or sticky.
Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly, taking care not to overwork it. Form it into a round that will fit onto your prepared baking sheet. Flatten the dough slightly before pressing it onto the prepared baking sheet. Cut a shallow cross on the top, extending almost to the edges, and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the round sounds hollow when tapped. Let cool on a cooling rack. Store in a breadbox or in an airtight tin for up to 5 days.