Gluten free Irish soda bread with buttermilk — Pain irlandais au lait ribot

You would not think that it’s been pouring rain outside. All night and day. Unceasingly. All weekend actually. So I bought bunches of colorful Ranunculus flowers, to cheer up the house and make it sunny.

And we took long breakfasts and played games with Lulu, teaching her new hand tricks and how to toss a ball–Oh the joy to see her so proud that she can do it. And when the games were over and she was back to take a nap, I baked muffins and made a pot of red lentil soup for lunch.

So after all, it’s been a lovely weekend. Despite the fact that we didn’t go out. Except for P. heading out to buy milk.
I also felt a sudden urge to bake a loaf of Irish soda bread. A large round loaf with a golden crust that made me want to bite in it the way I would in a baguette–le croûton (the end of the baguette), you know, is the best part.
Patricia, my mother-in-law, would have been proud of that loaf of Irish soda bread, I think. She is the one who introduced me to it during my first visit. Already thirteen or fourteen years ago. And it’s also at her place that, last weekend in Chicago, I found the inspiration to bake. I spotted an Irish cookbook with gluten free recipes, and scribbled down the recipe quickly, right as we were about to leave for the airport.

“You should bake a loaf for Saint Patrick’s day,” she said while she noticed that I was busy taking notes.
“I might, ” I said.
And I did. On Saturday morning. Adding my own touches and edits–such as, for example, not using tapioca flour since I don’t care for the taste of that particular flour in any baked goods, or adding quinoa flakes and using quinoa, millet and sweet rice flours.
“What are you making?” P. asked when he walked into the kitchen filled with the aromas of something obviously baking in the oven.
Before I had time to respond, he went on: “Oh yum!” after he caught sight of the bread in the oven.
It was the first slice of Irish soda bread that Lulu ate–since after all, she is 50% Irish too.
It was also the first slice that we ate since quite a long time.
Too long, both P. and I agreed.















I’ve also recently found out that La Tartine Gourmande was nominated as one of the 







