March: A Month Of Holidays

So... I don't know about you but, March is a long month of birthdays, holidays, and "Spring" (even though the temperatures don't feel like it). You know the old saying  "March goes in like a lion and out like a lamb"? I don't think that is true now a days in New England. The temperatures don't really get going until middle of May. But anyways there are lots of holidays so it is a good trade off. 

One holiday that my whole family celebrates is St. Patrick's Day. We all get together at my Nana and Papa's house. It has sort of become a family tradition. One food that we enjoy every year is the Irish Bread that my Nana makes. In fact, my great-grandmother also made this very same Irish Bread. She came over from Ireland on a boat so this was a traditional recipe for us. She also used a great sifter with a nice, fine, sift. She used this sifter for about 80 years. My Nana has used it for about 40 years. The brand of the sifter is Bromwell. These sifters are still avalible today and you can find them at this website. 

Depending upon who we make this recipe for we use currents and caraway seeds although they are optional. These are traditional Irish ingredients and they taste delicious. 

This is a picture of the sifter that my Nana has from my great-grandmother 

This is the recipe in my Nana's recipe book. 

In case you can not see the writing in the  picture, here is the recipe: 

Irish Bread (From the kitchen of my great-grandmother)

Makes 2 loaves

1 cup buttermilk

2 1/2 cups flour 

2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup margarine 

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1  cup rasins (1 1/2 cup only if no currents)

1/2 cup currents

1 tablespoon caraway seeds 

1. Sift dry ingrediants together.

2. Beat egg.

3. Add egg, buttermilk,, and dry ingreidants together. 

4. Rub rasins in sugar and flour. Make sure to throw all the excess flour and sugar off.   

5. Fold in rasins and currents. 

6. Put mix in 1 1/2 quart cassorole or 2 small loaf pans. 

7. Brush top with butter and sprinkle with sugar. 

8. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. 

9. Lower heat to 325 degrees and bake for about 20 minutes. Check for doneness after 10 minutes.