Fig and Walnut Soda Bread with Honey Butter
Fig and Walnut Soda Bread with Honey Butter
You can make this recipe in a 9 x 5 loaf pan or a cast-iron skillet. Just adjust the cooking time as indicated in the recipe, accordingly.
ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
3/4 cup chopped walnut halves
1/2 cup diced dried figs (I used black mission figs)
1 Tbsp. baking powder
2 tsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. table salt
2 cups buttermilk (I recommend real buttermilk for this one, instead of soured milk or powder)
method
Grease a cast-iron frying pan or 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and set aside. Preheat oven to 400° F.
In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, walnuts, figs, baking powder, sugar, baking soda and salt. (The figs are sticky and tend to stick together in clumps. I like to get my hands in there and break them up. Once covered with flour, they will stay separated).
Make a well in centre; pour in buttermilk and stir to form sticky ball (more of a really thick batter than a ball, really). Scrape into prepared pan; pushing dough into the edges/corners.
Dust with 1 Tbsp. more all-purpose flour. Bake in centre of 400° F. oven until golden and cake tester inserted in centre comes out clean, 25-30 minutes if you're baking in a skillet or up to 55 minutes if baking in a loaf pan. If bread is browning too much, simply put a piece of tin foil over the top to stop further browning. My cast-iron frying pan is 10-inches (across the top) and takes about 25 minutes to cook. If you're pan is larger, your bread will be thinner and it will take less time to cook.
Let stand in pan for 5 minutes, then run a knife around the edges. Gently loosen from the edges and slide bread onto a cooling rack. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting.
This bread, like most soda breads, doesn't stay fresh for too long. If wrapped in plastic, it will stay fresh for a couple of days or it does freeze wonderfully. I highly recommend the sweet butter spread to go with this bread!
Optional Honey Butter Spread: This bread is not sweet but if you'd like a bit of sweet, try this lovely and simple butter spread with honey. In a small bowl and using fork, mash 1/3 cup butter, softened, with 2 Tbsp liquid honey until smooth. Makes about 1/2 cup.
Adapted from this Canadian Living recipe
http://www.fortysomething.ca/2010/03/fig_and_walnut_soda_bread.php