Favorite Irish recipes for brunch?

Old Jan 13th, 2006, 07:25 AM
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MaureenB
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Favorite Irish recipes for brunch?

I promised to bring an Irish offering for a school teacher brunch this month. I said I'd provide a bread or pastry. Anyone bring back an authentic recipe from Ireland they can recommend? I'd like a simple scone or muffin or bread-- something easy to make at Denver's altitude. (There are lots of soda bread recipes out there, but what the heck IS soda bread?)
 
Old Jan 13th, 2006, 07:33 AM
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lawchick
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Basic Brown Soda Bread (commonly known as "Brown Bread")
This simple, wholesome bread can be eaten fresh with butter, jam or cheese and is delicious served with a bowl of home-made soup. It slices better if left to cool and "set" for at least four hours. This recipe makes one large loaf.

1lb / 450g coarse wholemeal flour
6 oz / 175g plain white flour
1 rounded teaspoon bread soda
1 teaspoon salt
¾ pint / 450ml buttermilk (approx.)
Method
Preheat over to 400 °F / 200 °C / gas mark 6.
Mix the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Stir in enough buttermilk to make a fairly soft dough.
Turn on to a work surface dusted with wholemeal flour and knead lightly until smooth underneath.
Form into a circle, about 1 ½ " / 4cm thick, and put onto a baking sheet. Mark a deep cross in the top with a floured knife. Bake for about 45 minutes, until bread is browned and sounds hollow when tapped on the base. Cool on a wire rack, wrapped in a clean tea/dish towel to keep the crust soft.
(This recipe is taken from "The Best of Irish Breads and Baking" by Georgina Campbell – Wolfhound Press – 1996)

White Soda bread is made in exactly the same way but using only plain flour and a little more buttermilk.

 
Old Jan 13th, 2006, 07:38 AM
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ira
 
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Hi M,

>...what the heck IS soda bread?<

It is a "quick" bread in which the leavening agent is baking soda, instead of yeast.

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Old Jan 13th, 2006, 07:39 AM
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What about Banoffi - it's not originally Irish but it's very popular here and to be honest, I've never seen it anywhere else.

Banoffi Pie
About 1/2 packet Digestive biscuits.
2 oz butter
1 tablespoon sugar (optional)
1 tin condensed milk
3 bananas, sliced lengthwise
1 pint whipping cream, whipped

The day before, place unopened can of condensed milk into a pan of water and boil for three hours - don't let it boil dry. Allow to cool.

Make biscuit base by turning the biscuits into crumbs, melting the butter in the microwave (only about 30 seconds), mixing the two together with the sugar, if using, and pressing down into a flan dish. Leave in the fridge to harden.

Next day, open the can of milk, which will have turned to toffee, and spread it over the biscuit base - which will try and stick to the toffee, so just swoosh it round as best you can. Top this with the sliced bananas, and instantly with the cream.

Refrigerate until wanted.

Yum

 
Old Jan 13th, 2006, 07:53 AM
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MaureenB
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Thanks for the quick replies! Lawchick, Banoffi sounds great. Could it sit at room temp. for an hour or two and still be tasty? You say it's "popular here"-- are you in Ireland? And, what are digestive biscuits? Do you know a brand name in the States? Are they like shortbread, graham crackers, teething biscuits?
And, use sweetened condensed milk? (I did that trick once as the base for a Mexican dessert and it was good.)
Ira, that explains the "soda"-- dunh...
Thanks for the tips and the help y'all.
 
Old Jan 13th, 2006, 08:04 AM
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Digestive biscuits are sweet biscuits. I don't think there's anything like them in the USA but you can get them on the internet.

Isn't Banoffee pie Scottish?
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Old Jan 13th, 2006, 12:21 PM
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I've made this a couple of times. Once when my daughter needed something for a multicultural fair at school. It's quite good and can sit out without worry.

Tea Brach (Irish Tea Bread)

1 15oz box dark raisins
1 1lb. box dark brown sugar
2 1/2 C. brewed tea, cooled (just tea, no special kind)
4 C. self-rising flour*
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 t. each nutmeg, cinnamon and allspice

In a large bowl, mix raisins and brown sugar. Pour the cooled tea over the mixture. Cover and leave overnight. Next day, add spices and eggs. Stir in the flour. Pour batter into 2 greased and floured 8x5 loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to one hour. Bread is done when a strand of uncooked spaghetti comes out clean. Cool briefly in the pans, then turn out to cool completely on a rack. Delicious sliced and buttered or spread with cream cheese. (Also good as is!)

*To make your own s.r. flour, add 6 t. baking powder and 2 t. salt to 4 C. all-purpose flour.

This recipe is from the Dec. '96 issue of a newsletter called "Cook & Tell" and was submitted by someone named Gerald Connors who got the recipe from the wife of the Pipe Major of his bagpipe band.
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Old Jan 14th, 2006, 08:25 AM
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Caph52, the tea bread sounds good, too. Is it a moist, cake-like bread? Like a pumpkin bread or a banana bread? Thanks!
 
