St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner and everyone in Chicago is gearing up for next weekend’s dying of the Chicago river and annual parade! Which means I spent this weekend recipe testing to create the perfect gluten-free, vegan Irish soda bread!
Irish soda bread is a quick bread made with baking soda as a leavening agent instead of yeast resulting in a dense savory bread with a texture that is a cross between a scone and a biscuit. The ingredients of traditional Irish soda bread include flour, baking soda, buttermilk, eggs, butter and raisins.
This healthier version features a blend of gluten-free flours (garbanzo bean, fava bean and brown rice), nondairy milk, ground flax seeds, sweet currants and savory caraways seeds. Whether you need a large loaf to gift to family and friends or several small mini loafs for your St. Patrick’s Day brunch, this gluten-free, vegan, superfood-rich Irish soda bread recipe is one you can feel good about!
Gluten-Free Vegan Irish Soda Bread
vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free, peanut-free, shellfish-free, fish-free
Makes 1 large loaf or 4 mini loaves (Serves 8)
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp ground flax seed
- 3 Tbsp warm water
- 2/3 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- ¾ cup garbanzo bean/fava bean flour mix
- 1/3 cup brown rice flour
- 1/3 cup tapioca starch
- ¼ cup potato starch
- 2 Tbsp coconut sugar
- 2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp gelatin (or agar powder for completely vegan version)
- 1 tsp caraway seeds
- ½ cup currants
Method
- Preheat oven to 350*F.
- In a small bowl, combine ground flax seed and warm water. Whisk together and set aside.
- In another small bowl, combine almond milk and lemon juice. Whisk together and set aside.
- Combine flax mixture and milk mixture together. Add coconut oil and whisk to combine.
- In a large bowl, sift together garbanzo bean flour, brown rice flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, coconut sugar, xanthan gum, salt, baking powder, baking soda and gelatin. Stir to combine.
- Add wet ingredient and stir until just combined, being careful not to over mix.
- Fold in caraway seeds and currants.
- Transfer batter into a muffin tin or loaf pan, filling until nearly full as contents don’t rise much.
- Bake muffins for 35 minutes or large loaf for 50 minutes until top(s) are golden brown. The longer you cook this bread, the drier, more biscuit-like it will become; shorter cooking time will result in the texture of a moister sweet bread.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan and serving.
265 calories | 43g carb | 4g protein | 9g fat | 385mg sodium | 10g sugar
Serve Irish soda bread with a hearty stew for a savory meal or top with a pat of vegan butter and a drizzle of honey or agave nectar for a sweet snack!
In light of the holiday, I thought it would be fun to highlight some old food photography of mine from 2010 when I last posted about Irish Soda Bread. When I started my blog back in 2009, blogger food photography was a totally different ballgame – a point-and-shoot camera and enough light to produce an in-focus image was sufficient. But over the years, bloggers have seriously stepped up their game.
Beginning with my days in the dark room of my high school to the day I first laid hands on a digital DSLR in 2010, I have always had a passion for photography. But if I’m being totally honest here, understanding the camera and photo composition never came easy to me. While I am still learning new things every day (there is always room for improvement!), years of food photography research, countless hours of practice, and a love for the hobby has kept me striving to create mouthwatering images that truly showcase how delicious healthy food can be!