I LOVE Irish soda bread. I make it at least once a year, always around St. Patrick’s Day, and I love to slather its crumbliness in good Irish butter like Kerry Gold. It’s got a lovely crumb and had a perfect mild sweetness. This year, however — kiss me, I’m low carb, and my dreams of yummy soda bread slices for St. Paddy’s Day were seemingly dashed. But then I remembered the miracle of almond flour.
I adapted my original soda bread recipe to utilize almond flour for a lower carb version suitable for keto and gluten-free diets. I was honestly pretty shocked at how close in taste this was to the original. If you’re NOT living the low carb life, you can use this recipe instead (with this Guinness dipping sauce!), but if you’re gluten-free or low carb, this one is a dynamo.
I did include raisins/currants in this recipe but actually had none on hand, so I omitted them. I totally recommend including them, though, since they add only a minimal amount of sugar and carbs and make it so good. But it’s totally optional, as you can see.
I ended up pretty psyched that I didn’t have to skip my favorite March dish (outside of birthday desserts — it’s my birthday month!). I’ll be definitely pairing this with some corned beef and cabbage this weekend on St. Paddy’s Day.
And then you add the butter. Mmmmm.
Want more recipes in your life?
Sign up to receive recipes via email and follow along on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Bloglovin, and RSS for all of the latest updates.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups almond flour
- 2 Tbsp coconut flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 Tbsp sweetener (I used Swerve erythritol sweetener)
- 1 oz raisins or currants
- 1/2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 large eggs, whisked
- 2 Tbsp sour cream, heavy cream, or half and half
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8-inch cast iron skillet or pan and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, add the dry ingredients and raisins and mix well, mixing in any clumps.
- Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
- Form an oval loaf on the skillet or pan and score the top in an X with a knife. Sprinkle with additional sweetener if you like.
- Bake for 25-28 minutes or until golden brown, and a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once fully cooked, slice with a serrated knife and serve with good Irish butter (like Kerry Gold!).
If you make this recipe, follow me on Instagram, share a photo, and tag it #BIJOUXANDBITS. I’d love to see what you’re cooking!
Catherine Clark is a Chicago native sharing noteworthy things she sees and attempts to make in the world. She's a geek, cat lady, designer and editor by day, and noob chef by night.
Just what I was looking for! I have it in the oven, now. Can’t wait to try it.
Yay! So glad it’ll come in handy. Let me know how you like it! 🙂
is the photo above the keto version cause mine turned out more brown looking
now white?
Just pulled my loaf from the oven and it tastes FANTASTIC! I always add caraway seed to mine, 2 Tablespoons. Yummy! Lots of Buttah, too, of course! Get your green on!
Oh yes! Caraway seeds are great in it. Thanks for trying it out!
I measured my flour by weight, now looking at my dough don’t see how it’s its 10 servings. Looks roughly the size of 2 scones. Is this right?
I cut the loaf into fifths and then each slice in half to get the 10 servings. If you’d like larger slices, no worries, just double the macros (or whatever ratio) as needed.
Just pulled this from the oven, i used cranberries instead of raisins or currents (boiled the dried cranberries to make them a most 2, and then strained them)
Not sure what difference it will make in the numbers, but love this!
Thought i was going to forever be lost to soda bread! Thanks again
Hi, Brenda, Thanks for trying it out! I would think cranberries would be amazing. I’d toss pretty much any dried fruit in there. So yum. 🙂
Can I make this in a loaf tin – if so what size?
I believe it will work in a standard 9×5 loaf pan. Let us know how it works out!
could you put a packet of fast rising yeast in this reciepe?
Irish Soda Bread is not a yeast bread. Just uses soda traditionally.
Just put this in the oven, but it was very dry and crumbly. Wondering if some ingredient was missing?
It definitely does lean toward the crumbly side (not too unlike regular soda bread), but should solidify upon baking. I’ll be making it again soon so I’ll double check, but should be okay! 🙂
MYes ne was too but tasted delicious. Will make again but will add a bit more water
Thank you so much for posting this recipe! I have missed Irish Soda Bread so badly! I make it every other month or so since forever, and making it for my family and skipping it myself since becoming a type 1 diabetic on keto has been brutal. I can’t wait to make this tonight! Thank you again!
So glad it’s hitting the spot! I totally know how you feel. I only make this in bulk once or twice a year, but if I have to skip it, it’s so sad. Yay for alternative flours! 🙂
What can be used if you don’t have a cast iron skillet?
Almost anything! A sheet pan, casserole dish, it just needs a flat, oven-safe surface. 🙂
Dairy issues.
Do you think I could sub coconut cream or full fat coconut milk??
I haven’t tried it myself, but i know it’s been forgiving with alternatives like sour cream so I’m think coconut would also work. 🙂
Wondering what could possibly happen if I don’t add the coconut flour? I have all the other ingredients on hand and I want to make this right now! LOL . Will it greatly impact the recipe?
