Seedy rosemary soda bread

Method

• step 1

  

  Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and sprinkle a large baking tray with a little flour. If you have digital scales, place your mixing bowl on the scales and set them to zero. Weigh the plain flour, then the wholemeal flour into the bowl.

• step 2

  

  Weigh the butter. Place a chopping board on your work surface. Chop the butter into little cubes. Add this to the flour in the bowl. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until you can’t see any little lumps.

• step 3

  

  Pick the soft leaves off the woody rosemary stalks and put the stalks in the food recycling. Use a sharp knife to chop the rosemary leaves into small pieces on the chopping board and add these to the mixing bowl.

• step 4

  

  Weigh the seeds and add these to the mixing bowl.

• step 5

  

  Use a teaspoon measure to measure the bicarbonate of soda, then add 2 tsp in total to the bowl. Now measure 1 tsp of salt and add this, too.

• step 6

  

  In a jug, measure the milk, making sure it comes to the 275ml line on the side of the jug.

• step 7

  Use a citrus juicer to juice the lemon into a bowl or cup, then use the teaspoon measure to measure 2 tsp of juice, then add these straight to the milk and mix.

• step 8

  

  Pour the milk and lemon mixture into the mixing bowl. Put your hands in and mix the ingredients together until you have a sticky dough with no dry, floury patches.

• step 9

  

  In the bowl, use your hands to shape the dough into a ball – use a little more flour if the dough feels very sticky. Tip the dough out onto the baking tray. Wash and dry your hands. Dust the dough with flour and pat it gently into a neater ball shape.

• step 10

  

  Use a knife to cut a deep cross into the top of the dough, cutting about halfway through. Place the baking tray on the middle shelf of the oven using your oven gloves – be careful, the oven racks will be very hot. Bake for 35 mins until the loaf is golden brown, then turn the oven off. Carefully remove the tray from the oven using oven gloves and transfer to a cooling rack. Leave the loaf to cool for at least 30 mins before slicing. Eat this loaf on the day you make it.