There is, in my opinion, no better way to celebrate the turning of the season (or just anything!) than with warm, freshly baked bread. You just can’t help but be mindful for a moment as you stop and appreciate the ingredients that went into the bread, the hands that made it, and the warming and grounding experience of enjoying it. That is some simple but powerful alchemy, right there.
This year for Ostara (the spring equinox) I decided to make an easy, rustic loaf of soda bread with some cheery, sweet, springy flavors. I incorporated orange zest and juice and vanilla, because the two together just put me in mind of sunshine and the sweet scent of early spring flowers.
I also sweetened up this traditionally sugarless recipe with a generous helping of the vanilla-orange-mint infused sugar I made awhile back. You could easily use plain sugar, of course, but I had this on hand and it further drives that flavor home and adds a little something extra.
My family loves snacking on this bread, and it is really nice at breakfast time, too. I like to think it’s a very hobbit-ish sort of treat to celebrate spring with!
The recipe for Orange Vanilla Soda Bread:
Ingredients
4 cups flour (all white flour, part whole wheat, or you could also try your preferred GF flour)
1 ½ tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp salt
3 Tbsp sugar (vanilla orange mint sugar)
2 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of one orange
1-2 Tbsp orange juice
1 ½ to 1 ¾ cups buttermilk
Method
Preheat oven to 400°F.
In a deep mixing bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, salt, and sugar with a whisk. Whisk in orange zest.
Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients to it. Mix together with a wooden spoon, folding and turning the bowl until a sticky dough forms. If the dough seems too dry, you can add additional buttermilk a spoonful at a time.
Scoop ball of dough out onto a large floured cutting board. Knead a few times lightly. It will still be quite sticky, but you can flour your hands and add a pinch or two of flour if it seems too wet.
Form into a large round loaf. Place in a greased / oiled Dutch oven or on parchment paper on a baking sheet. Cut an X into the top with a sharp knife. Top with a small pat of butter on each of the four quadrants if you’d like.
Cover with the Dutch oven’s lid or tent with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Bread is done when a toothpick comes out clean and/or the X in the center appears done (my X disappeared 😅 but that’s ok). It should also sound hollow if you tap it!
Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes before eating. Then, enjoy!
I love making infused sugars! Here is the recipe for Orange Mint Vanilla Sugar:
Ingredients
1.5 cups of white sugar
Zest of one orange
1 Tbsp ground dried peppermint leaf
Method
Mix the white sugar, the fresh zest of one orange, ground dried peppermint (pulsed to a powder in a coffee grinder reserved for herbs), and one vanilla bean (split and scraped, then the whole bean tossed in) in a bowl. Then spread it out to dry a while on a cookie sheet before transferring the mixture (including the vanilla bean) to a jar. The vanilla bean will continue to impart its sweet flavor in the sugar and it will only get better!
Let the jar sit tightly lidded for a few days to infuse with all the lovely orange oil and vanilla. Then you can use the sugar in teas, coffee (have you ever tried the combo of orange and coffee?), baked goods (imagine rolling sugar cookies in this!), fancy cocktail / mocktail rims, and more!
How do you plan on celebrating the start of spring, in your own way, big or small?
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
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The Herbology Faerie 