by Caitlin Kenney

description
Bryant Park Project

Caitlin Kenney's winning Irish soda bread on the left. Loser Tricia McKinney's bread on the right.

I would like to thank judges Brian McCabe (official Irish citizen) and Ian Chillag (wannabe Irishman) for selecting my Irish soda bread as the winner of the BPP Bakeoff. Ian described my bread as "sweeter" and a "more enjoyable eat", and Brian chose it for its classic presentation.

I used a more traditional recipe than my competitor Tricia McKinney, who used currants and caraway seeds, but I must admit my recipe includes a few ingredients you would never see in a real Irish soda bread. I made a few tweaks to the recipe I used by leaving out the caraway seeds, adding more buttermilk to the dough after mixing it, and letting it rest for 30 minutes before baking.

I would like to thank the ultimate Irish culinary team Margaret Martin and Joe Jackson for their thoughtful advice and guidance. Beannachtai na Feile Padraig!