When a recipe is really good, and I mean really good, I invite others to share it on my blog. Such was the case with Chef Patrick Auger’s gluten free Irish Soda Bread recipe.
I tried this easy recipe myself and can attest to its yumminess. My photographs should also help convince you that this recipe is the real deal. Not overly dense like some soda breads, with just the right amount of sweetness and a lovely crust. I’m in soda bread heaven!
Chef Patrick baked his in a 10-inch cast-iron pan; I chose a smaller spring-form pan so that my bread would be taller. Use what you have and bake longer if the pot is smaller because your loaf will be taller, needing more time to bake all the way through.
If you’re lucky enough to have any left over a few days after you bake this delightful loaf, delight your family by making gluten free Irish Soda Bread French Toast!
(Does that make it Irish French Toast or French Irish Toast??)
Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ - ¾ cup milk, dairy or non-dairy (not skim)
- 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 3 ½ cups gfJules™ All Purpose Gluten Free Flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbs.) cold butter or non-dairy alternative (e.g. Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
- 12 oz (1 ½ cups) vanilla or plain yogurt (e.g. So Delicious® Cultured Coconut Milk Yogurt)
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 Tbs. caraway seeds (optional)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375° with a rack set in lower third of oven. Lightly spray with cooking oil an 8, 9 or 10-inch round cast-iron skillet, spring-form or round baking pan; set aside.
In a small bowl, add apple cider vinegar to 1/2 cup of milk and set aside to curdle. If it is necessary to add more milk to the dough later, simply add additional un-curdled milk.
In a large bowl, whisk together the gfJules™ flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Using a pastry cutter or a paddle attachment on a stand mixer, cut the butter into the bowl with the flour mixture until a fine pebbly meal is made. Add yogurt, curdled milk, raisins and seeds (if using) and beat until a sticky dough is formed. If the dough is dry or at all crumbly, add more milk (up to ¼ cup) and mix until the dough holds together well and resembles scone dough – sticky, thick and slightly wet.
Scoop dough into prepared skillet or pan, then flour your hands well with gfJules™ flour and pat the dough to form it into a mound in the center of the pan, or use a bench scraper, if you prefer. Dip a large, sharp knife in water, then score an "X" into the center of the mounded dough.
Bake until golden brown and a toothpick or skewer inserted into the center down to the bottom comes out clean, about 1 hour. If the top begins to brown too quickly, loosely cover with a piece of aluminum foil. NOTE: if making in an 8 or 9-inch pan, it may be necessary to bake longer for the entire loaf to cook through, so cover with aluminum foil after one hour to prevent over-browning.
Once fully cooked, transfer to a wire rack to cool before slicing.
Yield: 1 loaf
This recipe was featured on Gluten Free Wednesdays!
Hello Jules,
I was blessed to visit Ireland a couple of years ago. I couldn’t stop eating their soda bread. I do prefer to eat gluten free (gluten causes my stomach to bloat…miserable feeling). I can’t wait to try some of your recipes. I also have had cancer. The number one recommendation from my physician…cut sugar…sugar feeds cancer! What can I use in your recipes to replace sugar? PS there were no raisins in the soda bread I ate in Ireland! the bread was not sweet at all! You must go there! Soooo beautiful…so green…so serene!
You are blessed to have been able to visit Ireland! There is nothing like world travel over material possessions in my book! I visited Ireland many, many years ago before I was gluten free and enjoyed all kinds of breads, so it was important to me to re-create these recipes again gluten free. I have a few different gluten free Irish Soda Bread recipes as well as a gluten free Irish Brown Bread recipe, so definitely check them all out — some are less sweet than others (use the search bar at the top of my site)!
You can use honey or agave or coconut nectar or date syrup as alternative sweeteners 1:1 for sugar where they’re only tablespoons or even up to 1/4 cup replacements in bread recipes and there shouldn’t be anything you need to modify in the recipe unless you find that it’s not cooking all the way through or leaving a rubbery bottom; in that case you’ll want to balance the liquid addition out by adding the same amount of gluten free flour to even the ratio.
Happy baking and be well, Shannon!
~jules
We love this recipe so much. It’s easy to whip up quickly, but it’s so delicious it gets eaten way too fast, this is my second one in less then a week. Yum
GORGEOUS, Susan!!! It really looks quite perfect for an Irish Soda Bread! So glad to hear everyone is loving it!
~jules
What can I substitute for the yogurt, as I can’t have non-dairy or dairy yogurt.
Hi Beverley, try this recipe for my Easy Irish Soda Bread instead. Happy baking!
~jules
I made this yesterday and I’ve eaten nearly half of it already! Delicious. I baked it in a 10″ cast iron skillet for 68 minutes. It still has a little “undone” spot, even though it tested dry. Can’t figure that out…but it tastes so good with the caraway too! Thanks for this recipe.