Go for it. The texture will be slightly different, but it’s pretty forgiving overall. Good luck! 🙂
Cathrine,
Could I possible add some Xanthan gum to help with crumbling? Also maybe add some butter to help a little with the dryness? I’m a first generation of an immigrant parent from Ireland & I grew up on Irish soda bread & brown bread regularly. This being my first year eating keto. I truly miss my traditional breads. Let me know what you think about adding those 2 ingredients.
Thank-You,
Lisa
Yes to both of these. I know neither are standard in traditional recipes, but they can help mimic the texture in the keto version. Let me know how it turns out! 🙂
I have mine in the oven right now! I added 1/4 tsp of xanthan gum and left out the raisins cus I didnt have any. Fingers crossed!
2 questions: is the sweetener amount for Swerve? I know sweeteners like Swerve, stevia, and monk fruit vary greatly in sweetness and need to be converted to sub one for another. Also which is preferred between sour cream and heavy whipp cream? I have both and trying to decide. Thanks!
Yes – I made this last year with the Swerve as proportioned above – it was amazing! Making it again today!
So good to hear! 🙂
I did measure for Swerve in particular. This recipe is pretty lenient on sweetener, so you can add more or less depending on how dessert-like you want the bread to be. As for which cream, sour cream will give you a more buttermilk-type of flavor with a hint of tartness, if that helps you decide. 🙂
Should the cast iron skillet be preheated?
It’s not required, but wouldn’t hurt at all. Just keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t cook too much.
This is really, REALLY good! I just baked 3 traditional Irish soda bread for a church supper, but couldn’t have any, nor did I last year since living a keto life. This is just wonderful. I did add maybe an extra scant tablespoon of heavy cream after reading about it being a bit dry, and some orange zest because that’s in my original recipe. Thank you SO much for sharing this! ☘️☘️☘️
I may do a test with a bit more cream as well to see if the recipe could use a tweak. 🙂
I made it with Lily’s chocolate chips instead of raisins or currants. It is pretty tasty!
omg good idea!!
Made this tonight for St. Patrick’s Day, and it turned out soooo good, very filling. I skipped the raisins since I didn’t have any on hand. I will be making this regularly. Not having bread on keto can get old, and this os my first attempt and i was happily suprisec. Thanks for the recipe!
So awesome! Raisins or no, we always love making it 🙂
The Irish soda brew turned out delicious. My husband liked it as did my inner guests. I’m am sorry I did not take a picture. I t was a smash. Thank you so much.
So glad to hear it! Thanks for giving it a try 🙂
Wow! 5 Stars! This was moist and delicious. I kept it keto by not adding the raisins. Looking at the picture I was afraid it would be too dry, boy was I wrong. I am eating the leftovers from 2 days ago and it’s still moist! I would also use this recipe for a keto scone. I’d add some poppy seeds and lemon zest.
This is so awesome! I’m thrilled you liked it. I’ll be stealing the lemon poppy seed idea, too. Good one! 🙂
This is FANTASTIC!!! I’ve been on the Keto diet for almost a year, and I enjoy trying recipes to keep it interesting. I’ve tried several different bread and roll recipes, and they were all fine, but this one blows them out of the water! It reminds me so much of a brown bread I used to have for lunch when I lived in Belfast. It is divine!!!
Anyway to switch the almond flour for coconut flour? We have some allergies we are dealing with? If so how much. I’m worried that if it’s already dry then the coconut flour will make it even drier.
That irish soda bread is stunning. I’m not a talented baker, but I would love to give these a try!
i love your artical.it is best oil for us. thanks for this post.
Made this the other day! Sooo delicious and easy!
I made it. Doubled the ingredients based off the number of people. The whole loaf was 83g net. Depending how it was cut, ~4/5g per serving. HOWEVER, it doesn’t matter because it was disgusting. 2/4 people that tried it, spit it out in the garbage. I followed the recipe precisely (just doubled everything).
It was so good. I might add a little more sweetener. But so good, moist and perfect.
Soda a bit too strong for me. Will reduce it or baking powder next time. Doubled sweetener (Swerve brown) and used Lily’s chips. Excellent texture and good taste. Thanks!
This bread is delicious! I didnt have coconut flour so I used 1 3/4 cup of almond flour and baked it and extra 10 minutes. It is great with butter and fig jam.
Can you use white vinegar instead of apple
Cider vinegar?
