Can this be made ahead?

As with all bread, it is at its most scrumptious when it is brand new, but it will still be lovely for another day or two. If it lasts that long.

Where can I find buttermilk?

Buttermilk usually hangs out next to the cream in the dairy section of your supermarket. You can use either low-fat or full fat buttermilk.

Where can I find all those exotic grain ingredients?

I promise they aren't too hard to find. Look in both the baking and the organic/health food sections of your store for the flours and oat bran, and the cereal section for the wheat germ and the oatmeals. The King Arthur website is also a great source for these flours and grains.

What is the difference between Irish brown bread and Irish soda bread?

Irish brown bread is denser and nuttier than Irish soda bread, which is milder and has a softer texture. Irish brown bread uses several different flours and grains to get that hearty flavor, while soda bread uses white flour alone and has a milder, sweeter taste.

Have a question I didn't cover?

Pop your question in the Comments section under the recipe card and I will answer pronto!

Irish Brown Bread: A Must-Try Family Recipe

Name: Irish Brown Bread
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h
Cuisine: Irish
Ingredients: 1 ½ cups all purpose flour; 2 teaspoons baking soda; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 2 teaspoons salt; 1 cup whole wheat flour; 1/2 cup oat bran (see note); 1/2 cup wheat germ; 1/2 cup rolled oats oatmeal; 1/2 cup steel cut oatmeal; 2 cups buttermilk; 1 egg; ¼ cup honey

Irish Brown Bread

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Hearty and substantial, this Irish brown bread recipe is perfect with soups, stews, or all by itself with a slathering of soft butter.

Author: Kate Morgan Jackson
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Yield: 2 loaves 1x
Category: Breakfast
Method: Oven
Cuisine: Irish
Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

Scale

1 ½ cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oat bran (see note)
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup rolled oats oatmeal
1/2 cup steel cut oatmeal
2 cups buttermilk
1 egg
¼ cup honey

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Instructions

Preheat oven to 350.
Combine 1 cup white flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, whole wheat flour, oat bran, wheat germ and oatmeal. In another bowl, mix together buttermilk, egg and honey.
Pour buttermilk mixture into flour mixture and stir together as lightly as possible just to combine. Turn out on floured surface (if you have a silicone baking mat that is a great surface to put the dough on). The dough will be very sticky.
Fold the dough over on itself a few times, adding as much of the remaining white flour as needed to make a dough that is not too sticky. Divide in half.
Form into two rounds, tucking the dough under to form a taut rounded top. Place on a parchment or Silpat lined cookie sheet.
Cut a cross in the top of each loaf. Prick each quarter once to let the fairies out.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 40 minutes, rotating the pan after 20 minutes. Internal temperature should be about 190 degrees. Remove to a rack to cool before cutting.

Notes

- - Oat Bran: You can use any of the following in place of the 1/2 cup of oat bran: King Arthur Harvest grains blend, Malted Wheat flakes, Barley flakes, Organic Oat Bran, Whole flaxseed or any combination of these. The King Arthur website is a great resource for all these ingredients.
- - Oatmeal: Rolled oats are the kind you use for regular oatmeal. Steel Cut oats are the firmer oats that have a coarser texture. You can find both of these in the breakfast aisle.
- - Buttermilk: Either full fat or low fat is fine.

Find it online: https://www.framedcooks.com/irish-brown-bread/