You’re so very welcome! Happy to hear it was a baking success!
Sometimes with fruit additions like raisins, the added liquid can cause slightly un-done spots, and other times it simply needs to be baked longer. You can always cover the bread with foil and bake longer to prevent it from drying out.
~jules
The print command prints text over pictures. I tried copying and pasting and got pages and pages of logos, comments, and computer language! Somebody fix it!
Hi Carole, I’m sorry you’re having trouble. Typically, if you press the printer icon and then when it brings up the text press the printer icon again, it should print fine. For some reason, copying and pasting and Ctrl + P doesn’t work. Let me know if you’re still having trouble.
~jules
BTW, I cut the sugar to about 3/4 cup, as I try to reduce that whenever possible. Now I want another piece…
Hi Susan, I’m so very glad you tried the recipe and that you and your hubbie both loved it! And also that you cut the sugar with success — always good to know! Glad you have a great recipe to turn to when you have the craving! 🙂
~jules
This WAS wonderful! I’ve made soda bread a few times before, but not for many years. My husband and I each had a piece…and then decided to have more, instead of dinner. LOL!
I used all the milk, plus another tablespoon or two. I don’t have a stand mixer, so I mixed it by hand. That’s probably the only thing that will deter me from making it every week! Thanks for sharing the yummy recipe!
That’s fantastic, Susan!!! So happy it was such a success!
~jules
My regular recipe uses buttermilk instead of the curdled milk & yogurt and it makes a delicious, rich and moist bread. I love that texture! Could it be used in place of the milk & yogurt here too?
Hi SCW, I would say go for it! The yogurt does help the bread keep its shape better than less viscous liquids like buttermilk, but I’m always up for a good experiment. You may want to try the buttermilk in place of the milk first, and stick with the yogurt as a test to see how you like it, and then next time try using all buttermilk for a comparison. Like I said though, I love experimenting in the kitchen — you get to eat all your test batches! 🙂 Let me know how it goes if you try! I’m certain the buttermilk for milk sub will work, just thinking the bread may flatten a bit if you use all buttermilk in place of yogurt too. But you’ve got me curious now!
~jules
I am also pre-diabetic. Can I use Splenda instead of sugar?
Splenda for baking or another sugar sub that bills itself as a 1:1 for granulated sugar. ENJOY!
~jules
Absolutely hate raisins (all dry fruit really), but like Irish Soda Bread. So instead of having to pick out the raisins, can I use blueberries?
Hi Michelle, of course! You don’t have to use any fruit at all, actually. Enjoy the recipe!
~jules
Hi Jules! Traditional recipes for Irish Soda bread call for sour cream, instead of yogurt. Do you think it will be as good? Can’t wait to try it! Thanks!
Hi Jan, yes sour cream would work well in this recipe – let me know how you like it!
~jules
This looks great! I’m featuring it this week at Gluten Free Wednesdays 🙂
-Cassidy
Thanks so much, Cassidy!
~jules
How much longer for the smaller pan, making it now and don’t want to ruin it/ 15 minutes too much?
Hi Valerie,
I fear I’m too late to respond to your question! Hopefully you baked it until tester came out without wet dough on it, and it all worked out ok for you! It depends on the size of the pan how much longer to bake it, but with a much smaller pan, 15 minutes certainly wouldn’t be too much.
~jules
Trying it now, hoping for the best.
If I don’t have any yogurt, is there a substitution or should I make a run to the store?
Hi Shane,
For that large of an ingredient, I wouldn’t want to promise that it would work with a substitute. Sorry!
~jules
No prob! Thanks for getting back to me. I’m off to the store now. Happy St Patrick’s Day!!
What a lovely artisanal bread, Jules! I love Irish soda bread but this looks just stunning in every way.
Thanks so much, Audrey! Erin go bragh!
~jules
OH YUM!! I can’t wait to try this! 🙂
the crumb on this looks so perfect…. i love irish soda bread, especially because it’s just a little sweet. thanks for sharing the recipe!
You bet, Amanda! Enjoy the recipe!
~jules
I love that you used yogurt in here too! So fabulous and allergy-free!
I love using yogurt in my breads and quick breads. Secret ingredient that makes bread better every time, Rebecca! Thanks for stopping by!
~jules
hi, your gluten free Irish soda bread looks amazing. Unfortunately I have a yeast intolerance as well as gluten. Would I be able to make the milk curdle using lemon juice? If this does work, would I add both the curds and whey to the mixture?
Thanks for your help.
Ann
Hi Ann, yes, lemon juice would work fine here when added to the milk.
Enjoy the recipe!
~jules