Baking
We offer a range of baking and cooking classes, whether you are a novice or a seasoned cook we have something to inspire you. Check out our range of classes, search by type or calendar view.

Cakes and Desserts
Cakes and Desserts Info

Recipes

Fruit Soda Bread

What you’ll need

Lightly floured baking tray.


Ingredients

  • 12 oz plain flour
  • 3 oz raisins
  • 1 tbsp caster sugar
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (too much turns bread yellow)
  • ½ tsp cream of tartar (keeps the bread white – is optional)
  • Pinch of salt
  • Approximately ¼ – ¾ pint buttermilk

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 220C or 200C Fan.
  2. Sieve the flour, baking soda and cream or tartar into a large bowl.
  3. Add the raisins, salt and sugar and aerate well with hands.
  4. Make a well in the centre and add half of the buttermilk at first, bring together with your hand and keep adding enough buttermilk to make a soft dough (almost wet).
  5. Turn out onto a well floured surface.
  6. Bring it together very lightly into a ball and place on a flour-dusted baking tray, make a cross with a sharp knife. And then a little dent in each corner to let the fairies out!
  7. Bake for approximately 25mins . In a conventional oven at 220C for 10 minutes then reduce temp to 200C.
  8. You can turn the loaf upside down for the last 5 minutes.
  9. The top should be golden and the base should sound hollow when tapped.
  10. Cool on a rack (wrapped in a clean tea towel if you prefer not to have a hard crust)

Notes

Cream of tartar is an acid and reacts with bicarbonate of soda to raise a mixture. Bicarbonate of soda is an alkali and reacts with an acid (buttermilk or lemon juice) to raise a mixture. Baking powder is a combination of cream of tartar and bicarbonate of soda and some other base flour (rice or corn flour) which reacts with moisture (milk or eggs) to raise a mixture. When making a cake it is essential to put it immediately into a hot oven.

Share

Testimonial

Thank you both so much for the very enjoyable course – the chocolate cake was delicious & a great hit😋🤗

Maria

Subscribe to our newsletter to get special offers, class updates, recipes and more.