The loaf of the Irish

I fell in love with sourdough bread when I worked in Dublin a few years ago, so the leprechauns in my happy gland did a dance of joy when I found Collette Comins’ super easy recipe while paging through her cookbook, The Farm Kitchen. The book is full of wonderful dishes like French Potato Pie, Home-made Pork Sausages and Fig Tarte Tatin, and the photographs are droolicious.

Back to the bread. Normally, sourdough bread requires nurturing a starter of flour and water and letting natural yeasts develop and mature over a week or so, but this is the instant gratification version. No freaky living organism in the fridge is needed for this loaf and after making it a few times with a dodgy oven, I can pronounce the recipe robust and rewarding.

I’m greedy and love hot bread, so usually whip off a bit of crust as it comes out the oven and have it with butter and honey. If you can manage to resist quaffing the whole loaf in a day, it lasts quite well – it’s good for at least 3 days. When not pilfering from the loaf, I store it in my wooden bread bin wrapped in a clean cotton kitchen towel.

500g cake flour
5ml salt
5ml bicarbonate of soda
400ml buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 230 degrees Celsius (450 degrees Fahrenheit, Gas Mark 8).
Sift the dry ingredients and make a well in the centre.
Pour in the liquid and using one hand, mix in the flour from the sides of the bowl to form a ball.
Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for a second to tidy it up.
Place on a floured baking sheet and cut a cross in the top.
Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees C (400 degrees F, Gas Mark 6) and bake for further 30 minutes until golden brown and hollow when tapped.