Traditional soda bread

This is very simple to make and lighter than the normal brown bread that I make.
No need for a mixer either, just a big bowl and a fork.
This is an ideal recipe to add to your Kan Ban Store Cupboard.

Ingredients

225 g plain flour

225 g wholemeal

Pinch of salt

2 level teaspoons of bread soda

40g of butter

1 teaspoon of sugar

300 ml of buttermilk

Preheat your oven to gas mark 5.
Melt the butter in a microwave or in a pot. It is only about 30 seconds in the microwave.
Put all of the ingredients in a bowl. Mix it up and add more buttermilk or more flour to get it to the consistency that will allow you to turn it out onto a worktop without it gluing there and also is also wet enough to activate the soda and get it to rise. A bit of practice will get this perfect, but a bit off will be no disaster.
Lightly flour a clean work surface. Turn the dough out onto it. With clean hands shape the dough into a flattened round. Cut a cross in the top to allow the loaf to expand in the traditional shape.
Sprinkle some flour on the baking tray. Place the round of dough onto the tray and put it in the top of the oven for 30 minutes. If your oven is fan assisted you may need to adjust this down a bit and even put the loaf on the centre shelf. I have a normal gas oven, so these figures are for that.
The loaf is cooked when it sounds hollow when tapped. Cool it on a wire rack to stop the base getting soggy. Best eaten warm, but keeps well for a few days.