Irish Brown Bread

I love St. Patrick's Day. I don't even know if I have any Irish in my blood, but I still love the holiday. In America, we wear green and drink a lot of green beer, but actually in Ireland, it's a quiet, holy day. Either way, this bread is great for the occasion.

I think I love Ireland because of the culture, the landscape, and the cute, red-headed rascally boys that live there. I dig those red heads; that's why I nabbed one. He's not rascally, thank goodness. Now if only I could get him to speak with an Irish accent....

This quite a wholesome loaf that comes together in minutes. It's leavened with baking soda, so there's no resting and rising time.

Use a mixer (or a spoon) to get the ingredients together. Turn out the sticky blob onto a well floured surface. Gently knead it until it stays in a ball shape. Don't handle it too much or you'll get rock hard bread. Divide the dough in half and reshape into a ball.

You can add a bit of flair to the tops of the loaves by giving them a light coat of milk or egg and then sprinkling seeds or oats on top.

Bake them at 425 degrees for 10 minutes then lower the temperature to 400 degrees and continue baking for another 10 minutes. Check to see if they are done by tapping on the bottom and listening for a hollow sound. I like to check with a thermometer. When the internal temp reaches 185 degrees, then they're done. I had to bake mine for an additional 5 minutes.

If you didn't over knead, you'll have a light crumb. Look at all of those whole grains. Yay, happy colons.

Generously slather with butter, honey, peanut butter, almond butter, jam, cream cheese, etc. Try toasting it and topping with Greek yogurt and honey. So good!

Happy St. Patrick's Day and enjoy!