Soda bread

Soda bread is probably the easiest bread that there is to make.

Sieve together 1 lb of plain flour with 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda. Some recipes advise dissolving the cream of tartar in with half a pint of milk but I just add it to the dry mix.

Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in half a pint of milk. Mix together until the dough comes together. It should be soft but not sticky. Knead on a lightly floured surface until it’s smooth which should take only a few minutes.

Shape into a round but don’t press down as this will make the bottom of the loaf dense.

Cut a deepish cross across the loaf and dust lightly with flour.

Bake in an oven preheated to 210 C for 30 to 35 minutes. It will sound hollow when rapped with your knuckles on the base.

This recipe is just about foolproof and I’ve yet to meet anybody who hasn’t made a decent loaf from it.