Made this morning for St Patrick’s Day. It came out nice, not crumbly. I let it cool much before trying it out with irish butter. Delicious. My only complaint is the size. I need bigger!! LOL
I was wondering if I could omit the sweetner
Just made this in Colorado, my bread did not raise…any suggestions?
made this today — without raisins to reduce carbs, with granulated swerve and sour cream — it is excellent! thank you for the recipe
Pulled this out of the oven about 15 minutes ago and took a sliver…it’s so good! From previous low-carb/Keto baking experience, I decided to add about 2T psyllium husk powder; helps mimic the “bready” texture of bread. Seemed to work well in this recipe, too. The bread did brown much more than your photo, but not a problem. Definitely a keeper! And I like that it’s not too large of a loaf…perfect size for two people for a couple of nights. (Ten servings? I don’t think so, LOL.) Thanks for this!
I am always skeptical when it comes to keto baking. I have had some great results and some miserable failures. But I was feeling super jealous tonight of the soda bread I made for my family to go with our St. Patrick’s Day shepherd’s pie…..so I decided to give this recipe a try. It is delicious! I already am planning to make more tomorrow with Lily’s chocolate chips or I may just top the plain with strawberries and whip cream!
I was very disappointed in this recipe. I don’t know what I did wrong. I followed the instructions to a T. It didn’t rise at all. The texture was not like bread dough at all, so I wondered if there was a typo in the recipe somewhere…maybe I needed more flour or cream of tartar to help it rise…so upset it didn’t work and wondering if the picture is actually true to what the recipe actually was. Mine was browner than pictured, flat like a pancake and the baking soda and powder I used was fresh so no idea what it could have been. What a waste
A bit eggy for me, and I might have made it too round/domed so it was very moist still. Maybe next time i make it more loaf shaped and bake a touch longer…… overall, it’s a good substitute for ISB for this ketochick! THANKS for the recipe
5 stars!!
My favorite soda bread – and with some Kerrygold, it satisfies the carb craving in keto style. I have made this recipe at least 10 times, and it is perfect! I’ve also done it with and without the raisins and love it both ways. Thank you for providing a perfect treat!
What a CRACKER recipe – the bread came out PERFECT – it tastes like real brown bread and Im Irish so I’d know- Love it ! Going to have it now with chowder nom nom nom – cuts lovely too by the way and didnt fall apart. Thank you for this x
Excellent! So glad it worked out for you!
I made a very basic mistake beginner’s mistake. I baked the bread, and THEN looked at the nutritional information you published.
10 servings? from one half-pound loaf??? Seriously?!?!? Come on. That is so bogus. I am sure it is good and all, but that’s not a realistic serving size AT ALL for anything larger than a house finch! I doubt It is even possible to cut it into 10 slices!
The full loaf has, by your calculations, 43 grams of NET CARBS. Not even close to a useful addition to a real keto diet.
Maybe your nutrition calculations are wrong???
You have to watch portion sizes with keto baked items!
About half of that 43 net carbs is attributed to the 1 ounce of raisins. How do you expect it to be lower than that with raisins in it. Just omit or reduce the raisins if they don’t fit into your macros. Anyway, thanks for the recipe! Looking forward to trying it tomorrow.
Hello I do t have coconut flour can I substitute it with more almond flour.
I already bought the fat buttermilk which is traditional for making soda bread & then found the recipe didn’t use it! Why? What would you think of that instead of sour cream?
Sorry that was supposed to read FULl Fat buttermilk
I have been searching for one. This one looks amazing. I think I will be adding homemade unsweetened cranberries to it instead of raisins. Thank you!
Made this yesterday for our St. Paddy’s Day Celebration. It was so good! I used sour cream and dried cherries. Not too dry, almost indistinguishable from regular soda bread, except that I didn’t get hardly any rise, so the loaf was a bit flat. Will definitely make again!
I just now baked the loaf, let it cool enough to slice it and butter it up. Delicious. I didn’t use raisins, added a tablespoon more of whipping cream and a tablespoon of melted butter. It didn’t crumble except a tad on the top giving it that soda bread textured look. Thankyou for this great soda bread recipe.
I read everyone’s comment and I’m not sure what I did wrong. Mine came out really runny like a thick pancake. I added more almond flour in order to thicken it up so it would set on the pan. I followed it to a “t” so I’m not sure what happened.
I made this last night and I was pleasantly surprised. I left out the raisins just because I’m not a fan. It was very good. Thank you!
Catherine, since there is just me – I made 1/2 of the recipe. A cute little rough loaf. I just took it out of the oven and I am “trying” to let it cool before I taste it! I don’t keep raisins on hand nor currants so mine is plain. At some point I might have to try caraway seeds.
I’m lucky in that I don’t really miss bread (I’ve been Keto for 3 years) but I made a Keto Shepherd’s Pie for St. Patrick’s Day and I did miss have a bit of bread. I am hoping this will be what I was missing.
P.S. I just tried some with butter (of course) and like it. It does need a bit something else. Since it was only 1/2 the recipe I only needed to bake it for 15 minutes and that was actually about 2 minutes too long. After reading all the comments I did add a bit more sour cream and that helped it not be too dry. Slight crumble but it slices well and holds together okay!