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ROUSES.COM
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bread soda
by
Chef Matt Murphy, The Irish House,
New Orleans
H
omemade soda bread became popular in Ireland in the
early 1800s with the introduction of baking soda, which in
Ireland, we call bread soda.This was around the first wave
of Irish immigration to New Orleans.White flour and buttermilk, a
byproduct of butter, was mixed with the baking soda, which acts as
a leavening agent (like yeast), and the bread was cooked over coals
(hardly anyone had ovens back then). Dried fruit was occasionally
added to the mix, sometimes sugar, maybe an egg. A cross was cut
on the top of the bread to allow heat to penetrate while the bread
cooked (and, for the superstitious, to let the devil out of the bread).
Even with the introduction of ovens, soda bread remained popular in
Ireland.I grewup inDublin,andwe both bought andmade soda bread
at home. We used the leftover bread to make bread pudding. When
I arrived in New Orleans after
cooking in Ireland, London, and
restaurants around the world, I
was surprised to discover people
here give the French credit for
bread pudding. Go way outta
that! I know a few descendents
of the early residents of the
Irish Channel (on the riverside
of Magazine across from the
Garden District) who will argue
with that.
Bread pudding is typically sweet,
but I like a savory version. It’s
great with a pint of Guinness.
Irish Soda Bread
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
2
cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
¾
teaspoon baking soda
½
teaspoon Rouses salt
1
cup well-shaken buttermilk
2
tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1¼ cup sharp white Irish Cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
¼
cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1
tablespoon caraway seeds
Custard:
2
tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1¼ cup sharp white Irish Cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
¼
cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
4
large eggs
2½ cups Rouses whole milk
8
(6-ounce) ramekins or a 2-quart shallow gratin or baking dish
HOW TO PREP
In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt, buttermilk, butter and cheese.
Fold in caraway seeds. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and milk to
make a custard. Pour the custard over the flour-cheese mixture and using your
hands gently combine. Don’t need to knead the dough, though, it will leaven
on its own.
Did You Know?
The Irish House was just named Best Irish Pub in the United
States by Fox News.
Old World classics like shepherd’s pie and bangers and mash
are served alongside upscale fare such as vegetable risotto and
seared salmon with a curry drizzle. Choose from a selection of
some five-dozen beers, with at least a dozen on tap, to wash
down your meal.
Chef Matt Murphy
The
BREAD WOMAN
of New Orleans
by
Chef Chaya – Rouses Bakery Director
B
y what ever name you use, the Mother of Orphans, Saint Margaret,
Angel of the Delta, the Bread Woman of New Orleans, Margaret
Haugherty ranks among the most fascinating characters in NewOrleans’s
history. An Irish immigrant, Margaret dedicated her life to feeding the
poor and hungry and sheltering the city’s orphans. After loosing her own
family twice, once when orphaned at 9, and again when she lost her
husband and baby to yellow fever at 23, Margaret devoted the rest of
her life to caring for our city’s destitute. Starting with a humble dairy cart
business to scrape together money to feed hungry children, she built her
empire to include Margaret’s Steam and Mechanical Bakery and the Klotz
Cracker Factory. Never straying from her roots, she used the proceeds
for these successful businesses to fund four orphanages in New Orleans,
including St. Elizabeth’s on the corner of Napoleon and Prytania. When
Margaret died in 1882, the Mayor of New Orleans and two Louisiana
lieutenant governors led her funeral procession through streets of packed
mourners to Old St. Patrick’s Church, where she was given a state funeral.
Margaret was as generous in death as in life; she left almost everything to
charities for widows, orphans, and the elderly.
IRISH