It’s cold, it’s grey, it’s rainy. So it’s perfect weather for St. Patrick’s Day. Or at least, it’s the most accurate weather based on my memory of the weather in Dublin when I lived there for five months. In fact, I was so cold while watching the St. Patrick’s Day parade there I didn’t get warm again for several hours after – even under my comforter. 

This year, we are trapped inside, trying to keep ourselves and others safe from COVID-19. It’s a scary time, but that’s not going to stop me from turning on Leap Year, making a boiled dinner, and whipping up a beautiful loaf of Irish Soda Bread. 

I used to dislike Irish Soda bread because every version you would buy was loaded with sugar and raisins. The sugar made it a nice dessert, but I really hate raisins, so I would have decide whether to pick out each individual raisin or suck it up and be a miserable adult about it. 

However, I found a recipe for Irish Soda Bread in my favorite Irish pub cookbook that uses no sugar and no raisins. In fact, it uses a grand total of 4 ingredients, and is incredibly easy to make. It tastes amazing slightly warm with a load of Irish butter on top. Just keep in mind that it does need to bake a little longer than the recipe in the book states. I’ve adjusted for my recipe below, but it still may need more time depending on your oven. 

And remember, slathering more butter than necessary on the bread is not optional.