Brown Soda Bread

• 3 cups plain flour
• 3 cups wholemeal flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 4 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoons butter
• up to 1 1/2 pints of buttermilk or skim milk (might not need it all)
• extra wholemeal flour for sprinkling

Instructions:

Lightly grease a baking sheet and preheat the oven to 375ºF. Sift all the dry ingredients (all up to the butter), and if the wholemeal flour has some bran sifted out of it, put it back into the mix (the sifting is just to break up lumps, not to take out the grains of the flour). Rub the butter into the flour mix, then add enough buttermilk to make soft dough. Add most of a pint first and work it in, and then if more is needed, add it. Knead the dough lightly until smooth, then shape into a large round about 2 inches thick on the baking sheet. Make a cross in the top of the dough with the handle of a wooden spoon, and sprinkle a little extra wholemeal flour over the surface of the bread. Bake for 40-50 minutes until risen and firm. Cool for 5 minutes before transferring to wire rack.

Note: Originally a British recipe, the measurements have been converted to American measurements for my own use.