Swedish soda bread recipe

Don't you love a recipe with a pedigree? I do. This Swedish soda bread recipe came to me from my friend Bev, who first tasted a version of it at an opening reception at the Providence Art Club. Bev asked Joan, the artist, for the recipe; Joan had made it as Irish soda bread, with caraway seeds instead of cardamom, and shortening instead of butter. When I sampled Bev's Swedish adaptation, it seemed more like cake, so I baked mine in one of the Bundt pans I collect but seldom use. (I can't explain my fascination with Bundt pans. I just love them.) Bev made hers in a round cake pan. Serve the soda bread warm, with a pat of sweet butter and a cup of tea, when friends stop by for a mid-afternoon visit.

Swedish soda bread

From the pantry, you'll need: baking spray, butter, granulated sugar, all-purpose unbleached flour, baking powder, baking soda, raisins, cardamom.

Serves 10-12.

Ingredients

Baking spray
4 Tbsp butter, softened at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 cups all-purpose unbleached flour
4 tsp baking powder
1-1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup golden raisins
2 Tbsp ground cardamom
2-1/2 cups buttermilk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a Bundt pan (or two loaf pans) with baking spray, and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar with a wooden spoon. Stir in the flour, baking powder and baking soda, and blend all together.

Add the raisins, cardamom and buttermilk. Stir to combine, but don't overmix. Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan or loaf pans.

Bake at 350F for 40 minutes (if using loaf pans, check at 30 minutes). Let cool 10 minutes in the pan, then turn onto a cooling rack and let cool completely. (Can be frozen.)

[Printer-friendly recipe.]

More recipes in The Perfect Pantry:
Finnish pulla bread
Coffee cake with espresso-cocoa swirl
Yogurt coffee cake with pecan filling
Currant cardamom scones
Cardamom-brown sugar snickerdoodles

Other recipes that use these pantry ingredients:
Gluten-free gypsy soda bread, from Gluten-free Goddess
Brown bread, from David Lebovitz
Irish soda bread, from Andrea Meyers
Bacon Irish soda bread, from The Nourishing Gourmet
Oat soda bread, from 101 Cookbooks

Comments

Oh I love this! A bread with no yeast is a dream and this does look the best teatime or coffee time treat with butter and jam or honey. I've bookmarked this recipe. Perfect!

Butter and sugar, but not much... thanks Joan, Bev and Lydia! Sounds like a must-make.

Looks delicious. Love golden raisins, they add a warmer, apricot-y flavor to baked goods. Just happen to have buttermilk at the moment as husband was in a pancake mood over the weekend.

Jamie, I'm a huge fan of quick breads. Maybe I lack the patience for yeast, or maybe I just like the instant gratification of baking powder and baking soda. This bread/cake was delicious, especially if you love the flavor and aroma of cardamom.

Susan, this one is easy-peasy. And delicious.

Elizabeth, the sweet raisins and the cardamom work so well together. (And don't you wish buttermilk would come in pint containers as well as quarts? I always seem to have leftover from every baking project.)

So I can call it cake.
Pedigree with play, yes I like that.

I have a bundt pan but I don't know if I have ever made anything in it!

I think the attraction of the Bundt (at least for me) is the "built-in slice guide"!!!

MyKitchen, it's definitely cake to me!

Kalyn, I use my Bundt pans more for frittatas than I do for cakes. I have at least half a dozen Bundts, and I really can't explain why.

Carol, that's so true. It's especially helpful when you make a really delicious sweet cake, isn't it?

Just drink the buttermilk! I mix it with splenda and cinnamon and I think it is absolutely delicious. For better mixing, I have an aerolatte (usually to foam milk). It tastes really awesome...