i know st. paddy's day was like a month ago... but leave it to me to be forgetful... here is a quick post of some delicious cakey, not too crumbly irish soda bread that i made for one of my favorite holidays... and what i liked about this recipe is that the soda bread didn't come out rock hard, it was nice and moist, with a slight buttery flavor... and what was even better it didn't go stale the next day like most soda breads... 
irish soda bread, makes one loaf
ingredients:
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/4 cup) softened
1 teaspoon caraway seeds, (optional... i opted out!)
1 cup raisins
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
directions:
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. in a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt and stir well to mix
3. add the butter and rub in until the butter disappears into the dry ingredients
4. stir in the caraway seeds if used and the raisins
5. in a small bowl, whisk the buttermilk and egg together and mix into the dough mixture with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula
6. turn the dough out on a floured work surface and fold it over on itself and kneed several times... transfer to well greased loaf pan. Cut a cross in the top of the bread... bake for about 45 minutes check with toothpick that center is cooked
7. cool the soda bread on a rack... slice and serve with butter, jam or just enjoy it's plain old goodness :) 
and here are my two little hooligans enjoying some st. patty's day cupiecakes... they certainly are two little goofballs... :)
wishing you a happy baking day :)