Old Jan 14th, 2006, 08:32 AM
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MaureenB
I would go with the tea bread. I've eaten it lots of times in Ireland. Have a practice, it's easy to make, can be left out & it's a bit different.
It's really delicious spread with butter or try it toasted, YUM!
I,m going to try this recipe myself
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Old Jan 14th, 2006, 08:41 AM
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“Yellow Man”
Prep Time 15min +\-
Cook 45 min

1 heaping tbsp real butter
1-cup brown sugar
4 cups corn syrup
2 tbsp distilled vinegar
1 tsp baking powder

Melt the butter in saucepan, coat inside of pan with it.
Add the sugar, syrup and the vinegar, stir over low heat until the sugar and syrup have melted.
Bring the mix to a boil and cook without stirring until the temp reaches 290F. Test by dropping a little into a cup of cold water.
Add baking powder, this makes the mix boil up, stir well again and pour into greased pan, leaving until almost set before cutting into squares or you can let harden and break into squares.

This is a centuries old treat that is supposed to have started with the “Lammas Fair” which is held in County Antrim
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Old Jan 14th, 2006, 09:31 AM
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Maureen, it's been a while since I've made it. But, as I recall, it's moist and more dense than cake. You'll notice that the only fat in it is from the eggs. As rhona said, it's easy to make. Getting the recipe out has made me want to make it again. I know we liked it. We just always seem to have bananas that are just about to go. So I rarely seem to have a chance to make anything else. It's a good thing I've got lots of banana bread and muffin recipes!
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Old Jan 14th, 2006, 05:35 PM
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CAPH52, I know what you mean about bananas. We make lots of smoothies with them, too. Thanks again, everyone!
 
Old Jan 16th, 2006, 02:15 AM
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lawchick
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http://www.britishdelights.com/detai...product_id=b01

Digestives are just plain wheat biscuits with sugar in them. I'm sure there is a similar one in the states, but I don't know what it is.
 
Old Jan 16th, 2006, 07:34 PM
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MaureenB
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Thanks, lawchick. They sound like the Carr wheat biscuits that tastes like they have graham in them. In fact, I'll bet I could take a shortcut and use a graham cracker crust.
 
Old Jan 16th, 2006, 10:15 PM
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Maureen,

yes you could! The taste difference will be minimal.

When I eat a dessert made with Graham Crackers it tastes the same as the cheesecakes I used to make with digestives
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Old Jan 17th, 2006, 01:09 AM
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You could try potato farl

900g/2lb Potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
25g/2oz Butter
100g/4oz Plain Flour
Salt
1 tbsp Bacon fat, lard or oil

Instructions

1. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan, cover with salted water, bring ti the boil then cook for about 20 minutes or until very tender.

2. Drain the potatoes well, return to the pan together with the butter and mash well.

3. Add the flour to the potato mixture, mix well then lightly knead.

4. Divide the mixture into two and roll out each half on a floured board to form circles about 20cm/8-inches in diameter. Cut each circle into quarters.

5. Heat the fat in a large frying pan, add the potato farls and cook for about 3 minutes on each side. You will probably have to do this in two batches. Keep the first batch warm in the oven.

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Old Jan 17th, 2006, 01:26 AM
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I don't know if you have sausage rolls in the US, but they are easy to make and tasty.

Get some flaky pastry, roll it out and get some Irish sausage (take off the skin) or normal sausage meat, put it in a line down the pastry and fold.

Score some lines across the pastry and brush with egg wash.

Place in oven until golden brown.

Its not particularly traditional Irish food more like UK, but you could always add shamrocks with the pastry on top to give it more of a feel.

Gourmet Geordie
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Old Jan 17th, 2006, 02:53 AM
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I have always understand that our digestive buscuits are your graham crackers.

What about Barm Brack ?

I think Banoffi Pie is Scottish.
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Old Jan 17th, 2006, 03:14 AM
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Maureen. The barm brack is similar to the tea bread. As a child I ate it Ireland. Around Halloween my grandmother would make it & hide items in the mixture ( covered in greasproof paper to make little packets) What ever item you found in your slice, decided your fate for the year. A ring -you would be married. A pea - you would be poor. A bean - you would be an old maid etc. As kids & even as young adults we loved the excitement of cutting the brack.
Again, serve as the tea bread, with butter.
Have a look at foodireland.com for some recipes.
If you google barm brack traditions , you will find out more about what irish people put in the bracks long ago
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Old Jan 18th, 2006, 08:59 AM
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MaureenB
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Thank you, everyone. I will keep the recipes you so generously provided.
I am going to make the Irish Tea Brach for this week's school brunch, and am off to buy 'self-rising flour' soon. I am afraid the Banoffee would no keep well, sitting out at room temp. for an hour, or transport well to school with my teenage son!
I love the story about hidden things in the Brach-- maybe I'll do that for our family on St. Pat's Day at home. Thanks again.
 

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