Irish Soda Muffins

These Irish soda muffins were inspired and adapted from my friend Elaine’s Irish Brown Soda Bread recipe over at DishesDelish.com. It’s a really great post and you should totally check it out if you want to learn more about the history of Irish soda bread and her recent trip to Ireland (where she got to sample plenty of authentic Irish soda breads, firsthand).

I’ve been cutting way back on eggs and dairy these days, so I made a few changes to accommodate that. I substituted a shredded apple for the butter and egg. The buttermilk stayed, though: I figured it was probably a pretty important ingredient and didn’t want to skip it. Elaine mentioned that she uses “Saco Powdered Buttermilk” so I used that in addition to soy milk. I have no idea what dark magic makes Saco’s so low in fat, but it works! I recently picked up a big ol’ jug of Merle’s pure maple syrup in Upstate NY, and used that instead of honey. Oh, and I forgot to cut in the cross to ward off the devil (you’ll have to read her article if you want to know what the heck I’m talking about!).

I also wanted something a little more “portable” for when I’m running out the door in the morning, so I baked them in a muffin tin instead of a loaf pan. This requires you to cut the baking time down to 25 minutes instead of 40 minutes (since now they’re smaller and there’s more cooking surface area surrounding them). Using Bob’s Red Mill 100% stone ground and spelt flours punches up the protein so they’re great for breakfast (hence the category!).

She’s totally right about the jam. Use it! Irish soda muffins + raspberry jam = yummy deliciousness. See recipe and nutritional information below!