Gluten-Free, Low-Fructose Irish Soda Bread

This savory version of Irish Soda Bread is gluten-free, low-fructose and very moist and tender. Enjoy warm and slathered with butter!

Happy St. Paddy’s Day! (Wow, that was a lot more cheerful sounding than I really feel…) I recently came across a Gluten-Free Irish Soda Bread recipe and realized it would be a great bread option for someone with fructose malabsorption, especially because it’s made with white rice flour. It’s great for someone who is a novice baker. It’s a quick bread recipe, meaning that there is no yeast or rising involved. Just mix and bake. It’s also a great option for my readers who can’t eat nuts.

I’ve never made Irish soda bread before. I always meant to when I was still eating wheat, but never got around to it. I have no idea how Irish soda bread is supposed to taste, by my husband and I thought this was delicious! I guess traditional Irish soda breads have currants or raisins in them, and of course I can’t eat those, so this is a savory take on this quick bread. We enjoyed this bread with our dinner, nice and warm and slathered with butter. It’s also great for sandwiches too. Just cut off a wedge and slice it in half. Add your favorite meat and cheese.

This bread bakes up best in a cake pan, but I also tried it in a loaf pan. It tended to get a little too brown on the bottom, so the larger the loaf pan the better. This ensures that the bread gets cooked through before getting too brown on bottom. I baked this in an 8″ x 4″ loaf pan, but I’d recommend a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan. I think a light-colored metal pan works best too (as opposed to a dark, nonstick pan).

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Gluten-Free, Low-Fructose Irish Soda Bread

Ingredients

scant 1 cup milk or non-dairy substitute
1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil, light olive oil or canola oil
1 1/2 cups white rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
1 1/2 tablespoons powdered dextrose (or 1 Tbsp. sugar)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9″ cake pan or a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan.
2. Add the 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice to a glass measuring cup. Pour in milk to equal 1 cup. Stir and let sit for two minutes. Combine the milk, egg and oil in a medium bowl.
3. In a large bowl, mix the rice flour, tapioca starch, dextrose (or sugar), baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the milk mixture and blend together.
4. Pour into the prepared pan and bake 20 to 25 minutes or until top is golden brown and toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
5. Cool in pan for 15 minutes then turn out onto cooling rack or serve warm.