Quinoa Soda Bread

I am a big fan of Irish breads. Hearty, no-nonsense breads that go well with soups or as I sometimes like it with either Irish cheese or Irish butter. Irish soda bread is one of my favorite breads whether it is sweet  with raisins as in the Americanized version or rustic and dense in the traditional version. I’m on a gluten-free baking kick and made a gluten-free quinoa soda bread adapted from Enlightened Cooking. I added a bit of sugar as I like the sweetness, but you can leave it and the raisins out if you want a more rustic type of bread.

I also used half quinoa flour and half gluten-free all purpose flour as I wanted a lighter tasting loaf that the all-purpose flour brings. There was a hint of a cornbread-like flavor that was really pleasant. I also added some pectin for a bit more soft spongy texture inside.

Gluten-Free Quinoa Irish Soda Bread

Adapted from Enlightened Cooking

Makes one 8″ by 4″  loaf

• 1 cup quinoa flour, toasted (quinoa flour can taste a bit bitter, so toasting it gives a nice-tasting result: Cake and Commerce has great instructions on toasting quinoa flour )
• 1 cup Gluten-Free All Purpose flour
• 1 and 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon pectin
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds (optional, I didn’t use it)
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon  baking soda
• 2 tablespoons evaporated cane juice, sucanat, organic granulated sugar, or coconut palm sugar
• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon buttermilk or non-dairy buttermilk (DIY buttermilk: 1 cup of any type of milk mixed with 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice, let curdle for 15 minutes)
• 1/2 cup golden raisins

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F.
2. Grease an 8″ by 4″ loaf pan.
3. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the quinoa flour, GF all-purpose flour, baking powder, pectin, caraway seeds, salt, baking soda, and evaporated cane juice/sugar.
4. To the dry mixture, add the buttermilk and  raisins. Mix until blended and flour is all hydrated. Place dough into greased pan.
5. Bake 25-30 minutes until toothpick inserted in the middle of the loaf comes out clean. Let cool for about 5 minutes and place on a wire rack to completely cool.

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