Irish Soda Bread

I haven't posted for awhile, and even longer a recipe, so I am posting my Irish Soda Bread recipe that I baked a few days ago.  I first used this recipe when homeschooling Kelcie and we were learning about Irish culture.  This bread has a wonderful flavor.  Expect the crust to be a little tough, but to me it just adds character to the homemade bread.  It's so much better than a loaf from the store!

IRISH SODA BREAD

4 cups flour (spoon in lightly, don't pack it in)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. sugar
2 cups buttermilk

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.  Thoroughly mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Add buttermilk and quickly mix ingredients together, kneading lightly.  (Too much kneading will toughen the dough.)  Form a round loaf about as thick as your fist.  Place it on a lightly greased and flour baking sheet.  Cut a cross in the top with a floured knife.  Bake for 30 to 45 minutes.  When baked, the bread will sound hollow when rapped on the top with your knuckles.  Wrap immediately in a clean tea-towel to stop crust from hardening too much (this also somehow keeps bread from tasting like baking soda.)



With the weather cooling down and autumn upon us, what are you baking?  Please share!  : )

A Few of My Favorite Things

This is probably a silly post, odd at best, but here we go....


I rearranged my bookshelves.  This includes most of my (indoor) chicken collection!  : )

Yes, my family loves World of Warcraft.  We play a lot and have some of the books and trading cards here.  Older books were my mom's.  What-nots include a white chicken I bought at a customer's garage sale, other chickens from Linda, who was a coworker at housing, a pot and vase my kids made, and the mom reading to a boy was from sister-in-law Thea who said it reminded her of me and Andrew when he was younger.

That's a baby picture of me, far left!  White chicken, horse clock and chicken pitcher was Mom's.  The two black and white photos are Mom and Dad.  He was in the Air Force, when she had mailed that photo to her brother, CR.  CR told Dad that was his girlfriend and Dad said "not for long!"  and started writing to her.  He finished his stint with the Air Force, and they got married!  My favorite fairytale come true!  : )

Here is the cowboy cookie jar my Grandpa Melton used to put his snuff.  He gave it to me sometime after getting my first apartment with my sister Shirley.  The rubberband gun in front of the cookie jar was a momento of old rubberband fights with a coworker (Jim) at housing.  Baby picture is my daughter.  Vases at the right of the shelf were from two dear ladies I knew from working at housing. Oh, more World of Warcraft books here.  Author Christie Golden is awesome, if you are interest.

 Picture of my kids when they were younger, blown up and framed by my sister Shirley who works at Walmart's camara department.  My son's Left Behind books, a cup my sister Christie gave me.

More chickens and old books belonging to Mom.  Cookbooks are laying on top of the other books.

The celtic cross was from former pastor Clay, who said the circle represents life.  The cross is bigger than life and reminds us to keep things in perspective.  I need that reminder every day!  Red cup is advertising from High School football games here.  First white chicken "lays" jellybeans!  Other two are salt and pepper shakers.  The majority of my cookbooks are here.  The photo albums are filled with family memorabilia and clipped recipes Mom had stashed.

I got so many of my chickens from coworkers at housing, where I was the "crazy chicken lady!"  The glass chicken was from coworker Shannon and the yellow chick and the candle holder were from Linda.  The brown one is a cookie jar Mom had.  I think both rocks were from a "business" trip to Hawaii, and I usually leave one Christmas thing out--not on purpose--and this year it was a pine cone ornament, up front.

Remaining books.  No what-nots here.  Our black lab Nacho has a habit of grabbing stuff and running off with it, so why tempt him?

What are your favorite things and the stories behind them?

Most Amazing Road Trip!! | lifecoachingplus

A reminder for us to take the road less traveled. 

Kathryn Schulz: On being wrong | Video on TED.com

Kathryn Schulz: On being wrong | Video on TED.com 

Ms. Schulz presents an interesting, thought-provoking topic about being wrong.  Think about this:  my viewpoint is only what I can see.  All my past...my experiences, my beliefs...color my perspective.  What would the world be like if we kept that in mind each time we talked to another person?  When leaders of countries clashed or when anyone gathered to problem-solve?  What would we bring to the table?  What could be accomplished if we set aside our "rightness" and listened?  Really listened to what another person was saying?  Would we learn something new?  Would our solutions be more substantial? 

What if?

My viewpoint is only what I can see.