American Irish Soda Bread

This American Irish Soda Bread is infused with orange zest and semi-sweet chocolate chips. It has the signature Irish Soda Bread crust, but it’s very light on the inside. It’s sweet and fresh and pairs perfectly with tea or coffee. I promise you, it is impossible to have just one slice. The best part is that it’s very easy to make.

The fusion of flavors in this bread came from three different cultures, plus some memories. I’ll take you back with me to explain. When I was growing up, my mom used to get Christmas presents from work, which usually consisted of a massive bag of different chocolate candies, chocolate truffles, and some citrus, usually oranges or mandarins. At a time when everything was scarce, to me, this was magical. I mean, who doesn’t like chocolate? The candies would be in the same bag as oranges and mandarins. When we opened it, the aroma was intoxicating. Sweet chocolate with zingy, fresh orange. Since then, I’ve wanted to create something where both of those flavors are present. I’m happy to say this is it.

So, what makes this bread American/Irish? American chocolate chips and Irish soda bread base, but with yogurt and milk instead of the buttermilk. I felt that the buttermilk would make it too sour. Also, traditional Irish soda bread is either round or triangle-shaped; however, this one is shaped like a rectangular loaf.

A few notes on the baking process.

I made my bread in a loaf pan 8.5″ L x 4.5″ W x 2.75″ H size. Also, I recommend covering your loaf after 35 minutes of baking, as it starts to brown too quickly.
Start checking your loaf at the 45-minute mark. Mine takes an entire hour to bake, but everyone’s oven is different. If your loaf pan is slightly bigger, it might need less time in the oven.
I dust my bread with the powdered sugar while it’s still a bit warm; I like the sugar to be absorbed a little so I can add more. Don’t judge.

If you don’t have a stand mixer, use a food processor or pastry cutter to cut in the butter. If you use a food processor, after the butter is mixed, dump everything into a big bowl and use a spatula or a wooden spoon to finish the mixing. I don’t recommend mixing everything in a food processor, as the chocolate chips will blend. Also, even in the stand mixer, the butter doesn’t always break up as fast as I’d like it to; it’s ok to stop it and get in there with your hands to help the process along.

American Irish Soda Bread

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This American Irish Soda Bread is infused with orange flavor and semi-sweet chocolate chips. It has the signature Irish Soda Bread crust, but it’s very light on the inside. It’s sweet and fresh and pairs perfectly with tea or coffee. I promise you, it is impossible to have just one slice.

• Author: Olga Lang
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour
• Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
• Yield: 1 loaf 1x
• Category: Bread, Dessert
• Method: Oven
• Cuisine: American, Irish

Ingredients

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• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• zest of 2 medium-sized oranges, about 1 heaping tablespoon
• 1 stick cold butter, chopped in small pieces
• 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
• Powdered sugar for dusting*

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Mix flour, baking soda, salt, and sugar in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.
3. In a separate bowl, mix yogurt and milk until it becomes the same consistency. Set aside.
4. Add cold butter to the flour mixture and mix it until it becomes coarse; mix through the flour mixture.
5. Add yogurt and milk mixture with the orange zest. Mix on low until the batter becomes shaggy.
6. Add chocolate chips and finish mixing by hand.
7. Bake in a loaf pan at 350F for 45 minutes to an hour until a toothpick cake tester comes out clean. 
8. Once the bread is done baking, let it cool for about 10 minutes before taking it out of the pan and placing it on a wire rack to cool.
9. Dust with powdered sugar and serve.

Notes

*Powdered sugar is not in the ingredient picture. 

*Store in an airtight container or a Ziplock bag for up to four days at room temperature.