The Quiet Man and Irish Soda Bread

We really do have to give old weather sayings and folklore their due. Nearly everyone has heard the expression that March comes in like a lion and goes out a lamb. Actually, what most people don't realize is that the expression is conditional: if March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb. If, however, it comes in like a lamb, it will go out like a lion. That has certainly been true this year in Boston.

Yummy Irish Soda Bread batter

March blew in gently, all soft breezes and dandelion-scented air. Towards the middle of the month, the temperatures hit seventy and eighty degrees. I walked around in my capris and sandals. I opened windows and admired the dappled sunlight streaking across my hardwood floors. It was too good to last, though. Boston has been stuck in a cold spell the past week, and some snow is even predicted for tomorrow, the last day of March. It seems as if March is exiting more like a polar bear than a lion.

Yummy Irish Soda Bread, front view

However, the nice thing about the month of March is that I know it is spring, no matter how cold it is. The crocuses and dandelions are blooming in my yard. Beautiful robins hop around the grass, celebrating the new life around them. Everything is green, green, green...including one of my favorite holidays, St. Patrick's Day. I celebrated St. Patrick's Day this year just the way I like it, surrounded by good food and family. I honestly don't understand people who want to get completely drunk on St. Patrick's Day. I think that's demeaning to Irish culture and a waste of an opportunity to observe such a lively spring holiday. This St. Patrick's Day, surrounded by my family and my fiance, I danced to The Pogues, laughed at my dad's funny green hat, devoured my mom's potato croquettes, and made my signature Grasshopper Pie. Moreover, I tried a great new recipe for a simply delicious Irish Soda Bread.

Yummy Irish Soda Bread slice

The movie I picked for today was The Quiet Man, but Dan hasn't had a chance to write the thought piece for that. And I haven't had a chance to watch it. I know, I know, shocker, but I've never seen The Quiet Man. I know it's directed by John Ford and it stars the iconic John Wayne. I've seen many of their collaborations in my Western film classes and elsewhere. I'm very curious to watch this film because I heard that it offers a lot of talking points. It is immensely popular around here during St. Patrick's Day, and some hold it up as a celebration of Irish-America and a love letter to the Old Country. However, others say that it enforces outdated stereotypes of a poor and rural country inhabited solely by "quirky" characters. As I said, I haven't seen the film, but I am excited to view it and better understand both sides of the argument.

Yummy Irish Soda Bread coming at you!!!

There's no argument, though, about this delicious soda bread. I adapted it from a Taste of Home magazine...I love that magazine to pieces; it never steers me wrong. What attracted me to this particular recipe was the fact that it contained sour cream, which I knew would give the bread a soft, creamy texture. My mother and I both hate foods that have really dry textures, so I decided that this was the bread for me. I also liked the addition of the caraway seeds. I wasn't too familiar with them, but they added the perfect hint of spice and tang to the bread. They reminded me of the fennel seeds my Nonna uses in her taralli, which are these savory, hard Italian pretzel-like treats. (I would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that two days after St. Patrick's Day is St. Joseph's Day, a celebration of Italian-American culture. The pastries of the day are zeppole, or Italian donuts filled with cream. Yum!)

Yummy Irish Soda Bread
Adapted from Kerry Barnett-Amundsen's Taste of Home recipe
Ingredients:

• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp caraway seeds
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups (16 oz) fat-free sour cream
• 3/4 cup raisins

1) Combine flour, caraway seeds, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and the sour cream. Stir the egg mixture into the flour mixture until it is just moistened. Fold in raisins.

2) Spoon batter into a greased 9-in springform pan. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for ten minutes. Remove the sides of the pan to release bread. Cut into wedges, serve warm.

Next time: No clue. Any suggestions? I welcome all ideas. I only ask two things: (1) I cook on a budget, so no outlandish or expensive ingredients that would be hard for the average cook to obtain (2) I like to cook fresh and in season...if you suggest a pumpkin dessert, I will wait until October or November to make it because pumpkin is not in season now. By all means suggest any dessert you like, but know that you might have to wait awhile to see it! 

Happy birthday, Nonna! Felice compleanno!