Traditional Irish Soda Bread that I Baked

This is my Irish Soda Bread Fresh Out of the Oven

Ingredients:

4 cups flour
4 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon or more if you like (not traditional but I like cinnamon with raisins)
1 cup raisins
2 cups of buttermilk (you can make buttermilk from regular milk by adding 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice per cup of milk and stir--let stand about 5-10 minutes)

Directions:

In a large bowl, Sift flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and cinnamon together. Add raisins to the flour mixture if desired.  Make a well in the flour and pour all the buttermilk into the centre.  Combine all the ingredients with your hands.  When well combined, pick up the ball of sticky dough and add flour to the bottom of the bowl to cover the surface.  Knead the dough in the bowl until you have a smooth, soft dough ball.  You can knead the dough on a pastry board if you like but I like to save time and mess by keeping it all in the same bowl.

Place round on a greased or parchment-lined pan.  Place pan into a 375 degree F oven and bake for 40 minutes.

Let cool, then slice and enjoy!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Adapted from Canadian Living